On our last day in Zambia I had a family errand to run in a town called Mazabuka about two hours south of Lusaka. Initially I’d planned to hire a taxi although given that the half-hour taxi ride from the airport into Lusaka cost ~$25, I was worried that my round-trip to Mazabuka would be ridiculously expensive. But, all advice I’d been given before arriving in Zambia was consistent: “It’s pretty safe, just don’t wander around on your own”. When I explained my plans to one of the Room to Read guys, he shook his head and said: “Why don’t you just take a bus?”. Coming from an ex-teacher who seemed pragmatic and honest, I thought, “Well, why the hell not?”. So I did.

I’m not going to pretend that I wasn’t nervous when I went to the noisy, dusty, chaotic bus station on my own or that my heart wasn’t hammering in my chest as I was getting on the bus. I was and it was but I had a fantastic day. I talked to so many people all of whom were open, welcoming, generous and friendly. I felt as safe as houses. On Africa-time, it did take a whole day to get there and back and I was more than a little grubby getting on to my flight that evening but it was absolutely worth the effort.

Head on over to DeliciousBaby for more travel-themed Friday photo fun.

My trip to Zambia to visit the libraries built by Passports with Purpose in 2011 is sponsored by Expedia.

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