|
Wang
|
|
Written by Wang w'Angamba
|
|
Wednesday, 26 August 2009 21:33 |
“Are there houses in Africa?” That is a question most Africans who travel to Europe or America have had to answer at some point.
Some Africans get offended: “Where do you think we live, in forests?” Some get bemused and play along: “We prefer natural ‘houses’, such as trees and caves. They are good for the environment, you know.” Yet others take the question seriously and, as my law lecturer used to say, proceed to “disabuse” the culprit of their ignorance.
I have had my own share of such questions. The most ridiculous: “You are from Africa? How in the world did you get here?”
I flew, hello! That, of course, wasn’t my response. “I rowed my canoe on the Nile into the Mediterranean Sea, pointed it into the Atlantic, rowed into the English Chanel and disembarked at Portsmouth,” I said.
“Wow! How long did that take?” she wondered, taking my canoe story seriously. Since that day, I decided that however stupid a question was, I would give a factual answer.
Question: “Have you ever seen a lion?”
My response: “Yes. You can see a lion if you go to a zoo or a game park, but not in the towns or the villages.”
That’s easy, isn’t it? Well, I thought so too, until I met this Italian-Japanese girl who is planning a trip to Africa.
“Is it easy to move from one country to another?” she asked.
“Yeah, you can drive or fly,” I answered, assuming that it was the same old question of whether one has to ride in an ox cart from Kampala to Cape Town.
“Of course I know you can fly. I mean do I need a separate visa for each country, or can I get one visa, like in Europe?”
I explained that you need different visas, but they are not difficult to obtain, especially for Europeans.
“Cool. I want to take the train from Kampala to Maputo in Mozambique,” she said.
“You can’t take a train. You will have to fly,” I explained.
“Why can’t I take the train? I like traveling by train, so that I can see the countryside,” she insisted.
“There are no trains in Africa,” I said.
“Why not?” she asked, surprised. “Even India has trains!”
Why not indeed? After all these years, it was my turn to look stupid. How do you explain why there are no trains in Africa?
I couldn’t come up with one good reason. If you know the answer, you will be my best friend.
I realized that those who ask whether we still live in trees are right after all. With Africa, you can’t take anything for granted.
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
|
|
|
Subscribe to this comment's feed
Show/Hide comments
Show/Hide comment form