校巴

Shortly after the dental visit with my daughter, I had a teaching session in the university campus early in the morning. As many of you may know, I do not drive (although I do have a driving licence), and, naturally, I took the train to the university station and got to the main campus by school bus.

Believe it or not, this was the first time I took a school bus since 1988 – over a quarter of a century. In my student days, the university was a simple aggregate of three colleges, and the hill was by and large a rural area, full of snakes and cockroaches. There was only one route for the school bus that stopped at each and every college, as well as the main campus, and it was free.

But, shortly after I graduated, we had a different Vice Chancellor. The school bus began to charge its passengers. Not a huge amount, of course. But, nonetheless, a charge. Over the subsequent years, there were no fewer than a dozen of occasions that I could choose to take the school bus (alas, I took up an academic post for 15 years already), but I deliberately neglect the option because I felt uneasy to pay for something that used to be my welfare.

Fortunate for me, the school bus was free of charge again a few years ago (I am unaware of the change until very recently), and I decided to claim my benefit again.

How?

I turned off my Nexus and enjoyed the short trip.