Impromptu Tour on the 33-Stanyan

Photo by Julian Walker

Showing out-of-town visitors around the city on Muni can be a mixed bag: Will this be the day when projectile vomit forces evacuation, or when a stranger brandishes the banana in his pocket? Fortunately, it was neither for rider Clay S.:

This weekend was the last weekend of my summer internship here in the city, and a few of my friends from college were in town. They were staying at my friend’s place a little north of the Haight, right on the Panhandle. I wanted to show them around town a little, and Dolores Park seemed like a good place for us to go, so I met up with them over there, and we walked over to the Haight to catch the 33.

We sat near the front of the bus, and we started to have a conversation about  Muni and how comparatively good/shitty it was. The bus driver joined in on the conversation, and we made an instant friend. As we rode the bus, I pointed out to my friends some mildly touristy and/or cool things about the city (neighborhoods, local businesses, viewing spots, etc.). The bus driver then began to give announcements over the bus intercom, as if he were driving a tour bus.

He was having a blast with it, and occasionally threw in some random gibberish exclamations just to listen to how he sounded over the intercom. We were thrilled. As the bus entered the Castro, he announced, “coming up on Castro Street, here’s Hot Cookie!” We got off, wished him a wonderful day, and got some Hot Cookie to take to the park. I’m glad my friends got to have such a fabulous first impression of Muni.