This morning at approximately 7am, the weather in Bordeaux was somewhere below freezing. Considering that the temperature here for most of this "winter" has been hovering between 40 and 55 degrees, below freezing is a big jump down the thermometer. This is Southern France, after all. All bundled up, I headed for the tram before the sun was even up. Usually I take the tram for about 20-25 minutes to the bus stop, and then the bus for another hour and 15 minutes. About three stops into my tram ride, though, an announcement came on asking all passengers to exit the tram. Uh....what?
Let's take this moment to throw in a little side note on public transportation announcements. Even in English they are garbled and white noise-y and hard to understand. In French, it is mostly impossible. For instance, earlier this week a tram I was riding announced that there was a fire and we would have to wait a few minutes while the firemen came. I was unclear on where exactly the fire was, but since no one else was running screaming from the tram I figured I wasn't in any immediate danger. I took a seat and waited until we started moving. It wasn't until I saw a car on the road next to us absolutely demolished and surrounded by firefighters that I really understood what the announcement had said - we were keeping out of the way for a few minutes while the firemen got things under control. What I'm saying is, announcements are hit or miss comprehension-wise. Okay, end side note.
Apparently I wasn't the only passenger confused. There were no transportation workers to ask what do to. Everyone was stuck at this stop, and there were no more trams coming. Service between here and another stop on my route was cancelled. People started walking. As I said, my tram commute is around 20 minutes, and although I guess it's possible to walk, it would take ages - where I usually get on the tram is the direct center of Bordeaux; by the time I usually get off I am no longer even inside the city. Still, I start walking across the bridge with the others, because tram service picks back up in a few stops. As it turns out, just over the bridge is a bus I can take to the tram stop. Perfect. I get on the bus, and there are literally tears running down my face because I am so so cold. At this point I have 10 minutes to make my bus to Blaye. Doesn't seem super possible, but I continue on. At the tram stop, dozens of people are jumping up and down to keep warm while they wait. When the tram arrives, it's a scramble to get inside first. Two stops into my ride, it's clear my bus has already left. The next bus isn't for more than an hour, and I'd get to work late, anyway. I decide to go home, which takes more walking and tears. I have been up since 5:30am, but I have not made it to work. About two hours after leaving my building, I am back and still shaking from shivers. I cocoon myself in my covers and wonder if I'll ever be warm again. And I come to the conclusion that Hell is not the fiery eternity we think it is. Hell is 7am, somewhere below freezing, somewhere under 5 hours of sleep, trying to get to work while the Devil cancels tram service and laughs. Lying in bed, I consider how feasible it might be to never go outside again. I mean, at least definitely not until Spring.
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