The wheels on the bus go round and round.

Today I went to Bassano del Grappa to purchase my train ticket to Interlaken, Switerzerland. I caught the 1:10 pm bus leaving Paderno (which happened to be running 7 minutes late...) and arrived in Bassano at 1:45. The next bus back to Paderno left at 1:55, so I was on a mission to get my ticket and make it back to the bus stop...otherwise I would be waiting until 4:20 pm for the next bus.

After making it through the crosswalk (in which there are white lines to walk through, but no stop lights or other such necessary commands to require drivers to slow down as you dodge through traffic) I handed the man behind the counter the print out of when I wanted to leave Bassano on Thursday. Of course I get one of the employees who doesn't speak English, so he blabbers on in Italian about some problem with my print out. I don't understand because I printed it from the train station's website (my misunderstanding crosses language barriers because even in English, he should've been able to find the train I found online to transport me.)

After 15 minutes a long line was forming. I tried having other people go while I looked through his proposed itinerary, but the ticket booth old man would not have it. Finally I just said, okay, "un bigiletto" (one ticket) and paid the man. Since I had already missed my bus, I spent a good 15 minutes studying my itinerary. I'm going to have my room mate Carolyn (a pro in train travel after a month of backpacking before the program started) and maybe someone else in the office look at it so I understand when I have to switch changes and stuff.

In my two hours two kill, I walk around Bassano. Unfortunately all the shops are closed (lunchtime or naptime or whatever excuse they use not to work). I strolled awhile, searching for a drugstore or place that would sell empty plastic bottles. I am in need of smaller containers for my shampoo, face wash, laundry detergent, etc and obviously Paderno does not stock such necessities.

Since there was nothing to do (besides eat...and they actually have two chinese restaurants on one street!) I found a bench near the bus station and read my book for awhile. Thank goodness I brought it with me, otherwise I would have sat in the chilly breeze staring blankly into space.

Apparently I have some shred of international appeal because two separate women came up to me speaking Italian. After awhile of their mumbling I said "Non parlo Italiano" which means "I don't speak Italian." The first woman asked me what I spoke, and I said English. She asked me if I knew what Jehovah's Witness is, I said yes, and she asked me where I'm from. I said Kansas, the United States and she said she'd had never heard of that before. I'm just glad she gave me a blank stare and walked away.

The second woman came an hour later, blabbling equally enthuastically. I interjected again and when she asked what I spoke (in English) I said English and she said in Italian that she didn't know English. Okay...

The 4:20 pm left a few minutes late and somehow the 30 minute ride how turned into 40 minutes. Before I got on the bus I double-checked with the bus driver that it went to Paderno and he nodded. The very nice man that he was, he announced when we arrived in Paderno so I could get off.

Times like these make me wish I had a more reliable form of transporation to get around in (...other than my feet. For although they are always available, they aren't quite up to the journeys to semi-nearby towns). I would rather subject myself to driving a smart car (which is basically the size of a front hood of a cadillac at home) than dealing with the infrequent, inadequate and confusing bus system of the Veneto region. If this is such a rich part of Italy, why aren't there better means of traveling between the bustling towns?