Day 3-046
Day Totals: 16 hrs, 26 .1 kms

It's close to 9 PM when we reach Gaborone. According to Google Maps we should be arriving in the middle of the city, but it feels more like the middle of nowhere. A wide boulevard with spaced out dark building around. The "bus station" is just a borrowed gas station.

There are a couple of taxis around offering their services. But I'm not in South Africa any more and I'd really like to go back to "nathanphil style" of traveling: you just arrive somewhere, and figure your way around on foot. I don't want to spend my entire trip paranoid about getting robbed.

So off I go. Past very modern, big office buildings--but no shops or activity around except for cars. There are a few random pedestrians, but no one seems to take notice of this odd arrival. Finally I head down a side street that should take me to the train station and a hotel on the other side. A police car shows up. He just wants to know if I'm OK and need any help . He offers me a ride--I'm assuming just being helpful, but I'm almost at my destination so I turn him down...

Finally I reach the train station, a pedestrian overpass... a modern shopping mall on the other side that is shutting down for the day... On the other side a taxi driver shadows me as I head to the hotel, even though I insist that I know the way. The hotel is a more than than what I'd normally pay, but I'm not complaining. Botswana is, after all, a country that pretty much only caters to wealthy tourist, so I'll have to say I'm doing pretty good budget wise...

Everything I've experienced in my first hour or so in Botswana (other than the taxi driver hustler) feels decidedly different than what I've come to expect in an African country. I'm intrigued and excited to find out what makes this country tick.

My Day in Gaborone

Next morning I'm off, eager to explore the second new country of this trip . I spent less than 2 days in South Africa, but it feels like a weight taken off my shoulders to get out of there and to be reminded that it's not everywhere in the world that you have to be on constant red alert.

I walk through the empty streets of the government/embassy district past new shiny buildings. Large, but not overly extravagant. In the center is a simple statue of Botswana's first president.

Not far away I do finally find the commercial "heart" of the city, which is a quiet pedestrian street with modern shops and a few vendors on the street. Very different from the churning, claustrophobic markets of western Africa. A group of people are clustered around an outdoor grill where big cuts of meat are being cooked and served with pap and greens. I figure this would be a good first meal here in Botswana...

A bit further down is the Botswana National Museum, which, of course I have to pay a visit to, hoping to find some more clues about this country . There are displays of the early tribes and the wildlife. Then there are a series of intriguing displays that tell of the arrival of Europeans and what the outcome of this was.

The relationship between native tribespeople and white immigrants was not so cut and dry as it was in South Africa. Here it wasn't about white people coming and imposing a discriminatory system that opressed and exploited anyone who wasn't white. It was more a tangle of complex alliances and conflicts. In the late 1800s the Shona tribe was struggling with the Ndebele tribe which was migrating from the west. They were also in conflict with the Dutch Boers who were invading from the south. So what did they do? The sent three leaders, along with a British missionary to Britain to ask, yes to ask to be put under British protection.

I have to read it a couple times to make sure I got it right. So, essentially Botswana wanted to be a de facto colony of Britain?

Well, it turned out to be a smart move . This way Botswana avoided becoming part of South Africa and experiencing the apartheid system and all its poison. This is why, as a white man, I can wander freely around Gaborone, Botswana day or night without feeling any of that ever present tension that there is in South Africa.

But the story doesn't end there. In a twist that really should inspire a Hollywood movie, one of those three leaders, Khama III, married a British woman. This angered people on both sides. In his tribe he was forced to abdicate his position, and the British colonial rulers weren't happy about it either. He and his wife were exiled to England where they raised a son... Who is the president of Botswana today!

I exit the museum and walk the quiet back streets of Gaborone, trying to wrap my head around it all. The standard African narrative just doesn't fit here. And there's clearly a link between that and the very different quality of life that Botswanans enjoy versus neighboring countries .

It's not all fine and dandy though. Later in a museum in Namibia I will learn about how the Botswanan government has been killing and torturing San tribal people in an attempt to drive them off their land so it can be exploited for its mineral wealth. Finally a lawyer took their case to court and after a long struggle it was finally determined that, yes, they do have the right to live on the land they've been living on for centuries...

