Highlights from Lesotho

The day after IST ended, I, and three PCV friends, went on a ten-day journey to visit the little country of Lesotho, found completely inside the borders of South Africa. Despite its location, it is geographically and culturally very different, which was part of the reason that I wanted to see it. The quick, quick history is that the Basotho people came to this mountainous region and successfully defended themselves from other African tribes as well as the Boers and the British. Under the leadership of King Moshoeshoe I, they negotiated with the British not to be a state when the Union of South Africa was formed, and eventually in the mid 1960s, they became a completely independent nation. Because it was always just one tribe of people, there are only two official languages in the country – Sesotho and English. In rural areas, the English is poor, but we managed nonetheless.

The route up Sani Pass from South Africa to Lesotho.

We started off in Underberg, South Africa and took a public minibus taxi up the Sani Pass, across the boarder to Sani Top, where we stayed for the night. I don’t think any of us realized just how treacherous the “road” up Sani Pass was, which is probably for the best, or we never would have gotten started. The weather was a bit foggy, but even so, we could tell that it was quite a drop on either side of the gravel mountain trail. After making a few inquiries, we were told that there are only three or four taxi drivers that drive the route since it is so difficult, and the trip is done in special taxis that are four-wheel drive with truck tires. Since it was the summer, we didn’t have to deal with things like ice and snow, which I frankly could not imagine encountering. But locals are said to do it all year long to transport goods from one country to the other: mostly South Africa to Lesotho.

The beautiful view at Sani Top.

On Saturday, we woke up early and traveled by public taxi from Sani Top to Mokhotlong. This was a bit of a disaster as we didn’t realize that the same taxi that comes up Sani Pass travels on to Mokhotlong without anyone really getting off at Sani Top. Luckily we figured this out the day before, and paid the woman at the bottom of Sani Pass to save seats for us the next day, so all four of us would be able to fit on the taxi. After arriving in the main town of Mokhotlong, we realized there is absolutely nothing to do, so we headed to our lodging for the evening, St James Lodge. Getting there was not that difficult, although getting back into town the next morning was not as easy, since it was a Sunday. But the experience at the Lodge was worth it.

Local boys wearing Basotho blankets.

The lodge is part of a missionary that works to support the local community and invites people to come and volunteer with a variety of projects. There was also no electricity at the lodge, so I felt right at home! Mostly we walked around the village and took pictures of the beautiful scenery and children, which is more or less the reason we came to Lesotho, so it worked out nicely.

Our goal on Sunday was to travel virtually all the way across the top of the country to the capital of Maseru. It was supposed to be an eight-hour bus ride, which didn’t sound pleasant, but we figured it would be better than a public taxi. We could not have been more wrong. For starters, the bus was packed with people in a way I cannot even describe. I was standing so that I could not move in any direction as the people in front of me and behind me were so close. And then about two hours into the ride, the bus broke down – for four hours. At first it was almost a relief because we had a chance to get off the bus and stretch out. Unfortunately it started to downpour after about an hour of sitting outside and everyone scrambled to get back on the bus to stay dry. So I basically stood on a bus that wasn’t moving for two to three hours. That was not the most fun I have ever had. When we finally got going again, we drove through some of the most beautiful scenery I have ever laid eyes on. It was truly spectacular, although I don’t have any pictures since I was really not in the position to be photographing anything. As we neared Maseru, the bus made a lot of stops to drop people off, which seemed to take forever, but at least a few seats opened up here and there and eventually I got to sit down. I don’t have any idea what time we finally arrived, but it was very late and very dark and we were very lucky we found a taxi to drive us to our backpackers. I think we said two words to each other and all passed out asleep.

Basotho weaving is well-known.

On Monday, we took a day trip to the local craft village of Teyateyanang to get a first hand look at the Basotho women weaving everything from bookmarks to area rugs. They are quite skilled and it was really cool to watch. Then on Tuesday, we traveled to Ramabanta, near the middle of the country, to see the most rural and scenic areas. We had a few days here to relax, hike, and pony-trek – one of the must-do activities if you visit Lesotho. The time we spent in Ramabanta was the highlight of the trip for many reasons. One of which was that it used to be a PCV site. The last volunteer there was Casey, who closed her service in 2008. Since weaving and working with yarn is one of the major cultural aspects of Lesotho, Casey decided to organize a small group of women (about 10) who already knew how to knit, and found a space they could call their workshop. She encouraged them to make just two things, scarves and beanie hats, to sell to tourists that pass through the area. Almost five years later, these women continue to make and to sell their products out of their workshop, as well as out of two very popular hotel/lodges, one in the village of Ramabanta, and the other in the next town of Roma. And, with the help of the lodge in Ramabanta, they are trying to get their knitting into the major gift shop in Maseru. In short, this volunteer did what Peace Corps is supposed to do. She helped establish an extremely functional and sustainable incoming generating project using only local resources, and it has actually grown since she left. It was genuinely inspiring to see, and of course, I bought a scarf and hat, because it’s going to get pretty cold where I live too.

Pony-trekking is a common activity for visitors and locals.

View of Ramabanta from our pony-trek.

The markets in Maseru.

On Friday, we were headed back to Maseru, happy with all that we did. Since we got back so early in the day (for once there were no issues with public transport) we found some time to walk around parts of Maseru and see the markets as well as the large cultural center that is in the shape of a giant Basotho hat. Along the way, we noticed a few Christmas decorations as well, which made me laugh since I almost forgot it was that time of the year.

The main Cultural Center and gift shop in
Maseru - in the shape of a Basotho hat.

The next morning, we were up early and out the door to travel by public taxi all the way around to Qacha’s Nek (found in the Southeastern part of the country) and back to South Africa. As Maseru is in the Northwestern part of the country, we knew we were in for a long day, but it went relatively smoothly, and were made it back to South Africa before it was dark. It probably would have been smarter to cross back in at the main bridge in Maseru, but live and learn. Overall, it was quite an adventure that I am happy to say that I had.