I woke up early (5:30) so we could drive about 40 minutes to catch a bus passing from Sumbawanga to Mbeya. One of the mission contacts where I had been staying had pre-purchased the ticket. I was warned that this bus would be full, standing room only, but that I would have a designated seat and the conductor would make sure I had access to it.
When the bus came, I tossed my bag in the cargo hold and got on board. There were at least 10 people that I had to squeeze past, just to get to row 6 and sure enough my seat was occupied. The conductor chased someone out and since there were so many people in the aisle and I did not want to climb over two others, I thought no problem, I can sit on the aisle.
The first thing I noticed was the two babies to the left across the aisle and next, one came over the seat from behind to sit beside me on a young girls lap. This one was a bit older and not too compliant as it ended up fussing for nearly 2 hours.
The bus could not travel more than 40-50 kilometers per hour as the dirt road was pretty rough. There is a major project underway to put in a tarmac road but completion is several years off. The view was not all that interesting, so sleep seemed like a good option. The problem was one of the guys standing ended up with his elbow banging my head or hand gripping the seat where I was trying to rest my head. The bus also kept stopping to discharge and accept new passengers.
At one stop, we picked up two moms with two more babies, who ended up in the aisle right beside and in front of my seat. Five babies within arm’s length could get interesting. I started dozing, and woke up to find the one baby’s back side sitting on my shoulder as its mom tried to shift her weight around. OK, hopefully it won’t get closer. I went back to sleep. Suddenly, I felt someone rubbing the inside of my left knee. I came to, to find the mother in front of me trying to rub something wet and yellow off my slacks. I can only assume it was spit up and not the other end as there was no significant smell.
Since she had been standing for some time, she decided to sit on the floor, jamming my left leg up against the metal seat frame, which would not have been too bad had the road been smooth. However, it took a knock with every bump the bus went over. Of course since the one was on the floor, the other could shift around a bit more and I found that baby’s rear was suddenly in the middle of my chest and his back up against my face. So much for not wanting to inconvenience any one and sit on the aisle. The guy sitting in my seat by the window was sleeping un-molested. We had only been traveling 2 of the 6-7 expected hours!
Fortunately, after 3 hours we took a bush break (this is where the men go one direction and the women another). When I got back on the bus, I told the guy sitting by the window that I wanted to sit there and he obliged. The young girl took the aisle seat and started holding the baby that was so in-my-face and everybody has happier. I am grateful that I did not have to stand for the entire time.
All in a day’s travel. I guess that qualifies for the “willing to endure hardship” clause in my job description that I read sometime back. By the way, my bus ticket reads, “Sumry High Class.” Maybe it is the best thing going!
Roasting bananas along the road.
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