A roller coaster is the best way to describe our four day journey through Eastern Africa this past week. Specifically I compare it to the Georgia Scream Machine. If you are not a member of the South who consistently visits six flags over georgia every summer, just imagine a wooden roller caoster who’s ride is very rough and bumpy. An old fashioned roller coaster that thrills you not with huge drops or flipping upside down, but by simply beating the crap out of your body. This is the roller coaster Africa offers. Let me just recap our past week on the road in Africa.
On Tuesday we wait around in Kampala for the bus which is 2 hours late, not bad by African standards. We load and leave at 5 PM Tuesday It takes us 2 hours to get out of Kampala. Our first adventure comes in our first bathroom stop. Our bus driver leads us behind some buildings to the woods where we do our business, it is nighttime i remind you, a little scary. Bathroom breaks are such a challenge on African buses because there are not bathrooms so you have to balance staying hydrated and keeping your bladder empty.
Around 11 PM Tuesday we reach the Kenya border, definitely a headache. After I cross the border into Kenya I walk into an open field to pee I am stopped by a man who claims to be the lord of the bathroom and tries to charge me for peeing in Gods creation. One frustrating thing about Africa is public restrooms are never free so on bus rides when we don’t have the current currency it presents a problem. There is something fundamentally wrong about someone trying to charge me to pee.
We drive through the night and I am freezing, too cold to sleep with no blankets. We hit Nairobi around 9AM Wednesday, and it is always rush hour in Nairobi. Just outside Nairobi we run into side roads and this is where the roller coaster begins. African roads to begin with are not great but randomly you turn off the road and off road it on a bus that is bumping up and down due to rocks and pot holes. We hit the Tanzinia border around 2 PM Wedneday where they charge us $100 for a visa, a crime in my opinion. Many merchants are trying to sell us goods to which I am forced to say I have no money, me being a white person they refuse to believe this and are very confused and try to sell me the same product.
The roads in Tanzinia are no better as the roller coaster continues. We arrive in Dar es Salaam around 2 AM Thursday and our bus is leaving the next day at 6Am so we head straight to the bus station. I get two hours of sleep and were back on an uncomfortable bus. I am stuck in the back and the roads are still bumpy as I hit my head on the ceiling a couple of times. We see some elephants, girfaffes, monkeys, buffaloes and other unidentifiable animals as the scenery is beautiful. We reach Mbaya around 6PM thursday, but we have on more day of travel. Luckily we get to sleep in a bed on thursday night.
On Friday we travel 7 more hours north, towards Kampala let me remind you, this bus was bumpier than ever as there are no paved roads on this route. I had a drunk man fall asleep on my shoulder and I wanted to scream. Around 3 PM Friday we finally arrive in Sumbuwanga, our location. Our accomidations are very nice, I have a king sized bed to myself which is good because my body is still sore from the ride. Internet will be limited this month, so you might not hear from me much, but I will keep you updated as much as I can. God bless.
