Gantsi: The journey there and back

MAUREEN ODUBENG
Staff Writer | Friday February 22, 2008 00:00

 

The place is Ghantsi Township in the Gantsi district. The two reliable basis which trail the long distance on a daily bases leave at six and eight o'clock in the morning.

The ride is long. The public transporters make a few stops before reaching the final destination.

The option of taking the early bus crosses my mind but I end up on the eight o'clock one. As a first time traveller to the area, I nicely ask what time the bus is likely to reach Gantsi. 'Around 16:00' is the answer I get from a nice gentlemen travelling to Mabutsane.

'Roughly eight hours,' I say to myself, wondering how I am going to get through a whole eight hours sitting on a bus.

The bus passes through Lobatse to collect other passengers, which makes the route a little longer. While the Lobatse stop is short, the one in Jwaneng is a little longer allowing those who got into the bus in Gaborone to stretch their legs. Anticipating the long journey, I also use the opportunity to stretch my legs, making sure the bus is within view to avoid being left behind.

The bus picks up a considerable number of passengers until it is almost full to capacity. A few more passengers are waiting at the hiking spot, filling the bus to capacity and leaving no room for luxurious seating. Some who want free seats to keep their belongings give them up with intimidating looks that would scare off a standing passenger.

But considering the duration of the journey one just takes the seat, despite displeasure from the neighbor.

'Batho ba bangwe ba dingalo. Fa motho a batla go tsaya ditilo tse pedi mme a duela se le sengwe o raya jang? Kana le rona re a duelwa. Ga go na yoo ka batlang go ema ka dinao a duela. Mme ebile gona le ditilo,' says a middle aged woman, annoyed after being told to go to the back by a number of passengers who would not give up the free seats next to them.

Finally, not having a choice, all of them end up giving up their seats since there were no other empty ones, and the trip continues.

There are more stops on the way for passengers to alight and others to get in at Mabutsane, Sekoma and Kang.

Not knowing the exact time of arrival at Gantsi Township, the curious first timer asks at every stop about the distance left to the destination. Finally the bus reaches Gantsi at 17:30 despite the 16:00 estimation.

Another challenge begins, getting a taxi to the lodge. Luckily, there is a taxi at the bus stop and the first timer manages to beat other passengers to get into it.

'Dumela rra, ke ya ***** Lodge, Ke bo kae?' I ask.

'Ijo-ijoo, golo koo go kgakala. Ene tsela ya teng e maswe. Nka go isa ka P60.00. Mme fela fa ke ne ke itsile gore o ya koo nkabo ke sa dumela go go pega,' complains the taxi driver.

After intense persuasion, the taxi driver finally agrees to take me to the lodge, and demands his money upon arrival.

In the process of convincing the taxi driver it crosses the my mind to find another lodge with easy transport accessibility.

None the less, the lodge is beautiful. It offers a tired mind relaxation as it has animals. It offers one the beauty of nature, having its own mini wilderness.

The place is quite attractive. Right at the entrance there are beautiful lions and cheetahs. Definite time to take one's mind off the day to day stress and the hassles of noise pollution in the city.

The chalets are breathtaking with thatched roofing, and this is the spot to visit for one who wants relaxation and a break from the hassles of noisy town life. While some might complain because the chalets do not have phones, that is a plus for those wanting a break away from noise.

Having arrived, after a nine hour 30 minutes journey, the only logical thing is to take a hot shower and hit the sack.

The next morning begins at seven. I'm still uncertain about whether it will be a good day or not. Reaching the mall at the Spar complex, the tension easily dissolves as the first timer is met with great friendliness from locals.

While the area is a township, the traditional village setting is still very visible with the greetings from everyone you meet on the streets, something that has been lost in towns, cities and some villages which are slowing adopting town lives.

In the midst of this, all nervousness disappears, and I quickly feel like one of them. Besides having a number of developments, which qualifies the area as a township, the area still simulates a village.

The next morning having called the same taxi driver to take me around the area, I am even more at ease as he tells me 'Gantsi is a very safe place. You can even leave your bags around here and find them intact,' he relates.

Though I had been there for a short time, I had already observed that thieving is not much of a concern there.

The taxi driver however brings another side that did not cross my mind. 'Ghanzi is dead, it is supposed to be a township. But there is no life here. If your job transfers you to Gantsi, ba a bo ba go lathile,' he says.

While not totally in agreement with him about that, I listen to him as he goes on and on about how 'there is no life' there.

For the rest of the time I was there, I found it to be a lovely place. A peace loving person would not think twice about settling there.

The bus ride back is not that long as the route is straight from Gantsi to Gaborone, leaving out the Lobatse detour. It is more relaxing since I already knew what to expect.