Before I get to the subject of this blog I want to say a belated Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. To all my Japan friends reading this, I know you remember fondly our ex-pat Thanksgivings which always welcomed many cultures mixing together for a fabulous feast. Here in Mbabane we managed a similar dinner, complete with turkeys (that we did not have to chop in half to fit in an oven!) and pumpkin pie. The countries of the US, Swaziland, Mozambique, Finland, South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania plus likely a few others were all represented well.
As you know, I live in a city. Out in the countryside, cows, goats, chickens are all regular occurrences in the road. Not usually in the city. Except for last week as I was driving home, heading up a hill, when 3 cows running down the road were headed straight for my car. I immediately hit the breaks and sat there, hoping the cows would be able to run past me and not into my car. Shortly after the cows came the shepherds, clearly having lost control of the situation. Thankfully the cows and the young boys passed and I continued on my way home.
A few weeks ago I visited Kruger National Park in South Africa. On our way there we hit a horrible rain storm and as we were driving on the only road we knew (and our map was in the trunk which likely would not have helped us anyways), we came across a tree that had just fallen, lying across the entire road. We came to a standstill and watched a bus attempt to head towards us on the shoulder, the only part of the roadway that was passable. The bus proceeded to get stuck and more than 50 folks filed out of the bus and hung out in the roadway. We were now looking at a tree covering the roadway and a bus brokendown on the shoulder. As the traffic piled up and the bus was not moving and the rain was pouring down, all of a sudden we watched as folks began to swing from branches and jump up and down on the tree limbs. Within 15 minutes the entire tree (and this was a big tree) was moved to the side of the road and we continued on our way.
Which brings me to the final part of my story, driving in Kruger. As you can see from the photos, we had many animals in our way on the roadway. However, these encounters at Kruger were different. Previously I had the right of way, I had been in the road and needed to get by. But in Kruger it is the animal’s land. They have the right of way. If they choose to hang out in the road, we will wait for them to pass. And enjoy watching them while we wait.
As you know, I live in a city. Out in the countryside, cows, goats, chickens are all regular occurrences in the road. Not usually in the city. Except for last week as I was driving home, heading up a hill, when 3 cows running down the road were headed straight for my car. I immediately hit the breaks and sat there, hoping the cows would be able to run past me and not into my car. Shortly after the cows came the shepherds, clearly having lost control of the situation. Thankfully the cows and the young boys passed and I continued on my way home.
A few weeks ago I visited Kruger National Park in South Africa. On our way there we hit a horrible rain storm and as we were driving on the only road we knew (and our map was in the trunk which likely would not have helped us anyways), we came across a tree that had just fallen, lying across the entire road. We came to a standstill and watched a bus attempt to head towards us on the shoulder, the only part of the roadway that was passable. The bus proceeded to get stuck and more than 50 folks filed out of the bus and hung out in the roadway. We were now looking at a tree covering the roadway and a bus brokendown on the shoulder. As the traffic piled up and the bus was not moving and the rain was pouring down, all of a sudden we watched as folks began to swing from branches and jump up and down on the tree limbs. Within 15 minutes the entire tree (and this was a big tree) was moved to the side of the road and we continued on our way.
Which brings me to the final part of my story, driving in Kruger. As you can see from the photos, we had many animals in our way on the roadway. However, these encounters at Kruger were different. Previously I had the right of way, I had been in the road and needed to get by. But in Kruger it is the animal’s land. They have the right of way. If they choose to hang out in the road, we will wait for them to pass. And enjoy watching them while we wait.
2 comments:
I LOVE your photos, Steph, and the story they tell. I'm glad to hear you are out adventuring and enjoying your time in Africa!
Can I just say how incredibly cool (and bizarre!) it is that you have to stop for giraffes, lions, elephants, etc.? What a different, different world you're living in right now. I'm so glad you're documenting it and sharing it with us!
I can't remember if you're coming home for Christmas... we'll be in DC for the inauguration - any chance we'll see you?
Post a Comment