I recently realized that every time I post or update my status explaining that I’m in the capital, I never explain what I have to go through to get back and forth from village to the capital. Maybe you all think its like taking the greyhound or the city bus even. But I think I should put you all in my shoes and explain a typical trip back to village from the capital.

On your way back to site, you show up at the “bus station” which isn’t really a bus station. Its a filthy lot filled with people walking around selling random items from water to clothes pins. You show up around noon because any earlier than that you’ll be waiting for hours…..waiting for the car to fill up with passengers before leaving. You see a car with motorcycles, bikes, sacks and bags on top. This means this particular car should be leaving soon. As you walk over, dodging the people trying to sell those random items and taxis going in and out of the lot. The same two men who are always there to take your money greet you before climbing into the car—the one man that looks like Red Fox and the other that looks like Morgan Freeman(I swear they do.) You get in the broken down car and decide to sit near the window because you know you will soon be five to a row that comfortably holds three. From past experiences you know that the only place worse than hell is being stuck between either two large people or someone that smells like trash for this four hour ride. At least if you’re by the window you can keep your head out and stay cooler than if you had sat in the back. You look around and see maybe three or four other people waiting in the car. And you realize that you’ve been tricked. The stuff on top of the car is just being transported, it doesn’t represent the number of people who’ve already bought tickets. Of course you start cursing and looking out the window to see who looks like they might be Bissa and going to your part of the country. As you wait, the heat starts to mount and your patience starts to drop. People keep coming up to the open window trying to sell you men’s underwear, Obama cologne and loaves of bread. But you’re not interested so you look straight ahead like you don’t see them right next to you putting this stuff in your face. The car starts to rock and you look out the window to see why, at the same time a dirty brown rope smacks you in the face. Now you really keep looking straight because you know everyone saw the rope from the top of the car swing down and smack you. The rest of the wait consists of listening to your ipod and not making eye contact with anyone.

After sitting in this hot car with flies playing tag with your face for an hour, the car finally fills up. You are now smashed up against the window by a man that smells like he was wrestling with the rear end of a donkey and lost. And what can you do? Nothing for this four hour ride back to village during the hottest part of the day. The car gets on the road and you turn your I pod all the way up. Within the first ten minutes of being on the road the car make the first of many stops. All of a sudden people come running from the side of the road with bags of onions, water, bread and homemade cakes, shoving them through the window while yelling prices. The four arms stretched through the small opening in the window do nothing short of annoy you because you wonder who the hell is thinking about buying onions off the side of the road. And then someone taps you on the shoulder with money in hand because they of course want a large bag of onions and you are now the designated exchange person because you’re by the window. You roll your eyes and make the exchange. The car starts to pull off but the vendor hasn’t given the person’s change yet. The vendor is now running along side the car trying to get the change out of a small bag. After sprinting beside the window the vendor throws the money in the car and the driver takes off. You simply close the window a little bit and rest your head against the glass as the people next to you search for the change that landed in between them.

As the car picks up speed you decide to go to sleep as the wind blows all of the hot, stale air out of the car. But every time the car stops for one reason or another, you wake up. Not because you notice the vehicle’s lack of motion, but because the smell of the man sitting next to you combined with the unexplainable heat makes you want to scream and vomit at the same time. So you decide to stay awake and keep focusing on the music on your I pod and the beautiful scenery. Eventually you reach the part of the trip where the road is no longer paved. This means red dust, profound potholes and whiplash. You close the window a little because if you don’t your whole face will be blasted with red dirt to the point where you can’t even lick your lips without tasting a thick coat of earth. The car starts to jump and jerk as you fly over potholes in this death-trap-on-wheels. You try to be cool and roll with the bumps and jerks and then it happens. The car jerks one good time and bam! Your head cracks against the window.

Now, not only is your head pounding but you know people are looking at you so you can add embarrassed to the list. The only justifiable response is to turn the music all the way up and act like it never happened. After a few minutes you fall back to sleep with a heated breeze blowing against your face. You suddenly wake up to something heavy and wet slammed against your shoulder. The man beside you allowed his huge sweaty head to fall on your shoulder while he sleeps. Sending a sharp shoulder to the side of his head, you bring him out of his lofty slumber. Without looking at him you rub your shoulder against his shirt to get his running sweat off of your skin. He says nothing and you continue to act as if it never happened.

Finally you arrive at your stop. Climbing over the other 4 people and their bags and animals, you fall out of the vehicle. Sweaty, dirty and exhausted, you’re finally home. The men on top of the car hand you your bags, which are now destroyed because of the motorcycles and sacks they placed over your things. But it doesn’t matter, because the sight of village and the villagers welcoming you back makes the whole trip worth it.

All of these things and more have happened to me multiple times on transport. And so I just wanted to share a little bit of what its like going back and forth between the capital and village. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed. To my family and friends, I love and miss you all. The count down has begun

Peace and Blessings

Song: Georgia Anne Muldrow – Sunset