lesotho: maseru and thaba bosiu

Maseru is the capital of Lesotho. Despite getting a ride from the family I met part of the way, it still took me a good part of the day to get to Maseru.

The family dropped me off in Butha Buthe, where I found the local taxi rank and climbed in the next taxi to go. I only had to wait an hour, which was nice.

Though I only had to wait an hour for the taxi to start moving, it felt as though we stopped every ten seconds or so to pick up more people, or drop someone off. A few times I was convinced it would be faster for me to get out and walk. The driver honked at every pedestrian he saw, slowing down plenty of times in case they wanted a ride. Since I just wanted to move, I was frustrated.

After a while I was told I needed to switch vehicles, and this next one would take me to Maseru. Since I had no idea where I was, or where this first taxi would continue on to, I did what I was told.

Eventually, I got to Maseru. It took a while, but I was there, yay!

My lonely planet guidebook had a basic map of Maseru, and there were a couple places noted for accomodation. Since I had no service on my phone, I was dependent on this map. I should've bought a SIM card a couple days earlier, when I first entered the country.

After figuring out how to get out of the bus station, I started walking. Getting out of this area took me a while, as the map was only basic, and didn't show all the small alleys and stores and such. I walked back and forth over the same area a few times to figure it out.

I walked to the first accomodation mentioned. At least, that is where I thought I was going. Only, I never found what I was looking for. I kept walking, in case it was further along the street. I walked for quite a while, but didn't see any buildings, let along a hotel/hostel.

So I looked up the next place listed. Go figure, it wasn't anywhere else. I wasn't thrilled about more walking, since I was carrying my pack, but I had no other options. Argh. I thought I followed the map in the book, but somehow got turned around. Eventually I ended up on the main street of the city, though not in the way I intended.

I walked and walked and walked. I thought I was following the map, but there were no street signs, so i didn't really have any idea where I was. What kind of capital city doesnt have street signs in the city center??? Let me tell you: the capital city of a country with very little infrastructure.

At one point I decided to buy a local SIM card for my phone. I figured if nothing else, I could at least figure out where I was, and if the accomodation I was heading for actually existed. I bought the SIM card, and put some money on it. I used the credit to buy data, and immediately felt better when I opened google maps and saw the little blue dot and street names.

I found my way to the place I wanted, and was able to book a room for two nights. I think the lady was quite surprised to see me out of the blue, as it was not in the city center. I sat around for a little while, enjoying how good it felt to take off my pack.

Eventually I went back out, walking down the hill and back toward the city center. I wanted to go into the information center, but that was closed already. It was only 1600! Argh. Another example of the lack of tourist infrastructure in this country.

I kept walking back along the main street, and eventually came to the supermarket I'd seen when going the other way with my pack. I wandered through there, comparing prices to what I'd seen in South Africa. I already knew that I could use rand and maloti interchangeably in this country, which was a relief.

I kept going on the street, passing a war memorial. As with the memorials I'd seen in South Africa, it was mostly focused on WW1. I'm not sure why, but there was a crocodile (not real,) on top of the memorial. I walked almost all the way back to the bus station where I'd arrived in the city. Since I knew where I was, I wasn't so afraid to continue walking.

I ended up finding dinner at a food court of sorts. Thank goodness I found the area, as there didn't seem to be anything in the way of cafes or restaurans as I know them. The guidebook didn't have anything to offer either.

That night I was happy to discover the heating pad on the bed. Maseru is lower than Oxbow or Mokhotlong, but it wasn't very warm.

The next morning I got to have another hot breakfast, and this one more than made up for the crappy one I'd had in Mokhotlong. Fried eggs, a chicken patty, beans, tomatoes, yogurt, tea, cereal, fruit, toast, and oatmeal. I was happy.

The lady running the place was able to arrange a taxi ride for me to get to the one place I wanted to see. It was a more than reasonable price as far as I could tell. The driver picked me up an hour later.

The driver took me to Thaba Bosiu, a place of honour and respect for the Basotho people. The drive was around 45 minutes, I think, though I didn't pay that much attention.

Thaba Bosiu is where the Basotho Kingdom was founded, where the first king lived on top of the mountain, defending and growing his kingdom.

The driver first took me to a church across the street from the mountain. My driver asked the caretaker, who gave me the background of the church: it was in the same spot as the first evangelical church in the country, founded in 1833. This church was simple, with a beautiful stained glass window at the back.

Next we went to the visitors center of Thaba Bosiu. The guide working there wanted me to wait until 1400 for a tour, an idea that didn't thrill me since it was only 1145 at the time. I said that wasn't going to happen, since I didnt have anything to do during the time in between. I didnt want to drive back to Maseru, then come out again.

In the end, the guide took me and my driver, and we started walking. The guide told me the stories and legends of the mountain, and pointed out different historically important areas on the top of the mountain. It's not a tall mountain by anyone's standards, but it's not a slow mosey to get to the top either. My driver was huffing and puffing more than I was, hee hee.

One of the places the guide pointed out was a pile of rocks, and he had me add another rock. He said this was where visitors back in the day would've left their weapons. It was a sign of respect to come unarmed when visiting the leader of a kingdom. It was also demanded by the hosts, to keep their leader safe.

Another place pointed out was the cemetery of the royal family. I could see the tombs of King Moshoeshoe 1^st, and King Moshoeshoe 2^nd. As each was buried in the custom of the time, the second tomb is a lot bigger and more noticeable than the first.

I got to see reproductions of the house where the first king lived, and where his second wife (his favourite,) lived. Not all the wives of the king (there were 140, give or take!!) lived on the mountain, and not all of those relationships were even consummated.

Marrying the king was a way of bringing more land to the kingdom, and nearly all the people of Lesotho consider themselves to be descendents of the first king.

The guide showed me where Parliament met, and told me all the representatives were men. Cue the sexist jokes. I reminded him there would be no men without women.

Off one side of the mountain I could see another hill, in the shape of the traditional "Basotho hat." The guide pointed it out to me, and had me take one of those posed photos where it kinda looks like you're holding onto something big. It kinda looked like I was picking up the top of the 'hat.'

It was easy to see why the king chose the top of this mountain as the seat of his kingdom, as there are views over the entire surrounding area. It was very difficult for anyone to put together a surprise attack. That being said, there are legends in the kingdom about attackers coming at night and being repelled by something sortof like magic.

Afterward, my driver took me back to my room, and dropped me off. I picked up some mail I'd been carrying around, and walked to the post office. It took me a while to find the right counter, but it ended up being quite cheap. Yay!!

After the post office, I walked to the one sight of the town: a Roman Catholic church. As far as I could tell, this was the only official sight in town, it's hard to miss. I walked in, and sat for a few minutes. Sooo much quieter than the chaos outside.

My next stop was another supermarket. They didnt have any food I wanted, but I ended up buying three bottles of glycerine because they were 100mL bottles, which are perfect for traveling. When I got back to my room, I emptied them out, and instead filled them with lotion, so I no longer had to carry around a big bottle.

The next morning I had another giant breakfast before packing up. I walked down the hill, and followed the main street to the border, which wasn't all that far away.

This visit to Lesotho was far too short. I want to come back with a rental car, and more time. I want to see more of the natural beauty of the country, and learn more of the culture.