A Bus Ride for Isabelle

Children are always interested in big vehicles, lorries, fire engines, diggers, and buses. They see them all the time, but have they ever been on one? How exciting that adventure can be.

When I visited a local Scout and Beavers group, I was prepared to talk about my story books, but as my stories have links to a real Playbus, they were keen to know more about the bus itself.

It reminded me of my grandson's weekly playdate with Nanny. He knows all about my Playbus but had never been on a bus journey of his own, so when he was four, I decided to take him on a journey, and he loved it. 

I decided to take my granddaughter on a similar journey; she is only two and a half. In his case, it had to be a Double-Decker bus, but in her case, a bus of any size would do.

On our 45-minute journey to Nanny’s from her house, she spots the buses, big and small.  She knows that the buses near her are red, but near Nanny's house they are blue.

So, I decided to take her on a bus ride of her own.  I had thought of two possible short journey routes. The first would be to the local sports centre at K2. The bus passes the end of Nanny‘s road, but you might have to wait a little while and jump on quickly. It could be a single-decker or a double-decker, but it would be whatever turned up.

We were ready for our bus journey adventure; she was ready with her Dolly and a book to take, she had chosen ‘Spots Playbus’.

Grandad took us to the bus station to catch the bus to K2, unfortunately, we only just missed a double-decker bus, so we had to wait.

Luckily, the time on the timetable told us how long the next bus would be, and the eight minutes passed quite quickly. The high seats in the shelter were tricky. Isabelle held on to Dolly, and Nanny held on to Isabelle. The single-decker bus arrived; it was probably the best size for her first bus journey, perfect for today.

It was a bumpy journey, and Isabelle sang a few verses from her knowledge of Wheels on the Bus songs, including bouncing up and down on the bumpy bus.

'The children on the bus bounce up and down,

up and down,

up and down.

The children (and Nanny) on the bus bounce up and down.

All day long. '

She noticed the people getting on and off, on and off, until we were the only passengers left.

There were no seatbelts, and Isabelle had to hold on tight. Nanny was there if needed.

It was a short journey, and we arrived safely at K2, where the bus stopped.

We rang grandad to come and pick us up.

While waiting, Isabel enjoyed doing a bit of rock climbing on the stones outside.

It was a lovely short adventure, and we headed back for lunch.

Next time, a double-decker journey with maybe a longer route?

Perhaps to Gatwick Airport, then on the monorail to the north terminal and back, with an ice cream on the way. At the end, a bus ride home or grandad could pick us up. Who knows?

For her first-ever bus ride with Nanny, today was the perfect length.

Read about

Alexanders Bus Ride Here

A visit to the Beaver Scouts Here