The journey to Phoenix

Monday 13th June 2011

After our busy Saturday, we spent Sunday not doing much other than washing and catching up downloading photos etc.

On Monday morning we got up early (2am actually)......well I hadn't actually gone to bed. We planned to catch the early bus to Phoenix and it pays to be at the bus station an hour or more before your bus. So we packed up our bags, had a quick coffee and tiptoed out of the hostel. Less than an hour before there was still plenty of action on the street but when we left around 3am all was quiet. For the first time it was quite cool ourside. No problem, it would be warm in the bus station......or so we thought!!

Lesson one: Check signs on doors of bus stations. (Apparently this one is not open until 10am. If you are getting on an early bus you just wait at the door).

Lesson two: Don't drink coffee AND a whole bottle of water before heading to bus stations that are not open (I think this one is self explanatory!!).

Anyway no problem, we will hang out with the locals - there were already three blokes there when we got there closely followed by another bloke and a young girl. One guy was trying to sleep, curled up on top of his bags, the others were quite chatty.

Well you really meet some characters at bus stations!!!

It was a little chilly but one of the blokes obviously didn't tolerate cold very well at all. There was some light reference made to the need for a camp fire and after finally getting coffee from the nearby fast food establishment (they were only open for drive throughs) he proceeded to set fire to his cup and paper wrapping in an effort to keep warm. Obviously this was working so next thing he is rummaging through all the rubbish bins finding anything burnable.

Someone had ditched a metal drawer in the bus parking area and he dragged it over and set his fire going in it. All the time talking away to himself and us and keeping the whole lot of us highly entertained.

Next thing he decided he was hungry and from his bag produced some cold chicken which he proceeded to heat up on the fire.

He was hilarious. Especially when we heard sirens in the distance and someone mentioned it may be the fire brigade. He quickly tried to put out the fire which caused heaps of smoke which he tried to disperse using his spare shirt......

I really wish I had taken a photo of this one!! We were still laughing when we got onto the bus.