Travel Woes

Public transportation. Yes, that's how we get around the island. As we were told and have come to learn, it is not convenient and can be quite tense at times. Yes, I did say tense. Just the other day I was waiting in the bus park for the mini-bus to fill up (most of the mini-buses look like the van from the A-Team). The girl sitting right next to me was holding her baby and arguing with a man standing outside the window, who happened to be the baby father. The man wanted the mother's phone and she refused to give it to him. The argument escalated to the point where he reached through the window and started choking the mother and she dropped the baby in her lap and the baby started crying. I was shocked and didn't know how to react. She managed to get him off and closed the window. The man walked away circled the bus and reached in the window behind us and began choking her again. This time the driver of our bus and the one behind us came up to the man surrounded him on both side, but didn't do anything. She got him off of her and the man walked away. I thought he would go get a knife or grab a rock and come back, but luckily enough he didn't and the bus filled up and we pulled out of the park. Not more than 200 yards out of the park the police, who should be patrolling the bus parks, had one of their periodic inspections and stopped our bus to check to see if the driver had all the proper documentation.

You may be asking why didn't anyone intervene. Well, that's one of the problems here. People are so afraid of reprisals (i.e., fear of their own safety) from going to one's aid, that they don't help. And this is why most crimes and murders in Jamaica go unsolved. I suppose I fall into this category - I was afraid and shocked to intervene.