Combis (Small buses)

Arequipa has streets full of small buses, called combis, that circle the city. They range in size, pollute like hell, and each has a different route with minimal signage to inform you as to what that route is. In the front window, they display two to four locations the combi will pass through (Cayma, Yanahuara, Saga, etc.).

A conductor or attendant stands in the doorway and yells out the destinations and direction of the combi as it approaches anyone standing still on the sidewalk. These conductors also take your fare as you depart the combi. The fare is either 70 or 80 centimos, which is roughly 30 US cents. For the most part, there are no "bus stops", rather there are locations where people know combis will often stop. You can also chase down a combi and jump on one anywhere, as long as you can catch the attention of the conductor. If you do this, be careful, cars behind the combi will honk and the driver may be quick with the gas pedal.

The combis are often crowded with standing room only. You often find yourself playing Human Tetris with your busmates. As a gringo, it takes some getting used to but it's cheap and you don't have to wait more than a few minutes for a combi going your way if you are in the right location. It's also a great way to extend your reach in the city, it's an experience and riding them makes me feel like I live here.

The destinations of this combi are posted in the middle bottom of the windshield and are also called out by the conductor who hangs out of it as it passes me by.

One conductor stands in the open doorway of his full size combi while another hangs out the window of his smaller sized one. The larger combis are more comfortable for us gringos (more headroom).

A line of combis are stuck in traffic on Ave Ejército

Here's my first attempt at uploading a video from my DSLR. Still can't figure out getting the 1080p to upload and keep the quality. But alas, here's a video of combis picking up some customers on Ave Ejército: