The Kingdom in the Sky.
I'm not sure where to start. Let me start at the border of Lesotho and SA. It's dark. We're a wee bit behind schedule. The cars are barely creeping along the border post. I'm travelling with my housemate, Moritz, who is a German medical student who is do the trauma elective at Bara. It's a little confusing going across the border, through check points, and then getting out and going into immigration. It all goes smoothly. Except that is is DARK out.
Why does this matter? Because we decided to stay at a lodge recommended by some of my coworkers, which is a ways away from the border. Originally we were going to stay in the capital of Maseru, but have decided to make our way to Malealea, which has a lodge in a more mountainous part, and has some hikes etc.
I got the directions off the internet of how to get there. We didn't really get a map of Lesotho, but I trust Lonely planet, and a keen sense of direction. But, let me explain that the directions from the internet of how to get to this lodge do require a slight leap of faith.
"At the taxi corner, turn right only the newly tarred road." Reading this before hand, I had hoped that no other roads had been newly tarred. You see where I'm coming from.
Getting past Maseru, I can see Moritz may not be as up for the challenge of driving in a foreign country, with shotty directions, and barely any road atlas at all. On, and did I mention it is PITCH DARK out? Oh, did I mention also that there are no street lights.
I figure we can make it, and if we don't we'll backtrack to Maseru and stay there for the night, or stay elsewhere. I've done a bit of homework before leaving, and Lesotho is NOT Jo'burg. People aren't plotting to carjack or rob us.. I try to recall the line from Blues Brothers about having a full tank of gas and cigarettes..
So, we head out of town, and are making our way to the highway. Did I mention how dark it was. No moon. No Street lights. People walking in the road, on the side of the road. Did I mention the bus that didn't have tail lights? I thought this all the norm, and really no big deal, I mean all we had to do was find a newly tarred road...
More to the point, we arrived at the lodge at 9:30pm. We didn't make a single navigational mistake. The final road was rocky and a little challenging to navigate in the dark, but I had flashbacks to driving on dirt roads late at night while in high school, specifically some of the camping trips taken while during our senior year in HS.
As for Lesotho... Poverty And Beauty.
Partners in Health.
Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders).
Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative.
All 3 work in Lesotho, and likely other organizations as well, though I'd be happy to work with any of these three. The reason. Poverty. And 30% prevalence of HIV/AIDS. And increasing deaths from TB. And a life expectancy that is extremely low. It is a country that defines poverty.
The Lesotho people were very welcoming and friendly. Something I didn't expect to find. While off the beaten track, (or while taking the Bakkie out for a drive on some almost 4x4 quality roads), people, of all ages, actually asked that we take their pictures. I haven't found adults before asking to have their photos taken (for free). The Lesotho, warmly wrapped in their Aranda Basuto Blankets proudly smiled for photos...
Part of the highlight was heading to Mafeteng, a town about 80 or 90 Km from Maseru. We were the only white people we saw. We walked the town, searched out for the best priced blankets, haggled with shop owners, people watched. Having learned a slight lesson in Peru, I didn't eat there. Though was tempted. I wasn't really tempted to buy a blanket, but after seeing them worn by people all day long, and then seeing the amazing quality, I decided to pick one up. Check this out to read a bit about the blankets: http://www.malealea.co.ls/basotho-culture/basotho-blankets.html
Anyway, it was a quick 48 hours in Lesotho. I was caught off guard by the striking beauty of the country as well as the welcoming hospitality of the people. I doubt it'll be long before I make my way back here.
PS-check out the link I have posted off to the right side, I have uploaded some pictures (finally) and will try to be a bit better out getting photos up regularly.
Cheers
