Lost in Suburbia

Newmarket is a town of 90 000 people. Coming from London, which is closer to 400 000 people, I did not think I would find it terribly difficult to find my way around this place. I even snickered (my word of the day) at the other members of my group who were scared of moving to the "big city". Then again I guess when you come from St. Louis de Kent, which is in the middle of nowhere and doesn't even have a McDonalds, moving to Newmarket is a big deal. I however found getting around Newmarket to be extremely difficult! Who knew that the buses don't run every half and hour. The 54 Bayview, for example, only runs every 43 minutes! I found this out the hard way. When I missed my bus for work, I thought I would just catch the next one. After 40 minutes I asked a the gentlemen if he knew when it came. He told me that it was only a rush hour bus service so I crossed the street to catch another route to work. I missed that bus (the driver even saw me) and then I got to watch the Bayview bus drive by me because I was on the other side of the street! That gentleman who gave me the so ever helpful advice did manage to get on the bus that was supposedly only a rush hour service. It took me 2 hours and 41 minutes to finally get to work. After missing the Bayview for the second time, my bus troubles had barely begun. That subject is still touchy for me so I will leave the rest of that story to your imaginations.

Another problem I have here is getting to our gym. In the four times that I have gone, twice has it ended in utter confusion. Last night on my way home from the gym, Tom and I ended up taking a scenic root that brought us back to Fit City twice. Feeling deflated I was forced to buy a whole pizza at Little Ceasers and pack on all the calories I lost and the gym and then some. A walk that is suppose to take 20 minutes took us well over an hour. Newmarket is urban sprawl at its finest. You can virtually get nowhere by foot. You are either in a subdivision or in a shopping center. Being a commuter city its streets are congested between 820am and 920am and then between 430pm and 600pm. It is virtually dead the rest of the time. Being the incredible individual that I am, it is my goal that by the time this trimester is finished, I will have figured out a system that does not involve me getting lost and confused every few days.