As he leaves behind the city he grew up in , all sorts of thoughts and ideas starting popping up in his mind. He has taken the first step but what next? He is leaving for a place he has never been to before. will he be able to fulfill his dreams and aspirarions? was it worth leaving the house? is he going to be alright all on his own? These were the first thought over the obstacle he will have to face. But he have made up his mind that for atleast a year or two, he wont look back and only move forward.
Another 15 to 20 mins have passed and the seat next to him was still empty. Thinking there is no one taking the seat, he placed his bagpack on the empty seat and as he was relaxed, the bus stopped for another passenger waving that yellow ticket signalling that he is also a passanger on the bus. As the bus door slides open, a young lad at his early twenties entered, checked on his ticket and looked around for his seat and walked right toward the only empty seat available. The new passanger had just one small back pack which he stuffed it in the rack above.
Before the new passanger could sit, he had to remove his back pack from the seat which he did and the new passanger made himself comfortable next to him.
Few minutes passed by and he thought to himself that the journey will take 2 days untill it reaches it destination. 6 to 7 hours a day in the bus and a one night halt along the way. Where he is heading is a totaly a new place for him. He hasnt made any arrangement for the one night stay on the way. And what if he needed some help or assistance. So he decided to introduce himslef and probably make a friend out of a total stranger. Afterall, they were both around the same age. So he approached the passenger next to him..
"Kuzu (its a casual way of saying hello), are you going to Mongar?" in a descent manner.
The new passenger turned towards him and said
"kuzu. Yes, i am leaving for Mongar. You?"
"Yeah, me too. Its a long journey ahead of us yeah? By the way, i am Jurmey"
The new passenger approached with a fist "i am called Sonam" and for a moment Jurmey was confused whats happenning because he didnt have a lot of close friends and didnt know what to do but he recollected seeing in some movies that its a fist bam, so they exchnged the fist and their journey as a seat mate began.
Sonam pulled out his phone and made a called to his mom.
"Mom, i have boarded the bus just now and i will probably reach Bumthang(the town where they wil spend the night) at aroumd 5 pm". There was a pause as he was listening to his mom and after a while
"no mom, i havent booked a room yet but dont worry about it, i got in the first bus towards Bumthang amd as soon as i arrive, i will get one room and will call you". another few seconds of pause and
" okay mom, i will call you when i get there". and he hung up.
Than Sonam turned to Jurmey and they started conversing like any two stranger would.
"So, Jurmey. Tell me why you going to Mongar. Are you from there?"
"Nahh.. I am from Thimphu(the city they just left and the capital city of the country). I landed myself a job over there in a restaurant as an assistant cook and thats why i am moving there. As a matter of fact, i havent gone pass Wangdue(another city) in my entire life. I was born and brought up in Thimphu and i have basically lived my entire life there".
"Woooohh" exclaimed Sonam and the look on his face was the look of total surprise.
"How old are you bro?"
"24" said Jurmey.
"So am i. And i have been to almost every province in the country. Its a pitty that you havent gone pass Wangdue. No worries dude, you gonna love what you are about to experience. Oir country Bhutan is a wonderdul place. A lot of foreign people call it heaven on earth. By the way, i am a tour guide. I have been in this field for the past 3 years and thats the reason i have been to almost every major cities in the country."
And to Jurmey's relief, hes got a seat partner whose travel experience seems well groomed. And Sonam could actually be his first stranger friend he made on his own. All those people of his age he knew before was family friends or relatives. They did spend some time together but it was all out of necessity and not because of genuine feeling of friendship. It was nothing more than an obligation.
"Sonam, why are you going to Mongar. I heard you talking to your mom earlier. Are you from Mongar?"
Jurmey was trying to make some petty talks.
"Yes, i am from Mongar. My mother and my younger sister still lives there. Since i dont have any tours for next few weeks, thought i will pay them a visit. More over, the annual ritual is around the corner. i make sure i attend the ritual when i am free and iys been 2 years since i last attended the ritual."
