you can't always trust a clown

I think that I have mentioned this before, but a guagua is the name of a bus that provides public transportation. They remind me of a clown car at the circus, playing the game of how many people can we fit in this tiny space. They usually seat 12 people, and the most that I have counted (on the days that I have actually counted) was 30. Guaguas are like 15 passenger vans, but not as long. Take out the last row of seats and diminish the length, width, and amount of space between each row and you have yourself a guagua. Bodies are contorted to always make room for more, and men usually stand on the outside of it by the door (the door is usually never closed) if space is tight. It really is like a clown car. (Keep in mind that I am making this analogy without ever have gone to a circus, so in actuality it is what I would imagine a clown car to be). With this information known, let me tell you a story that happened yesterday.

Alexia and I, along with Sharla (our director) and the twins went to the beach on Saturday to celebrate Alexia's birthday (which is Monday). Sharla took the babies back to Santiago and Alexia and I took a guagua back to Puerto Plata to our house. After waiting a while, a guagua finally arrived a we hopped on. It was pretty crowded so Alexia got in the front seat, that was already occupied by the driver and two other women mind you, and I sat on a bench that is set up behind the driver facing the first row of people.

To my right sat two women and to left (really almost on my lap) sat an old man. The row facing us sat four men, two were older, one was a young Haitian, and the one in front of me was middle-aged. I sat as (un)comfortably as I could, with purse, towel, and water bottle in hand. On a turn I noticed that the man sitting in front of me was grabbing tightly onto my purse. I figured it was to keep his balance in this crowded vehicle, but made sure that I had a good grip on my purse nonetheless.

I was talking with the women sitting next to me about how when people get off we were going to spread out because everyone in the front was going the rest of the route into Puerto Plata. Finally some people left and I was able to move to a seat a few rows back, glad to be in a different row than the man who clung to my purse as well as to have a little more space. That man, as well as the one I was originally sitting next to got off shortly after that.

As soon as they did, the two women starting going off talking about how those men were trying to rob me and how they (the women) were trying to get me to sit somewhere else out of their reach. They talked the whole way (in voices loud enough for everyone on the entire bus to hear) about how they had recognized them and how they do that kind of thing often.

I was grateful for these women looking out after this 'gringa.' Fortunately, the men were not able to take anything. This is not to scare anyone, most everyone is very kind, but you do come across certain types of people like this, just like you would in any place that you live. Y por eso, you can't always trust a clown.

(Circus analogy borrowed from Donald Miller).