Another lesson in impermanence

One afternoon when I returned by train to Nalanda from Patna with my friend, we were met by his brother on a motorcycle.  I've ridden "side saddle" on the back of a motorcycle several times here in India and have always loved the experience of open air and smooth ride.  But that has always been just the driver and me.

This time, there were three of us on the motorcycle.  I had my small overnight bag in my right hand and with my left, I held on to the back of the motorcycle seat. Unfortunately, I'm not as petite as most Indians here, so instead of comfortably sitting on the seat like always, this time my left hand was actually supporting some of my body! I knew the ride would be short, so I didn't worry too much about hanging off a little!!

I've ridden with many different drivers and their skill levels are all different.  This time, with a young driver, the ride was not as smooth.  The driver kept turning his head back to talk to his brother, who was sandwiched in the middle, and the balance of the motorcycle would vary.  Since I'm a fairly inexperienced passenger, I didn't know if I should try to compensate for these wobbles of balance or not.  I decided that I'd just try to keep my balance!!

As we were heading down the road and I had finally accepted this ride for what it was, a huge tourist bus came barreling down the road at us.  With obstacles on the left side of the road (like a horse drawn cart), we couldn't immediately pull over to the left to give the bus room.  I looked back and "looked up at the whites of the bus driver's eyes!"  If I had had a hand free I probably could have touched the bus.  At that very instance, I felt fear and could do nothing but close my eyes. 

Luckily though, I have observed that these bus drivers are exceptionally skilled at driving these enormous machines.  And my younger driver of the motorcycle proved just as skillful by maneuvering past the obstacle and moving to the left for the bus to pass.  A minute or two later, my short ride was completed and I was back safely in my guesthouse.

this is an example of how we were
situated on the motorcycle