“I hate this bus” Hilary turns to
me and says, 30 minutes into our bus ride from Kahama to Arusha.
It's 6:30am and we've been up since 5. We still have 9-12 hours of
transit to go...as long as the bus doesn't break down. I look over
at Hilary as we both catch air and are launched off our seats for the
hundredth time. Her coca-cola almost explodes all over her. The
expression on her face is priceless. She is less than amused. I
erupt in laughter.
These days, I'm finding it easier to
laugh instead of get frustrated. A three hour excursion often turns
into ten, and anything that you can imagine can – and will – go
wrong. I've learned to accept that every day there will be major
stressors thrown in my face and that things will not go as planned.
And I've found ways to cope with things being so.
In Tanzania, there are no bathrooms on
the buses. No surprise really there, but there also are no planned
bathroom stops. Or bathroom announcements for that matter. So on a
9-12 hour bus ride, things can get really interesting. On our bus to
Arusha, we were lucky enough to stop at a gas station/convenience
store a few hours into our ride. We saw masses of people exiting the
bus, so we figured it was safe to do the same. We successfully found
some bathroom stalls (although here I really prefer to go outside in
the open air. The bathrooms are often beyond mention here) and then
made our way back to the bus.
“Anything else you want to do before
we get on?” I said to Hilary.
“Yeah...I think I'll check out the
convenience store. See what they have,” she said. (After being in
Murgwanza for months, stores with things such as face wash and
deodorant are exhilarating).
I decide to wait outside, stretch my
legs, and get some fresh air. All of a sudden, our bus starts
pulling away, and people start running to jump on. 4.5 million
shillings worth of WomenCraft products are on that bus – not to
mention all of our personal items – and I am responsible for it
all.
I run towards the bus and turn around
and yell “Hilary!” Lucky for me, she's right behind me – also
on guard since we both didn't know when the bus would officially take
off. As it pulls away I jump on, and pull Hilary up behind me.
She's the last one to make it.
Relieved and at peace with having made
it on board, we let out a deep sigh.
...and then the bus parks. About 20
feet away from where we made our daring leap.
Embarassed, confused and dumbfounded
(why was everyone ELSE running? Does anyone know what's going on
here??!!) we decide to stay on the bus and wait it out until its
really time to leave. We watch our fellow passengers re-board with
their truck stop purchases, and our bus now holds about 10 chickens
more than it previously did...including one rooster seated directly
behind me, beak at the ready to peck at my head.
Our business trip to Arusha was a
roaring success. When we left WomenCraft with all our products,
Shannon informed me that she was giving us four times the amount of
products than they usually sell during a fair.
“We're going to sell it all” I told
her. She chuckled, but appreciated my optimism.
But...we did. We sold all of the
products we brought with us. Elated, we returned home empty handed
with heads high.
But wait. Before I returned home,
there was a Belgian dilemma in the mix... named Maxime Seleck.
When Maxime and Alix (his girlfriend)
came to visit me in Eugene this Summer, he told me that he'd be
working in the DRC again this Fall, and that if I was in Tanzania
he'd love to come visit. It sounded like a great plan to me, but I
didn't have any details about my trip, where I was living, or what my
work situation/days off would be at that point. Maxime wrote me
again while I was in India, saying that he had to purchase tickets
and make a decision quick.
“Maxime, I'm sorry,” I said. “I
am in India and have no idea what the rules are or what things are
going to be like when I arrive in Ngara. I wish I could help more”.
At this point, I figured that Maxime
had given up. But...when I arrived in Ngara and checked my email for
the first time, I had a message in my inbox from him:
“Hey! So I booked my tickets. I
arrive December 3rd. See you then!”
Now as I mentioned above, nothing goes
as planned here. But if you know Maxime, you know that's right up
his alley. “I've never planned before and it's seemed to work out
quite well for me” he tells me confidently on the phone the day
before he's expected to arrive in Murgwanza. And if you know me....I
plan like nobody's business. Can you see where this is going?
Long story short, Maxime arrives in
Murgwanza and I'm not there. Our transportation situation from
Arusha to home gets complicated, and at the last minute it seems that
Maxime and I are going to miss seeing each other by a matter of
hours. After two days of waiting for me at WomenCraft, he has to
leave and head North so that he can catch his flight out of Arusha on
Monday. He came all the way to Tanzania to visit and I wasn't going
to see him at all.
At the last minute, we decide that we can't let that happen. So...we make a plan. Maxime and I ask our drivers to
cross paths in Lushunga - a small village between Murgwanza and Kahama- so that we can meet up. I'd planned on just
saying hello and returning back to Murgwanza, exhausted after two
straight weeks and weekends of work, but seeing him and feeling
guilty for not being able to meet up, I decide to go with him. Work
had given me permission to take a few days leave since I've been
working so hard. And after all, Maxime assured me that he had a taxi
already reserved to go to Mwanza, and that the same taxi could take
me back to Ngara the following day.
10+ hours later...after traveling via
taxi, bus, dhala dhala, and ferry...getting pelted by rain and heavy
winds...we arrive in Mwanza long after dark. My dad happens to call
me while we're on the bus – at night – in the middle of a
lightening storm. “Hey...are you at a party or something?” my
dad says, hearing the roar of the bus crowd. He's thrilled to learn
of the situation (not), but isn't too surprised knowing the company
I'm keeping.
Maxime and I passed a few great days in
Mwanza (google it), taking loads of pictures of Lake Victoria
(Africa's largest lake), catching up and enjoying yet another small
break from African life. Two days later, I caught a bus back to
Ngara and Maxime went on his way to Arusha. After getting my phone
stolen (but luckily nailing the thief down and getting it back) and
several marriage proposals, I was finally home. Familiar faces and
places were very comforting.
I'll be working for the next two weeks and then we close WomenCraft for the holidays and I'm going on vacation. Where to? Well...you'll just have to
stay tuned...
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