Ok, that’s extreme. I got to my destination safely. Not on time, but safely.
A quick summary of my first day (roundtrip) of riding BoltBus (Philly to NYC and back):
My cellphone is dead so I’m clock-less. This bus is mad late though. And its quite chilly out this morning. Gotta have been 30-40 minutes late. Was thinking the next P2P Circulator bus was going to show up before it. UPDATE! As I had said, my cell phone was dead. I just checked voicemail (yes, very late) and I had a voicemail that morning from Boltbus telling me that the bus was running late and what its approximate arrival time would be. Very nice.
And it arrives…. brand, shiny, new bus.
Boarding is easy. Surprised how little of us who were there actually have tickets printed. Isn’t that the main advantage of BoltBus’ pricing?
Leather seats….wherever I saw that wasn’t lying. And that extra 3 inches of leg room feels huge. Feels like your own private space on the bus.
Smooth jazz CD playing very loudly….turned off by driver before we got rolling
Electrical outlets on back of ‘aisle’ seats. Cool, but nobody is paranoid about EMF health effects? Guess just me. I made sure to sit by the window both times. Don’t know if it was necessaary or if it would’ve helped but hey.
DVD put in….a movie called “Stardust” – actually engaging….good actors…found myself watching this more than i wanted.
Why the sore neck? The seats barely recline. I mean…. the ’standard position’ feels like a negative incline and the fully reclined position feels almost like sitting up straight. This coupled with the height/shape of the seat (I guess) provided me with very uncomfortable sleep. Parent company Greyhound is going to keep more of my money it seems. Commuting 3 days a week, I need the time to sleep on the bus. This was a problem both going and returning. We’ll see if MegaBus is any different.
Drop off location was very convenient. Pretty much right at an A/C/E entrance (at 34th Street).
Arrival time – 20 minutes late.
The ride home was more on time. Arrival time in Philly, 8:36 (estimated arrival 8:30). Cloth seats on way home and no music/movie, which was perfectly fine.
Both trips, the bus was super new and clean.
The drivers and staff I encountered were very nice, professional, and friendly. One of the best parts of the experience.
Overall, I don’t think its for me because I really could not sleep well. If sleep wasn’t a factor, seems like a great option.
Fermented Spirits is a band/project that we (myself and HajiHaj of Dumhi fame) started about 4 years ago. We started working on Demystification at that time. Demystification features guest appearances from Houston emcee Soulbrotha, Flud (dumhi, Imperial Poets), Monica Stephenson, and Von Pea and Donwill of Tanya Morgan.
We each had a number of things going on in life and other musical projects, but after many starts and re-starts, the project has now been pressed up. Here it is, in its entirety, for free. It’s also available for purchase on iTunes and Amazon if you’re inclined to show your support in that way. There are also physical copies available (see artwork below). I don’t want to fill up this blog entry with detail after detail, but….if you’d like to know more, please stop by the Fermented Spirits Myspace page.
And most importantly, I would love for you to comment on the music (good, bad, whatever)!
Wegmans is theeeee shit. We gotta go to Mt. Laurel but its a quick drive over the Ben Franklin Bridge and since we’re going to church over in Camden its convenient that way. They’ve got everything. I mean everything. Organic produce, vegetarian friendly foods, ill marinades, a whole normal size supermarket of the stuff. Plus a whole normal size supermarket of ‘normal’ stuff. Plus some cookware and kitchen stuff too. Good prices. And an amazingly delicious and nutritious food court with freshly prepared options. Only gripe I can make is the suburban-sprawl nature of the huge store (how about more floors?). But it is in the suburbs after all. Not trying to advertise, but ummm, yea.
Greyhound feels the heat and jumps with two feet into the fire. I’ve been taking Greyhound up to NYC for work 3 days a week. Taking advantage of their e-fares. Comparable to the Chinatown buses (coach2000.com, apexbus.com) and the 30th Street option, P2Pcirculator.com. I take all of them occassionally, but I prefer stopping at Port Authority and taking an N,R,W train to the job. Recently it was announced that MegaBus was coming, offering $1 fares to a number of people who purchase in advance (starting May 30th….the $1 fares are FREE fares the first week)!! Now Greyhound is going to start up BoltBus on the same tip (starting one week later *edit* Looks as if Boltbus service started on April 11). *edit* Dunno how many $1 tickets BoltBus is offering. (BoltBus said that its one-way fare for the first four days will be $1 and that it would sell at least one seat on every trip for $1. Source). Both offer free wireless internet. BoltBus has a rewards program (8 trips, get one free. Dunno if that’s 8 full price tickets). BoltBus also allows bicycles; I believe MegaBus does not. Philly-NYC commuters can smile. Hey Amtrak, care to offer us something a little cheaper than your current monthly pass?
