BUS ADVENTURE

Riding a bus is usually not seen as an activity that is exciting or even adventurous; however in Burkina Faso…it is quite an adventure. In the quest to pick up a check that was gifted to Sheltering Wings from Social Action, Ernest (the orphanage’s administrative assistant) and myself traveled by the public bus to the capital of Burkina Faso.

We first had to wait 45 minutes at the Social Action building for the lady that was gifting us the check to get into work, then when she arrived we received the check and we were off to our next stop. We had to get a taxi to take us to our next destination, the bank, because it was too far of a walk. Ouaga is a very busy city and the roads display that perfectly; motos zooming past and cars pushing their way to the front. At the bank we again had to wait about 45 minutes to deposit the check, but this was not a big deal to me. I enjoyed people watching and soaking up every inch of this culture.

After finishing our task in Ouaga we were ready to head back to Yako. We bought our bus tickets and waited for our bus to arrive. Once on the bus, Ernest and I both settled in our seats and were ready to take the hour and 45 minute drive home. But neither of us were expecting what was to come.

The bus made about three stops before even getting out of the city. However, during these stops Ernest was kind enough to get me a soda and a sandwich; which were sold on the bus by a young boy. And, although I felt a little guilty, it was SO good. It was lunch time and both of our stomachs were growling. So a soda and a sandwich were just the remedy.

Once a little ways out of Ouaga we stopped yet again. This time it was for a lot longer. People were starting to get out of the bus and sat under the trees alongside the road. After some time passing Ernest and I figured out that our bus had broke down. So we too went to sit under a tree and waited for another bus to come rescue us. The first passing bus came but it had very little room so we could not get on. Then the second bus came and we fought our way on. Squeezing our way on we had hope that this was our final leg on our journey home to Yako. And sure enough we made it home!

After what we thought was going to be a four hour trip, turned out to be an eight hour venture. It was truly a Burkina Faso adventure; experiencing “African time,” bus rides and break downs, and the hustle and bustle of the big city. What a day!