As a student of the University of Guelph your fees bring you many advantages: fantastic athletic facilities, the University Centre, two newspapers, the radio station, access to the internet, the list goes on. But the greatest and most excellent perk is the bus pass. It's a simple little coloured sticker placed on the back of your student ID, but if properly used, it can bring its user more fun then a summer passport to Wonderland. There are presently 14 different Guelph Transit routes but they all share the downtown core (St.George's Square) as a common, convenient stop. They all depart the Square at quarter to the hour and quarter after, commencing at 6:15 am and every half hour until the last trip at 11:15 PM.(That's right, so if you plan on staying out after the street lights come on take note). Oh, and they don't run at all on Sundays and holidays.

Now some of you might be thinking "Justin, what kind of rubbage is this? What could be so fantastic about a bus system that ends way too early and doesn't even run on Sundays?" Well there happens to be a solution for students, its called the MAGIC BUS (no relation to the Who, Ken Kesey or hallucinogens). It's run by the CSSG and operates late night and Sunday (you pay a dollar and change in fees per semester towards the service). This bus runs one large route encompassing most of Guelph, so prepare for a long trip.

Since most of you will be moving here for the first time I suggest you use your bus pass to become more familiar with Guelph. This has many advantages.

First, it gets you out of the University environment for a while. Sometimes it can seem like everyone in the whole world is a student and for obvious reasons this can be detrimental to your mental health. (If you don't believe me just ask that guy in the clock tower over there). Second, you'll discover things in Guelph you wouldn't have otherwise known existed. Guelph is full of parks and train tracks and people and trees and rivers and a cigarette factory and a newly built arts centre and the big orange sky and bars and police giving tickets to j-walkers and a hat factory and a lake and a historic downtown and two prisons and no power centres and "much, much more." Third, if you have to get from one place to another it can be really helpful.

I'll leave it to you to check out the rest, but here's a little guide to some of my favourite routes:

#4 YORK ROAD- This one goes through 'the Ward' and ends at what looks like a beautiful park with a stream and little wooden bridges, a nice place for a picnic‹it's called the Guelph Correctional Centre, and it's a prison. This route also goes by my house (not a prison) so it's the best.

#1 WOODLAWN- This one goes up to Riverside Park and if you follow the river north from here you will run into Guelph Lake so bring a boat or a dingie.

#51 GORDON- A new route. A really nice country drive.

#52 UNIVERSITY/KORTRIGHT- You will become very familiar with this route since it goes back and forth from downtown to the university. It's always full of chatty students so take it by yourself and listen in on other peoples conversations.

#21 WILLOW WEST MALL/# 9 STONE ROAD MALL - If you're from Mississauga, Etobicoke or Scarborough take these routes if you're feeling home sick.

By the way if you have a car, ignore this; get in touch with me I need a ride to Toronto.

AUGUST, 1997.