Crazy bus trip.

Fri 9 Jan - Bus trip from Dar es Salaam to Monduli

I left the hotel in Dar at 4.45am, to catch the 5.45am bus. Sharon had warned me that these buses can take from 6 to 10 hours to get to Arusha, the big town in the middle of Tanzania (near Monduli). And I was to be prepared for anything - bus breaking down, axels falling off, running out of petrol, bad traffic, and a possiblity of crashing.

It took an hour just to get out of the bus terminal - which was an experience in itself. Busses lined up everywhere - except, they didnt look very 'lined' it was more like busses trying to form an intricate random mess - all racing (without much result) to get to the exit. We were told to be on the bus strictly half an hour before its departure - and it would wait for no-one, but clearly this rule did not apply to all. Every metre we moved, there would be some frantic passenger or two with a few bags shouting and banging on the front door of the bus. There were people interweiving through the busses - pushing, laughing, yelling, families saying their last goodbyes, kids playing tag - oblivious to the big moving vehicles, others selling and passing peanuts, water and bread to passengers through the windows, all accompanied by the bus radio pumping out Tanzanian pop and the loud drone of busses en masse. I enjoyed watching the whole scene.

One thing Sharon hadn't mentioned was the death wish at which the drivers opperate on. As soon as the bus was out of the terminal and on to the main road, we jerked into hyperdrive - the driver with his hand almost constantly on the horn manouevering through traffic and overtaking at horrendous speeds. Both revision mirrors were broken, so there was a 'spotter' - a guy who would stand at front door of the bus, and his job was to indicate to the bus driver when it was safe to pull back in after overtaking. He would also wave at the other vehicle, to make sure they really knew we were coming past. But the most unnerving part was the overtaking on completely blind spots - and I lost count of how many there were! We had a few incidents where I definitely thought it was the end.

I tried to just focus on the view, and the sites we were passing by. As we progressed out of the city area, there was less clutter and rubbish. The housing seemed to change - from dilapidated tin 'shanty' type to mud huts that were more neat, clean and compact. The countryside was full of many different plantations. But most intriguing were the humungous pineapples that were growing. I've never seen a pineapple so big! The earth was extremely red, and looked awesome against the vivid blue sky.
Eventually the Tanzanian pop was replaced with a really bad Tanzanian murder mystery movie - that had an awful soundtrack (the same musical theme over and over, punctuated by terrible sound effects) - and it was played at full volume. I had to resort to ear plugs.

All this seemed quite normal, and I eventually got used to the driver's erratic driving.
We had just passed through a small village (thankfully at a slower speed), when we came apon a small truck in front of us. It had 6 people standing in the back of it. Our bus driver didn't seem to be slowing down - just honking, intending on using his overtaking trick - until he suddenly realised that the truck was turning in front of us. I was sitting right at the front, and saw the whole thing transpire before me. The bus driver slammed on his brakes, but too late, and we slammed into the truck's side. The truck was thrust over on it's side, flinging the 6 people out of it, and we came to a halt. As I watched in horror, it seemed to happen so easily and simply, making me realise how vulnerable we all are. Everyone in the bus screamed, and people from the village ran out - kids, women, men screaming and wailing. The bus doors opened and passengers started clammouring out as a crowd of village men started forming around the bus. I was too horrified to move, my heart was in my mouth as I thought there may be casualties and I was not too eager to see any carnage. Things outside were starting to look a bit heated - as the men began talking aggressively with the bus driver and his 'spotter'. Suddenly a brawl started, fists, pushing and shoving, and I noticed a man with a huge rock eager to do some serious damage. I was feeling extremely nervous by this stage, and being the only white person around and not being able to communicate with anyone was not helping. The ladies on the bus were gathered around my window (which was at the front), screaming at the men and crying. Thankfully there were a few men who were able to calm down some of the aggression, and eventually the local police turned up to assist. Fortunately there were no deaths, however just bad injuries to the truck people. After what seemed hours, our bus got moving again and then had to go to report at the police station. With some intense talking and negotiating, one of the guys on the bus had to bribe the police with $100 to let us continue on the trip. I was glad to be on the road again - as I had no way of contacting Sharon - who was waiting for me at the other end.

The accident didn't seem to slow our driver down, and he continued to drive like a mad man. So I was extremely relieved when we finally pulled up in Arusha. We were 3 and 1/2 hours late, and Sharon was there waiting patiently. I think I must have looked quite pale and shooken when I got off the bus. Sharon was very sympathetic, and I was just glad to have survived a mad Tanzanian bus experience!