Ft. Pierce
23 April 2009
Now, I remember why I am not a regular bus rider. Because we are still in Stuart waiting for the right weather to cross over to the Bahamas, we decided to take the bus to Ft. Pierce, which is only 30 miles north of us. My first mistake was to assume it would be an express or limited stop bus. Boy, was I wrong!! We left from Stuart and after an hour and a half, we still were in route. We must have stopped at every Walmart, Kmart, convenience store and intersection. We even stopped at the Social Security Office. Our next mistake was not to get off at the right stop. Who needs a map, anyway. So, we stayed on until the most northerly stop and then walked a mile back on the route to the downtown/waterfront area. If you can remember, Ft. Pierce was devastated in the 2004 hurricanes, but has been completely rebuilt and is terrific. We had lunch on the water and then decided to head back, only we didn't know where to go. Our traveling companions, Bob and Mary stopped in the city offices for directions. The staff took pity on us and we ended up getting a ride from the street supervisor to the bus stop. Incidentally, he reminded us that this bus stop location is known for its street gangs, drugs, and prostitution. He suggested that we wait in the fire station across the street. The trip back south took only an hour. It's amazing how time flies when you are having fun. I wonder what we are going to do Thursday? Laundry, perhaps?