CHAPTER FOUR: THE BUS RIDE 1

The city's gardens were an immense oasis with a variety of flowers, trees, and bushes. In the spring and summer, the sun often shone warmly on the garden's visitors. The guests wandered down miles of wide cobblestone paths that lead between the brightly colored plants. The widest path led to a fountain in the center of the courtyard. The gray stone fountain had a wide round base and a ten-foot tall peak at the apex of the fountain. The water ran sparklingly clear throughout the entire growing season. The tulips withered and died in the fall, to be reborn in the spring. Among the varied-color tulips were benches that have been set a few feet back to provide a resting place for the passerby. The flowers were pictured against a backdrop of a retaining wall in front of shading trees.

The main road of the street which passed through the street was lined on either side with shops of different shapes and sizes. The street was narrow, full of cars racing on the roads and pedestrians walking down the sidewalks. The hubbub of customers and sellers bargaining was heard from all dimensions, the sweet scented aroma of delicacies diffused in the air warming the atmosphere. 

People walked up and down, buying and selling things. The street was a very noisy place-men shouting, children screaming, babies crying, dogs barking and cars hooting and zooming on the busy roads. 

Several of the shops belong to the grain sellers. Rice, pulses, peas and barley were filled up in heaps. Some baskets are filled with chilies and others with spices. The dealer sat cross-legged on the floor with all his goods placed within his easy reach. He held a big pair of scales in his hand, and weighed out the grains.

Then there were the fruit sellers. One could get fruits like oranges, bananas, apples and vegetables. 

Hawkers shouted at the top of their voices, there a buyer used hot words to bargain for this or that thing.

Finally the long awaited bus arrived, before even stopping, people were already shoving each other at the doors. People struggled to get in, the old versus the middle-aged and the middle-aged versus the young, but Chao Yu Ze brushed his body against all the other passengers but since he was flexible. There was a terrible scramble for seats. I was lucky enough to secure a window seat The bus was overcrowded. There was a terrible scramble for seats. Chao Yu Ze was lucky enough to secure a window seat.