Bus - teasing

I have never appreciated how difficult it is for women to travel by town bus, till I started switching 2 buses to get to work, when I miss my office cab (which happens at least twice a week).

First of all, getting into the bus in Bangalore itself is a problem. In Coimbatore there is an unspoken-but-followed rule that men use the rear door and women, the front. Here there is absolutely nothing like that. And sometimes, buses have just one door. And the whole lot of people end up cramming into the front door. If there is no separate conductor to issue tickets, then what follows is a long wait on the steps till the driver issues tickets and having to endure the pushing of people from behind. By the time I get into the bus, my neatly ironed clothes, my makeup and my done hair all get half un-done. If the bus is one of those 3-seater:2 seater ones with a tiny aisle, and I have to stand in the aisle, then that is the worst fate.

Oh yes. I have to mention the staring-men experiences. I have noticed that, somehow IT women, like us get stared at a lot in the bus. Quite possibly, because of our smart clothes and accessories. But I end up feeling like a mannequin on display. Yes, the pushing and pulling from men is an inherent part of the bus travel. Actually, I have worked out a pretty neat technique as a counterattack. And I would urge all women to try this. Might work. There is always this certain 'look' from men which suggests that they are probably going to do something stupid. Identifying such men comes with practice. One symptom is that they keep constantly looking my way. I generally keep my face grim. Because that somehow gives the impression that I wouldn't take shit from his type. I also make it obvious that I think he might do something silly by glaring at him once or twice. If that doesn't work, then I move 2-3 steps away so that he knows that I think he is up to something. It also happens that an asshole sometimes sits next to me. One good thing is that the 'Ladies seat' concept is pretty strong over here. So if another woman is standing, without a seat I call out to her and get her to sit next to me.
If everything fails, and the guy goes overboard (probably has his hormones are screwed up) then I just raise my voice a little, look straight at his face and say "Whats your problem?". That ALWAYS works. But it never comes to that most of the time.

Phew!! its almost an emotional journey..this..traveling by bus to work! I marvel at the women who have to do it everyday. By the time I reach work, I have depleted my emotional balance for the day and have to recoup by orkutting and 'you-tube'ing for half hour ;). And of course, repairing my make-up before I get in ;)

Initially, if ever there is a nasty experience, then I used to be upset about it the whole day.I used to swear and curse the whole of male species and get very irritated. Now, I'm cool about it. I have accepted that most men have their brains in the wrong place and we women need to deal with it smartly by giving them a slap so that their brains jerk back to their original position (atleast for a while) because it invariably slides back because of gravity