Bus

I sit on the bus and as I role out of town I realised I forgot to go to the main post office to pick up mail, Posta restante. But I am off and I will not stop for it.

I had a hectic stressful morning. Woke up after a good night and then had a great funny breakfast with Kampamba and Vivian. Candy popcorns, tea, porrage, bananas and vegetarian pan pizza.

We talk about Zambian names and what the name Mubanga [Movanga] means, it is thesame as the name of a strong hard tree. Zambians often also have an english name like Vivian for instance. We also talk about Lobola or dowry, which is bride price. 200-500 USD is the average salary here so you get an idea about the comparable price. Vivian thinks she will go for 2500 as she has gone to university. The price reflects level of education and if she is raised in a good way. But before marriage you usually date for some month and sex before marriage is common.

So after breakfast I was suppose to go visit a school for donating a printer and computer to there library but someone forgot to pick me up and there I stood in the rain waiting. In the last minute my host took me to the busstation where the bus of course was delayed 1,5 hours. But at all times they say it will leave within 10 minutes...Africa...

The delay of the bus is no surprise but in this time I could have got the computer as a luggage. But I get assured it will be sent the day after, by bus, so I can help some other people with a donation in Livingstone instead.

It is scarry going by bus when all your luggage is spread. One part bicycle, three other packages and one carry on bag. Will everything arrive?! I just do my best to see that they dont kill my bicycle but at a certain point I can only pray.

Before taking off a preacher gets on and does his speech about how you should surrender to the lords kingdom for twenty minutes. Then we go. I have some yoghurt and bananas for two meals. I dont trust the bus getting to Livingstone on time. And as I write this we are allready delayed two hours and a half. The bus is better on this trip then my previous ones. I am also lucky to have a wet seat, so I ask for another and gets the one up front. Great views and lots of legg space! I can even recomend going by bus like this.

But keep your luggage in a place so you preferably can see it, if it is loaded off the bus storrages. I go out various times to see my bike come in and out of the bus's belly.

The bus slows down many times and boys selling candy and soda can do there business with the driver or people sitting by the windows. They sell unpealed peanuts, grilled corn, bananas, bisquits and popcorn.

The busdriver who has some big tyres around his waste is constantly eating.

We stop only after 3 hours so everybody can buy snacks or fast food, which is very much like american fast food. You pay to go to the restrooms. By the way, toilets in Zambia are not just a hole in the ground, they are like ours with seats. Actually a lot is very developed in Zambia in the places I have been. And prices are not far from swedish in many cases.

Bus is late...now it is dark.

Buses are not allowed to go after dark in most countries here for various reasonds. There have been ambushes at times, the roads are more dangerous because of drinking and driving or drivers falling asleep. In Botswana, which I will go to next, it is also because of protecting the wild animals, game as they call it. The game in Botswana are not all in parks and the wild is more active after sun set.

Soon I hope to reach Livingstone with all its action sports and adventure. I read a bit on the bus about the coming countries and I must admit I get a litle stressed. It was deffinatly the right dessision to take the bus for this part. It is not much to see along the road. It looks like Malawi low lands but without the lake.

There is simply soo much to see in the nearby future and the distances are soo long. This coming part is also scarying me a litle because of the animals and the remoteness. There may be difficulties finding water in the Kalahari dessert if I go through this or between villages in other parts.

I eventually arrive to the nice hostel with a pool.