What Happens When A Bus Loses Rear Suspension

I had the craziest trip to Sara today.  Sara lives in Svatovo, which is normally an uneventful three hour bus ride north of me.  I was supposed to be assisting another PCV this afternoon, but that was cancelled after I was already home from work, so after a quick shower and packing, I headed for the bus station to take the first available seat to Svatovo.  Originally, I had planned to leave on Saturday AM at 630A, but than realized that I could get the 425P on Friday afternoon.  And suddenly, with a rapidly changing schedule, I was able to leave at 220P. 

As the bus pulled out of the station at 223P, I was really excited that I would be to Sara by 530P.  Yeh!  The bus made what seemed like a thousand stops while trying to get out of Lugansk, but finally we were actually out of the city limits and I was fast asleep.  My iPod had a dead battery, but the hum of the bus put me right to sleep.

And then the BUMP!!!

The bump woke me out of a hard sleep.  And it was irritating, but I quickly went back to a closed eye position.  And then we were slowing down.  I just figured we were in a village, which we were.  But then we proceeded to stop and the driver made his way up the aisle.  Now mind you, there are people and bags in the aisle. (In Ukraine, you can board the bus without a ticket and just pay the driver for the amount needed to cover for whatever village you will be dropped at between departure and final destination.  And if there are no seats, you stand.  So, this bus had 30 seats and there were 36 people.)

The driver proceeds to find the correct size the screwdriver needed and adjust his head lamp.

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OMG, I so want to take a picture of the bus driver who just unscrewed the floor board in the aisle and is proceeding to climb under the bus with a headlamp on … Awesome!

And this is all happening while the bus is still running.  There is no weird noise, so we can not figure out what is going on.  But, I have lived in Ukraine for nine months now and nothing phases me anymore.  Odd things to an American happen every day in Ukraine!

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Oh, now we are backed into an auto repair place .. With a really full bus .. Hilarious!

The driver cannot figure what is wrong, so we pull into the first auto repair place on the outskirts of a village.  Mind you, we are in a huge bus.  The driver then backs into a repair bay between two buildings with about six inches to spare on either side.  It was incredible to watch.  And suddenly 36 of us are just chillin’ in a bus on a repair bay.  A Ukrainian friend texts and asks if I need language assistance, I say no, because although people are calling family and friends, no one has the faintest idea what is going on.  Even if I had great Russian skills I still would have no idea what was going on.  HUH!!!

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Almost had freedom .. But alas our bus is back into the dark repair bay .. So far no one is jumping ship!

At this point I was amazed that everyone was still on the bus, but really where are people going to go.  Besides a few taking a bathroom break, we are all still here.  It was crazy!!!

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Oh, we seem to be welding under the bus now .. This just gets better and better!  Need cards and vodka about now!

Yup, this is where I started thinking ‘Papa Sergei would not be happy about this situation’.  Papa Sergei is the head of Safety and Security for all PCV’s in Ukraine.  He is the one guy who never wants to know your name when you are done with service, because that means you never had to call him and are going home safe and sound. 

See, the bus had just filled up with gas as we were leaving Lugansk.  Yup, we all stayed on the bus for the fill up and now there is welding going on under the bus with a full gas tank. 

For many years I had an office right next to the facilities department of a semiconductor company.  They had some great pictures on the cubicle walls.  But the one of a guy in the middle of a pool full of water on a metal ladder changing a light blub is the one I still remember to this day.  Ukrainian or American, it does not matter, men do some crazy things without really processing the result if things go very bad, very quickly.

A bus with 36 people on it and a full gas tank while welding underneath it still makes me just shake my head a bit and chuckle.

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They just lifted the back end .. And we are now sitting at a major tilt .. And ALL of us are still on the bus!

Suddenly I was looking down the bus (I was in the back row) and we were now hanging out at a fairly substantial tilt. Being in the last row means I was sitting a bit higher, so it took me minute to see the tilt.  And then I just chuckled to myself.  By now I had my Kindle out and was reading, so I didn’t even the feel the bus go up.  So funny!!!

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And half the bus just unloaded .. A quick call to Yuri for translation help and turns out we have a new bus coming .. and Yuri tells me I am 20km from Lugansk with no marshutka .. so I am just hanging out .. And will eventually get to Sara .. Really excited I took an earlier bus instead of the 425P, so I could get started on my weekend! LOL!

This was interesting!  But Yuri assured me that I should just stay on the bus.  I had a ticket and the driver was arranging to get another bus.

Shortly after I hung up with Yuri, the driver came back on the bus, made some announcements and suddenly the entire bus unloaded.  Now I was starting to have a bit of anxiety.  Not really panicked yet, because Yuri had already offered to come and get me, but really wondering what was going on. 

So another call to Yuri and some translation help.  Then I just held the phone up, so Yuri could hear the conversation around me, now things are just plain hysterical, and Yuri is starting to laugh at me.  Yuri tells me it is just my luck and he knew something like this would happen.  See, I have enough Russian to shop and live, but not enough to follow fast conversations or understand what is going on around me.

But Yuri assures me that if I just stick close to the broken bus another bus will be coming.  I have now found a group of four college age girls who are also going to Svatovo and I keep close to them. 

I called Sara to let her know what is going on and I see the bus driver hop in a car and leave.  It is 533P, so I am hoping that he will be back in 90 minutes.  Then I call Andrew, who has been on my email list and let him know the latest.  He repeats that this is just my luck (LOL!!) and tells me that the driver is more likely to take two hours to return.   

While I am on the phone and trying to stay warm by wandering around the parking lot, I take a walk around the bus.  I suddenly realize that the rear bumper is almost sitting on top of the rear tire, which means that something happened to the rear suspension.  I knew that the BUMP was trouble!!!

Mind you, by now it is dark and cold outside.  Eventually many of us head back onto the old bus to try and stay just a little bit warmer.

Yuri calls at 710P and says he is coming to get me.  He is bribing me with hot food and tea, and I was cold, so this made me laugh.  I am so lucky to have Yuri, Andrew and Vlad (well, Vlad when he is actually in the same country I am) who worry about me and make sure I am ok.

So, Yuri is now on his way to get me.  But I really want to see Sara, so I am not sure if I really want him to come.  But he is worried and insistent.

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And the journey continues ..  New bus that seats 15 and has 22 of us .. Cozy, but warming up .. where are those shots of vodka you love so much, ukraine .. I am so ready!  Svatovo and Sara, here I come!

Wahoo!  Two minutes after I get off the phone with Yuri, the new bus arrives.  I quickly called him back and told him I was headed to Svatovo.  The driver quickly loads us all and we are on the road again.  Yeh!!!

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Made it!  First up Pelmeni … and then Mulled Wine!