I am a transport nerd. I love trains, buses, bicycles, public (and green) transport in general. Today I decided to take the cheap, slow way to Buenos Aires. First, I took the bus to Monte Grande, where I had an errand. Then I took the train to Buenos Aires. The whole trip would usually take one hour. Today was a little different: the bus ride took two hours and the train ride almost 40 minutes. But, it was very cheap! The bus ride cost 4.50 pesos, and the train ride cost 3.50 pesos. As a comparison, the nice bus I usually take costs 40 pesos.

The train ride was my favorite. There were a lot of people on the train, and lots of stuff to look at. Many people come on the train to sell things, and there are also people asking for money, including little children. It is sad to see the children begging, or performing for money, but it was interesting to see how the conductors didn’t do anything about it. A couple of them would pat the children on their heads. Also, the conductors did not seem too strict about having tickets. A lady who looked very poor and was carrying a small child, said she had misplaced her ticket, and the conductor did not do anything. Shortly thereafter, a young man gave the woman his ticket, so that if there was another control she would have one. I thought that was a very sweet gesture. Some compassion in a tough world.

Here is a photo of the rather run down train.