I don’t know about you, but I’ve never taken a Metro bus. The numbers and routes confuse me and I’ve always been perfectly satisfied taking the Metro train. This was especially true when I lived right across the street from the Foggy Bottom Metro stop in Munson, but after my experience here, I think I might have inconvenienced myself by not taking advantage of the bus stop in front of Dakota, where I lived last semester. Not that I know what bus stops there or where it goes.

Dublin does not have a subway system and its light rail, the Luas, is just four years old and not very useful yet. As a result, buses are the most common mode of public transportation. At first, I was confused–the bus routes are numbered in a totally random way (as far as I can tell) and I still haven’t found a big map that shows most of the routes go. But as time went on, I started to learn them through trial and error. Now, I know roughly which bus takes me where and have come to enjoy the bus system, maybe even more than a train.

Buses come every 5-15 minutes–depending on the route, day and time–and because most routes end up in the City Centre, the wait to catch one going inbound is even shorter. A seven-day student bus pass costs 17.90 Euro (compared to about 1.50 per trip without a pass…and you need exact change) and it lets you take the bus as often as you want during that seven day period. Because the pass is unlimited, I head out on “adventures” more often and see more of the city than I would otherwise. And that’s another advantage of buses in general: instead of being under the city in a concrete tunnel, you can sit on the upper deck and just look around as the buildings and people pass by. Sure it takes a little longer, but maybe that’s not such a bad thing, as it forces you to take a little time to relax. This is especially nice during rush hour, when traffic slows the bus down considerably; but since the whole situation is completely out of your control, you might as well just enjoy the long ride.

So, all in all, if I had to choose between buses and a train, I would take the Metro system for DC, where I’m always in a hurry, and the bus system for Dublin, a new city in which I usually have time on my hands.

As for the Metro buses? Maybe I’ll give them a shot once I get back, but more than likely I’ll stick to the trains. As they say, old habits die hard.