To understand fully what was about to happen you need to know that bus drivers, like most people in Peru are poorly paid. They try to make money where they can. They also drive tired. Outside of the bus stations there are several unofficial bus stops, the ones that the company management does not know about. The driver will stop at selected locations and pick up additional passengers and then pocket the fare. This results in bus races, the first bus to the unofficial stop gets the money.

Our driver rapidly approached a hairpin turn. He was going way to fast. To make matters worse he was doing this to pass another bus. The other driver was not about to back down either. A message was clearly being sent. Our lives were worth no more to these drivers than a few dollars.

As I mentioned earlier I have been on several interprovincial bus trips in Peru but I had never seen what was to happen next on any of my previous trips. As we were passing the other bus, looking into the fear filled eyes of its passengers; about five of our passengers had left their seats and began banging on the cockpit begging the driver to stop the race. The rest were all screaming. The driver finally got the hint and slowed down. What was striking about that incident is that these people were used to the harrowing bus rides, but this one was particularly deadly and they wanted no part of it.


When you’re traveling on public transportation, you can’t pick the other passengers. On this same trip there was one fellow who may not have had the purest of motives. As he walked up the aisle to get off at his stop he approached my father who was seated towards the front of the bus. For some reason he singled out my dad to ask if he had a pen. Funny that he had asked nobody else. You may have guessed what he was doing, but if you haven’t, let me spell it out to you. The kid had not interest in a pen whatsoever. He was trying to get my dad to reveal what he was carrying or at the very least distract him and then rob him. He already knew that my father had a video camera and was going to try and capitalize on a target of opportunity. We played it safe and I answered the potential crook with a resounding, “No, he doesn’t have a pen!”

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