When it comes to traveling we never know exactly what kind of vehicle we’re going to get, but we’re always sure it’s going to be an experience. Our first leg of the drive to Botswana was a nice large conversion van like vehicle. For logistical reasons our group was first to leave, the other teams weren’t leaving until a couple days later. We had our things loaded and ready to go…well most of us, Silas had to run after us as he went to grab his nearly forgotten pillow.
Our first stop was just over the border of Botswana, where we stayed the night with a Voice for Africa mission base. It was a nice little stop, just enough space for our group size, but when I say little stop I mean little. We left the grounds at 4:15am, to make it to the bus stop that would take us to our final destination, Maun. This is where our travels become culturally interesting.
We were glad to see we’d be traveling in a large charter as our bags were quickly loaded into the bottom of the bus. Once on board ourselves, we wondered when we were to pay for our fare. There were no ticket booths, and it seemed normal to the people around us to just pile on and claim a set. From previous transport experiences I figured they’d collect our charge once we were on the road. Street vendors also boarded the bus selling candy and cell phone minutes…neither seemed desirable so early in the morning. They just became part of the chaos as more people started getting on the bus than there were seats for. (TIA-This is Africa)
The bus pulled away with about 16 people standing in the aisle, then as I expected a gentleman made his way to the back and started collecting fares. We had various stops along our way each time he’d make his way asking to see receipts or collect money. The last stop people were asked to stand as far back as possible to accommodate roughly 25 people in the aisle… All of us sharing the stuffy air as the afternoon sun beat down on the bus. I sat next to the window and tried to get some breeze in for the other passengers, particularly my teammates as I noticed how uncomfortably hot they were. The breeze was a blessing, but I guess I got over zealous. Soon one of the people standing in the aisle asked me to close the window some…meaning not 3 inches open but only a half of an inch. Later I opened the window again to a median distance…again I got asked to close the window. Thankfully the 11 hour ride was almost over.
We soon arrived to the tourist city of Maun and then to Love Botswana, the mission organization that we are partnering with this month.