Meanwhile the driver of the bus started playing soft Bhutanese music. And from track to track, there was few western songs and bollyhood songs. The other passengers were engaged in their little talks. Some of the passengers were already asleep. Some had their ear piece pluged in, obviously listenning to the music of their choice.
There was this strange aroma in the bus, it was the smell of beatle nut but it was so strong that Jurmey had to know what it was.
"Sonam, can you smell that odour? Its getting stronger and unbearable".
"Yeah, thats the smell of unpeeled Doma(beatle nut). Guess you are not used to it huh! Thats the kind of souvineer people normally take to their village to give it away as gift for their family, naughbour and friends".
"Wow, its getting stronger with every passing minute. I dont know if i will be able to witstand the smell for long. Do you think you can do something about it?".
Jurmey havent been travelling a lot. And this was an all new experience for him. He kindda felt awkward to ask someone he just met to do somerhing about it but he didnt really had a choice.
"No worries dude, if the smell is really bothering you, we could ask the driver to place it somewhere else so the smell doesnt reach us. I am pretty sure the smell could be bothering other passengers as well. "
And as if the driver heard it, the bus stopped. It wasnt for the reason he imagined but it was a pee stop. And the driver stopped the bus near a road side vendor stall. like always, there was a lot of dried cheese hanging from above the stall. Right infront, there was seasonal fruits and vegetables.Local cheese and butter. Plenty of dried red chilli sealed in plastic bags. By the rack behind the seller, there were other packed goods such as chips, juice, water and other eatables. Passengers started getting off the bus. Almost all of them went to the toilet next to the shop. There was a que to use the toilet. Some of the passengers were buying stuffs from the stall like juice, water, dried cheese and off course doma. He didnt actually had to use the restroom bit he decided he should, afterall, everyone was using it. So he stood there in que. He was basically last in line. When everyone was done, and he got in to pee, to his surprise, the condition of the toilet was horrible. The smell of urine filled up his nostrills and it was unbearable. He simply couldnt bear the condition of the toilet and had to leave without taking a luu. As he was buying a bottle of water and some chips, from the cornee of his eye, he saw Sonam talking to the bus driver. He just wanted to make sure that the talk was about relocating the doma bag. As he got closer, he heard the conversation.
"Guru jee. When and where are we going to have breakfast?".
'Guru jee?' Thought Jurmey. Thats a hindi term and he was sure it meant teacher or a master. India has a huge influence over Bhutanese people. They share territorial border and almost 90% of the consumable goods came from India. Majority of Bhutanese people may not be able to read and write Hindi but they can definitely speak and understand it. Since the driver had this huge responsibilty to get the passengers to their destination, he was referred to as 'guri jee' the Master of the bus.
"We will stop after 1 and half hour for breakfast in Wangdue. There is this restaurant we normally stop for breakfast.."
"After Menchuna(another name for a place) right?". Asked Sonam
"Yeah exactly"
"Well thats good, i think i am already starving.I hope the food there is good... Guru jee, do you think you can do something about that sack of doma taa dho( beatle nut) inside the bus. I cant take the smell for long and you know, its a long journey ahead of us".
"Yeah about that. I felt the smell was getting stronger. I will ask the conductor to put it behind the bus. The smell shouldnt reach the passenger from there". Said the guru jee and called out for the conductor. He pointed out at the white sack inside the bus amd the next moment, the conductor carried it outside the bus and went behind the bus. Few minutes later when the conductor returned, he didnt have any sack on him. It was a huge relief for Jurmey.
Everyone started boarding the bus. It took hardly 10 minutes for pee stop. As they entered the bus, Jurmey could still sense the smell of the beatle nut. Anyhow, he got himself seated. When Sonam entered, the engine started. They were seated like 2 rows behind the driver. Sonam exchanged like few words with the gurujee and sat down.