Here I have to ask myself the question: It angers me when I see Europeans abusing black Africans. But shouldn't I feel just as angry when black Africans abuse other black Africans? Abuse is abuse, isn't it?

There are negatives here, but the positives of this country clearly seem to outweigh the negatives. I pass a large, modern looking hospital with a long list of all the treatments offered there. Then down the road I reach the massive university complex, complete with a large swimming pool free for the students . Here I find a traditional hut built in front of a shiny steel and glass building. I figure this is a perfect image for my Parkbench videoclip...

It's also a good spot for my Parkbench Concert. It's not long before I'm joined by a group of college students who seem to really appreciate my songs.

"So what are you studying?" I ask.

"I'm studying psychology as a back up plan... I really want to have a career in music"

"Is education free here?"

"No, you have to pay, but you can get government loans that you pay back later once you start to work."

"So do you hope to work here in Botswana, or move abroad"

"Here of course... but it would be nice to visit other countries."

Another fellow chimes in "I've already traveled all over Botswana--I'd like to go to South Africa, just for a visit ."

"Do they treat Botswanans OK there?"

"Usually... they know we're not going there for work. Very few Botswanans go to work in South Africa."

I'm gradually getting a clearer picture of how the economy of Botswana works. It seems that it's more of a socialist economy with the government controling things like mining, etc rather than private companies. Thus a "good job" in Botswana usually means working for the government. The government seems to be using much of its profits to reinvest back into the country in things that help the general population: hospitals, education etc.

So is socialism a bad thing? Well, considering the other option: to allow foreign companies to come in and control the countries wealth and pay its its workers a pittance (while handing over big bribes to government officials)... as happens in much of the rest of Africa ... this system looks pretty darn good.

Here are some other things people have been telling me about Botswana:

- Botswanans have a natural inclination to practice family planning, thus avoiding overpopulation in a land of very limited resources.

- The government allows in foreign workers on an "as needed" basis. Meanwhile, locals are trained to eventually replace these foreign workers.

- There's been a big push to fight corruption. Police are well paid.

- Oh! did I mention that you can drink the tap water?

- Botswana has tried to stay in good relation with all it's neighbors. As a landlocked country, it knows that it depends heavily on these neighbors, even when they were engulfed in civil war or apartheid.

After traveling through 12 African countries, it seems I've finally found one that I can honestly feel optimistic about . Botswana is not perfect, but it definitely feels like a country with a plan... and a pretty good one at that, I'd have to say.

My Loop Around the City

I ponder on this as I continue on my loop through the city. Much of it feels more like a village with houses on large shady lots. Not exactly the most visually stunning city to hike around, but to see a successful African country at work more than makes up for that.

Finally I reach the south end of town where there's a billboard warning that the water levels of the reservoir are at a critical low. Hope that's not too much of an ominous sign.

Back towards the city, I stop in a supermarket to see what's on the sheves in a country like Botswana. I see brand after brand that I don't recognize on cereals, juices, canned goods... I look to see where they're made. Almost everything is made in South Africa by South African countries . I'm suddenly reminded that South Africa for all it's troubles and negative sides IS the economic and manufacturing powerhouse of all of Southern Africa.

I continue on north to an area of ambitious construction... maybe a little too ambitious. High rise office buildings... some government buildings that really needn't be so big for a small country like Botswana. A 7 story building to house the "Department of Youth and Sports"? Probably not necessary.

There's a monument dedicated to the three leaders who went to England to request becoming a protectorate, as well as plaques dedicated to each era of Botswana's modern history. 1900s to 1930s captures my attention with the word "Boitshoko" or "Endurance". It was during this era when Botswana (then Bechuanaland) was very poor--and yet the people themselves struggled to contribute towards building schools and dams.

A middle aged fellow strikes up a conversation with me . He's Botswana but he works in South Africa.

