DIFFERENCES – SOME GOOD, SOME BAD - Roger

It some ways it almost seems like a foreign land, returning to Botswana; even though we lived here for seven years – definitely the most life-changing years of our lives. After returning to the US and living there for 15 years before having the opportunity to come back to visit the land where three of our children were born, and a country that means a lot to us, it is almost surreal that I have returned to this land for the 5th time in the past 18 months – this time to move here for a season.

Some of the nostalgic times I recall will not be re-lived however. Since we left “progress” has occurred. The city we are returning to is now a real city, and has lost the “small town” flavor it used to have. The village we used to live in now seems more like a town as well. It is hard to imagine a little over 40 years ago there was nothing at Gaborone except a small village. At the time of independence a decision was made to build a city and make it the capital of Botswana. When we arrived the city had a good start and just prior to our arrival the first two robots (traffic lights) in the country were installed in the downtown “mall” area. The day we arrived a Motswana (Botswana citizen) took us to show us the new robots. She explained how she figured out what the red and green meant, but still couldn’t figure out what the yellow was for. She was so proud of this new addition and asked us if we had anything like that in America. We told her we did have them, and she gave us this doubtful look as if to say “yea right” – I knew she really didn’t believe it. Today there are robots everywhere, four lane highways and a bypass, and of course traffic to fill them up with long lines of cars. After we left Gaborone became (and still may be) the fastest growing city in Africa, and be some accounts in the world. Times have changed. At this point it appears things have not slowed down, although the entire economy is based on diamonds. If diamonds had been discovered before Independence this country would have a vastly different history, but since nobody thought the country was of any value it was never colonized. After Independence some of the richest diamond mines in the world were discovered, and the government went into a 50/50 partnership with DeBeers – the big diamond company – and formed a company called Debswana. The country was fortunate to have elected an amazing Chief as the first President, and the second President was also an amazing person (the president when we first arrived). This country is a shining example for Africa – it is not a “typical” African country. The politics and the race problems, interconnected with the British Empire and apartheid in South Africa makes for a very interesting history, however. If you want a good book to read about the founding of this country (there have been several written) – one of the first ones written was titled “A Marriage of Inconvenience”. It is a fascinating story!

It is hard to wrap our heads around the changes in the 15 years we were gone. At the retreats and country meetings in our past life, we used to discuss the way urbanization is affecting the country – and now returning one can see some of those effects, although I don’t think we ever imagined we would see some of the things we see now.

A few observations of things I wish had not changed, and things that have changed for the better.

Oh for the good old days:
1. No high walls, electric fences on top of the walls, steel gates, house alarms, watch dogs
2. No armed robberies, car hijackings, violence, house break-ins
3. Expecting to hear a greeting when passing someone on the street
4. No traffic jams, waiting at robots, getting “cussed” out by other drivers
5. No TV – only one station was available from 7:00 to 9:00 PM

Boy I’m glad the good old days are over:
1. Wow you can find just about anything in the shops (if you hit the right day) and there are stores EVERYWHERE – malls, grocery stores, petrol stations, fast food, restaurants, cell phone shops
2. Tar roads – it takes hours to drive where it used to take days on sand tracks
3. Cell phones (from no phones, to cell phones), internet, - maybe this should be on the list above?

The list could go on in both columns. It feels great to be back – a bit like returning home only to discover it has been completely remodeled and unrecognizable in many cases. We will continue to moan about missing the “good ole days”, while we count our blessings when we find things in the shops we can’t believe.