THE LONG SHAMBA TO DALA (SHAGS)

I came back last night from shags, by road, and for a moment when we were coming back, I kept asking myself why I decided to punish my back like I did. What was I thinking? That is not a road anyone should take, whatever you are driving, not even a tractor!!! It is a sacrifice and I don't think I'm ready to sacrifice anything, or any part of my being to please relas, just for them to believe we are sailing in the same boat.

Yes, I'm still bitter at myself for making that decision in the first place. We (my sisters and I) left Nairobi on Friday morning for shags. Having booked Akamba bus, and been convinced that they are the most reliable after Easy Coach, I said I'd give it a try. The last time I took an Akamba bus was some few years back when some kikuyus in Molo attacked our bus as it was struggling to go uphill. Was one of the scariest moments of my life. I had never been waylaid before and it sent chills up my spine. It was quite traumatic though we fought them off by hitting them through the windows, good thing they didn't have guns, wonder why. Not that I'd have wanted them to. Anyway, we took a Kampala bound bus as Easycoach only goes up to Maseno and the Busia buses were full so we had no option really.

Having been assured that Kampala buses ALWAYS leave on schedule, I was surprised when by 7.15am the bus we were to take had not even come! I woke up at 6am to be in town by 6.45, I made it by 6.55am having half run and half walked as the heavens decided to open up just before I left, an man! it poured. By the time I got to town I was soaking wet, but I wasnt going to change. Our journey started at 7.30am, not so bad but that's manminutes wasted already. Had a nice ride to Gilgil then all hell broke loose. When we left I was so excited, the road was good! I'd fallen asleep but was woken up by some impossible noises, shaking, rattling windows, we looked like ragdolls in the bus. It was irritating.

First stop is Nakuru and I can't wait to get off the bus to just be me, stood outside the bus but could still hear the ringing in my head. There was no comfort at all, it was a nightmare.

Half an hour later, we are back on the road and if you thought the road from Gilgil was bad, wait until you start the Nakuru - Kericho shamba! I've never been to hell, I read and hear that it is hot, there is just no road to Kisumu. It was so bad I tried closing my eyes to drown all the noise and everything that was happening around me but it would just not stop. This went on for about 5 hours. I thought it only took 3 or at most 4 hrs to get to the village, apparently not. It was so many hours I stopped counting. Did I forget to mention that it was still raining all the way to Naks? Well immediately we left Nakuru it stopped, and it was thick clouds of dust, dust, dust and more dust. By the time we got to Kisumu, my hair was all brownish-whitish-reddish, I dont know why, maybe some guy behind me was spraying my hair different colors to make me think it was the dusty road.

Well, got into KIS at around 2pm, long wait at their office behind Nakumatt Kisumu then another 1 hour to Yala, at least the road from Kisumu to Busia is not all that bad, compared to NKU-Kericho, thats like driving Waiyaki way. Well, after the second part of the trip, sure felt like it. I was glad to be home!

I wanted to travel back Saturday evening after the burial but was advised not to. Set my phone alarm for Sunday 5am, gave myself at least an hour to get ready and leave by latest 6.30, this is the best time to get vehicles back to Nai, the Busia - NBO and Kampala - NBO and you also get to arrive NBO on time. But it doesn't happen if you have a bunch or slow characters with you. I took time to wake everybody up as we were quite a number coming back and I'd missed my boy and wanted to be home in good time to bond again! At 6am is when everyone was leaving their sleeping quarters! I'm totally impatient, I tell them that with or without them, I'm leaving at the scheduled time. My auntie decided to pull a quick one, we need to have a family meeting and all leave at the same time. Why didn't she say this last night or even have the meeting the previous night, we had free time as we buried by 2pm, so what's this that is so important that it cant wait?!! Well, 6.30 is when some are taking baths, no showers there, breakfast is ready so them that are ready are taking breakfast, I'm done with both and have to wait. At 7 I say I have to leave, but we haven't prayed for 'those things that are built by the hands of men that crawl on the ground on their tummies...........' why do we always have to refer to them like that, not cars or trains.... Having begged everyone to assemble for prayers, they appear at around 7.30 and granny wont start praying until she sees everyone present and you cannot harakisha her.

Prayers are at 7.30, one hour after our ETD. I've given up but pray that nobody regrets this. We finish by 8, yes 8 and by this time I'm back to my normal self, cool, taking it in stride. Then I ask what time the meeting is and nobody knows, I pick up my bag, head towards the gate and someone remembers we didn't take a family photo! Snap, snap, we are done. And there is no meeting so I leave, I'm half running as I know were are f***ed up. Walk to the main road and wait, wait and wait, buses are coming full, there is no space and the only other option is to connect twice, through Kisumu. They object, I have my two young nephews with me and I cannot leave them behind. Two hours later we are in a matatu to Kisumu, yes. Then one of my aunties remembers my brilliant idea of leaving early and actually reminds the rest that they should have listened to me as I woke everyone on time and nobody heeded my advise. Well here we are and its too late for the blame game. In Kisumu there are no buses. Great. Sit and wait. Its now 11, then its announced that there is an LD express bus on the way and everyone jumps to get on the Q. We are 10, dont know where the rest disappeared to.

On our way back to Kericho, our bus suddenly start going slow, why? 'Inaonekana ina shida na hatujui ni nini'. So who is supposed to know? Same bus from same co. passes by and hands our crew the tool kit and they open and pour gallons of water, it had overheated. A few more kilometres at Kiptumo (I think) and driver pulls by the road side. 'Gari imeisha presha'. So? Everyone is so agitated majority leave the bus to take a stroll. We are not yet in Kericho, its already 1.30 and here we are, what time are we getting to Nairobi? Midnight. One passenger volunteers to get a mechanic he knows somewhere down the road and is back in half an hour, mechanic claim 'ni kazi ndogo', fixes the prob and we are on our way over an hour later. Cruise, pray, hope, more prayers, we are in Nakuru. I forced myself to sleep, but the dust was unbearable, I'm still suffering from the effects.

We finally arrive at our destination at 8pm, 10 hours later. What a marvelous trip, cant wait to do it again.

Made me remember my first trip home by bus, I had just cleared high school, my bro had just cleared his primary school and dad decided we go home for like a week as we were not doing anything in Nairobi. So off we went. The whole trip then took a maximum of 5hours not including a 1 hour stop in Nakuru and Kisumu. Well my dad worked for the Kenya Railways and I never in my life knew people actually travelled by road to any far off place. Having been brought up with free concessions to Shags and mombasa, why would I think there was any other means of travel. I still don't understand why the last trip was by bus, could be coz 'Relu' was cutting down on cost, and that's the last train trip I took. I still miss those days, we always ended up in the same compartment as we left mementos everytime we went home, marks on the doors and beds (jealous? we always did second class and when available - first!) The different was only the space, second had 6 beds while first had 4 beds, but to Mombasa you could have 2 beds in first class, lol! And being a family of 8 kids! we always fought over who was going to sleep on the top bed, problem is being young, you forget that its only the one in the middle bed that got the best view. Believe me, it took a whole night and half a day to get home, never thought it could be shorter!

I'm suddenly hungry.......

But I'm not doing the road trip again, its airborne or never!