"I've been robbed five times there" He tells me. "In South Africa there are guns everywhere, and criminals get off easy there. Here in Botswana, if you kill someone, you will die. Our police are tough. And since we have a small population, it's not easy to hide"

Hmmm... another insight into what makes Botswana different...

Dusk is approaching as I wander through a quiet residential neighborhood of houses surrounded by high walls... interrupted by the occasional giant termite mound right beside the street. Tripadvisor.com didn't offer a whole lot in terms of "Things to do in Gaborone", but it does mention a ISKCON temple which I'd like to check out.

Turns out to be the most beautiful structure I've seen today.

Built in a typical Hindu temple style with a thick spire with beautiful sculptures all around . Suddenly I feel like I'm in India... minus the smell of urnine and trash everywhere... It's a refreshing contrast to the pretty ordinary architecture I've been seeing all day long.

I head inside to soak in the colors and the architecture. There are statues of a white and a black Krishna, elegantly dressed in the front and scenes of various Hindu mythologies along the walls--including some I'm not familiar with, like the half human, half turtle deity... and the lion headed deity ripping up a guys stomach with his four hands. I look it up and find it's the deity Narasimha, the "Great Protector", and the fellow being ripped up is Hiranyakashipu, who could not be killed by man or beast, but could be killed by Narasimha because he was a mix of both...

... Still an odd image to have in a place of worship. But then again, an image of a man being tortured by being nailed to a board would seem inappropriate for a place of worship--if we weren't so used to it ...

I sit down to rest and reflect. After so many churches in Latin America which feel pretty redundant after a while, it's refreshing to be in a place of worship with a completely different artwork, myths and characters. Nearby is a poster telling how you can bathe, feed and dress Krishna for a day (I'm assuming the statue of him that is!) as your religious service...

It looks like there's going to be a religious service later this evening. Sounds like a much more interesting activity than going and sitting at the train station, so I go for one more walk in the sunset, then come back to experience my first Hare Krishna service.

There are no chairs, you just sit or stand on the carpet, women on one side, men on the other. It starts out with an older women lighting candles and blowing a conch shell. Then a man with a shave head and white wraparound, comes and starts playing a drum and leading the singalong .

When someone comes in, the lie prostrate on the ground, bowing to Krishna and then to the deities on the side. Everyone joins in the singing, sometimes doind a simple dance routine also. In a drawer up front, there are some percussion instruments if you want to join in. Although more toned, down, it does have the enthusiasm and participation of a Pentacostal church.

I enjoy the various ceremonies throughout. A lady comes and splashes us with blessing water... then comes back and gives us each a flower... then the lamp is passed around you pass your hand over it "for blessing", I'm told.

It's a refreshingly different religious experience. Vaguely familiar to what I grew up with, but at the same time very different... with a language, artwork and deities that I'm quite unfamiliar with.

Afterwards a man approaches me and explains a bit of what the service was about . He doesn't seem too pleased, though, when I describe Hare Krishna as a "branch of Hinduism".

"Did you know that the word "Hindu" isn't found anywhere in the Vedas? It's a word that was used to describe the people of India... and the name stuck."

"Hinduism gets caught up too much in ritual and in caste division. Originally the "caste" was simply meant to describe your occupation in life--if you live as a brahmin you are a brahmin... if you live as a merchant you are a merchant... it's not meant to force people into these categories."

"What are your views of other faiths?" I ask.

"We believe in one God with many manifestations. I can go to a Christian church or a mosque and worship and have the same feelings I have here. They are all worshipping the same God.

I suddenly have flashbacks to my encounters with other universalist faiths ... the Bahai temples in Haifa, Israel... the Unitarian Universalist church in Virginia, USA. Each of these faiths preach the same broad inclusion of all faiths in their greater family--while each borrows from the ritual and style of Hinduism, Islam and Christianity respectively.

I'll have to say that the Hare Krishna faith intrigues me the most, since it's feel so fresh and mysterious. This won't be the last time I visit one of their gatherings.

Oh, and they give me a free vegetarian meal at the end. Definitely a nice extra touch... a good way to end my first day in Botswana--even though the ISKCON temple feels very "un-Botswanan"