Sunday, December 14, 2008

Drive or BART..what I ended up doing on Saturday night

If you had a chance to read my previous post, you'd know that I insisted on driving while my husband wanted to take BART into the city on Saturday night for a semi-formal company holiday party to avoid weekend traffic across the Bay Bridge.

Well, as adamant as I was, I conceded and took BART into the city in my dress, high heels, accessories and a heavy coat. I really had preferred the comfort and cleanliness of our own car but gave in to BART for two main reasons: 1) with a 7 week old precious little thing at home, both of us wanted to enjoy the open bar and did not want to be the designated driver, and 2) my husband swore that the Palace Hotel was less than 10 steps away from the BART exit.

I hadn't been on BART for some time since I've been on maternity leave so the ride was QUITE interesting. Sure, there were a few people dressed nicely to attend the opera, holiday concert, or company banquet, but there were PLENTY of interesting characters as well. I was also shocked just how crowded the train was-- it was more crowded than a weekday peak train! Or perhaps, we were just lucky enough to pick the train with the most passengers going to the airport with huge suitcases. I also witnessed plenty of passengers who reminded me just why I used to carry a bottle of Purell with me to work. One guy picked his nose and grabbed on to the safety bar, one women scratched her inflamed acne before holding on to the pole, while another sneezed into the hand that held on to the handle. I made every effort to balance on my high heels without touching anything but my husband. The air was stuffy and my eyes started itching too for some reason.

But as we arrived at Montgomery (or should I call it Dubai Tourism Central), I was pleased to find out that Palace Hotel was indeed about 8 steps away from the exit. For that, I was happy to have taken BART. "Let the party begin" I thought...I conceded for the right reasons.

The party was wonderful!! I had the opportunity to meet and chat with some very nice people who made the evening very fun and entertaining! He certainly works in a company with some good, decent people. My husband and I had a great time and safely took BART home. It was a lovely evening.

So, in the end...yes, I conceded but I was glad to have taken BART although I have to say, it was an unpleasant ride to the city being overly crowded and full of passengers who did not care much about personal hygienes....but hey, that's BART, and I'll be back on there full time soon enough. I guess the important thing is that we had a good time and we were safe. Thanks to all who chimed in.



Oh, and p.s. GO BRUINS!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ew. Sorry to hear about the ride, although it sounds like the party was well worth the trip.

Although I was part of the "Take the car" side, I'm glad it worked out and you had a good time!

Unknown said...

I'm glad it worked out for you.

Pedestrianist said...

I'm glad everything wworked out in the end. I like anecdotes like this because too often BART gets dismissed as a commuter rail line and funding and operational resources get spent only between 7am and 6pm. It's great to remind people that there's high demand for BART all day long

murphstahoe said...

Thank You for taking BART!

I rode my bike down the Embarcadero on Friday night. The masses had descended upon San Francisco's downtown from everywhere.

First, Trust me, you were very happy not to have to fight this holiday party traffic and parking.

Second - imagine them driving home after their Holiday Parties! Just because YOU might be savvy enough to have a designated driver does not mean that the thousands of others going home from parties were as mature.

Which should you be more afraid of?

1) One guy picked his nose and grabbed on to the safety bar, one women scratched her inflamed acne before holding on to the pole, while another sneezed into the hand that held on to the handle.

2) The drunks in the cars next to you going at 65 MPH over the Bay Bridge.

We naturally respond the the perceived danger in front of our eyes and ignore the actual danger lurking unseen.

SongMonk said...

You didn't mention the open bar. :-)

But seriously, that's a big pro for the BART side. No designated driver needed!