Days 48 thru 50

(Rhia’s comments are italicized)

We are nearing the end of our contract for the car rental, which means we need to get back to Gabarone. This means we will be driving back through some familiar villages, towns and cities. This gives me the chance to reflect on what I have learned about Botswana. For instance, when we first stayed at Nata (see days 8 and 9, Birds and Beasts…Where are they?), we chose not to drive the road over to Maun because we read that the A3 road was really bad. But now armed with experience and knowledge, that is the exact road that we drove from Maun to get us back to Nata. And aside from about 10 Kms of ‘gravel’ road, it was very navigable.

I am way more confident driving on the left side of the road through cities, and rarely activate the windshield wipers anymore! When Dan was new to driving on the left hand side of the road, in a left hand drive car in which all indicators etc are on the opposite side, we had very clean windows and some frustrated drivers who didn’t know what we were doing 😂 I am more likely to look people in the eyes with a smile on my face. I look for more opportunities to help (actually, that is not new for me, but I did not do it much on the European trip). Hmm…Dan actually DID help out a lot of people in Europe but seems to have forgotten!

On our way back through Nata, we stopped at a ShopRite that we had missed the first time. Unfortunately, like many other stores, the shelves were mostly bare. But the store smelled wonderful from freshly baked hot buns that had been stacked on an old folding table. Each bun was about the size of two balled up fists, and they were still WARM! The taste was comparable to a plain donut, but without the annoying hole in the middle. They were my favorite food so far on this trip. I would drive back to Nata just for those hot buns!

I have also spent time reflecting on all the amazing people we have met on our journey so far. From locals to travelers to tourists, I have cherished each and every one. But the most interesting couple I have met is from China. We met Jack and Jill (we’re not using their real names in order to protect them) in Gweta on our overnight visit to the Nwetwe Pan. Their English was a bit spotty (Jill was much better than Jack), but thankfully Google translate helped to bridge some of the gap. They were part of an all Chinese tour group, visiting 5 different countries in 16 days. Both wanted a break from the group, so when the opportunity arose to camp out on the pan instead of sleeping at Gweta Lodge with the rest of the tour group, they took it. I think that if Rhia and I had not booked that night (we were the only two) then the offer would not have been extended to that group. But there was much, much more to Jack and Jill than just two 40 year old Chinese tourists. We knew this hours before we got on the truck to take us out to the Pan. I think they started a conversation with us because we lived in the USA. They immediately began sharing with us about how difficult it is to live in China, but how they cannot speak about it as they could be arrested! Within a few minutes of us chatting, another member of their group came over. Jill looked anxiously at us, shook her head and motioned zipping her lips. She smacked Jack on the head to shut him up as he had not noticed the person; then, they wandered away with the Chinese man. Jack soon came back over and showed me his phone screen. Google had translated his message; it read “I envy your life”. I was left speechless.

It turns out that Jack and Jill are only children and, like most of their friends, have decided  not to become parents because of how expensive it is to raise a child in China. Both of them are also incredibly underappreciated by their parents. Jill, being a girl, is expected to send money to her parents every month to pay them back for raising her. The parents, in turn, spend all their money on themselves as they don’t want to leave her any inheritance for the shame she’s brought on them. Jill’s ‘crime’ is that she’s in a committed, loving, long-term relationship…but isn’t married! She had tears in her eyes as she shared that her mother calls her a slut every time they meet! She told me that, in her province, girls are considered to be on the same level as cows. Although Jack and Jill run their own IT business, Jack’s parents tell him he’s a worthless failure for not having a high-powered job! I questioned why the two of them continue to spend time with their parents and they shrugged and said that it’s their duty!

Jack and Jill’s escape is to travel, but they dare not tell their parents for fear of being shamed. They have a secret account where they store all their travel photos so they can spend time with them and ‘escape’ when they need to. I got the feeling that Jack not only idolized me for being American, but was in desperate need of a man’s approval because of the years of repression (by both family and culture). Sadly, the only thing I could do was be a friend and a mentor for a brief moment in his life. When the meal was served, both were shocked at how much food was available. Unfortunately, they needed to leave at 5 am to catch up with their group so we only had that evening with them. But it helps me realize that there are real people living behind the political walls that governments build around its population to manipulate and control behavior towards other cultures 😢

Our encounter with Jack and Jill made me feel guilty about complaining so much about our presidential candidates; no matter who gets in, we’ll still have our freedoms…freedoms that, perhaps, we take too much for granted. For example, Jill gave me her phone number in case we should ever find ourselves in China; she didn’t take mine as there was no point ☹️ Also, I stay in touch with most friends and family through Facebook and Whatsapp; they aren’t allowed to use either!

One incident that will stay with me for the rest of my life is when we saw a falling star; I told Jack to make a wish on it but not to tell us what it was (though we all knew) otherwise it wouldn’t come true. He made a wish, but with tears in his eyes said that it was impossible for the wish to come true anyway!

A theme I have woven into this trip is about seeing the signs. Here are a few humorous signs we saw the last couple days.

So we end part one of our Africa tour to prepare for the conference. Thankfully, we have secured a 10 day stay at a welcoming guest house right next to the Old Mall in central Gabarone.

And all this for $34 per night 😱