A Botswana Cultural Escapade - Day 1: From Gaborone to Ghanzi

 Sunday March 12

Travel Journey on Day 1 - From Gaborone to Ghanzi

This week I have received the great blessing to travel to the far-reaches of Botswana on a cultural tour, which has been organized for me and my colleague by the Ministry of Education.

Botswana Landscape

We left Gaborone, the capitol city, at 8:00 am Sunday morning. We drove west. Outside of the city, the Botswanan landscape is a vast tundra of thorny green trees called Miso. The miso is literally a tree with spiky green leaves, festooned with what I can only describe as toothpicks. They are long white thorns that cover each branch. These cover the land on both sides of the rode. What an interesting part of the Continent! Open land with spectacular rocky formations and hills that stretch long and far to meet a clear blue sky that is dotted with wispy white clouds. 

A San gentlemen holding herbal remedies from the land

As we drove to Ghanzi I asked our guide, Mr. Jobe, a Social Studies Curriculum Specialist, if anyone lives in the ‘bush bush’ as it is referred to. I was surprised when he told me that the San live there. The San are called the Basarwa, a derogatory Tswana term, and they are called 'Bushman' in degrading displays in many Natural History Museums. When pseudo - scientific racial theories were floating around in the 1800s at the time of the rise of Social Darwinist theories, the San were often used as some sort of example as a ‘step’ or ‘missing link’ in so-called human evolution. (I am an avid creationist by the way – I believe the Biblical account of creation wholeheartedly) There are many accounts of people from Africa being kidnapped and put on display for European audiences. A 'pigmy' man was kidnapped and displayed at the World’s Fair in St. Louis in 1903. He was then put on display in the monkey house of the Bronx Zoo. African – American pastors from Harlem were outraged and did everything they could to get him released. Of course the story of Sartie Bartman, the so-called Venus Hottentot is well known. And so it has been with the San. The museum displays that I saw of them when I visited the National Museum of Natural History growing up always embarrassed me. I think they were used to support views of Africa as primitive. Well, the San are not primitive, they are not an ‘evolutionary step,’ they are creative people who love the land and have daily lives just like everyone else. 

Lions at Tautona Lodge

We drove for most of the day and arrived in Ghanzi at around 4:30. We are staying at the Tautona Lodge. Tautona is a word with two meanings. If first means big lion, referring to the leader of the pride, of which there are many here in Botswana. When the presidential system was instituted, the word also was used to refer to the president. I was told that President Khama stays here when he comes to Ghanzi. ‘Game Reserves’ or ‘Game Drives’ are big business in Southern Africa. I think a unique feature of the region.  Tautona Lodge has its own game drive. Before we checked in, we stopped to see their lions. I have seen lions before in the zoo. But these were pretty incredible to see. Lions are calm, tawny colored, fierce.  

My Cabin at Tautona Lodge

My room is a cute little bungalow with air-con, a vaulted thatched roof and what sounds like a busy family of birds nesting on the roof and making a bellowing squalling noise. We have come because when I first arrived, I found out the San have a spectacular contemporary painting tradition. Their traditional dances are also an earmark of Batswana culture. The Kuru Art Center, where a collective of San artists make and sell their work, is not too far from here. They publish a calendar with the most vibrantly colored paintings. In a few minutes we are headed off to the town of Ghanzi to see ‘what’s what,’ as they say here in Botswana. Stay tuned!