Tales from the witty african spider

Ghana is situated in West Africa and along the beautiful coast of the Gulf of Guinea. The country is divided into ten regions, with each region displaying a unique cultural identity. The farthest point in the country is Northern region, with a total travel distance of about 678 km, from the South. I have lived virtually all my life in the capital city of Ghana, which is Accra and located in the southern part of Ghana and had always dreamed of embarking on an adventurous road trip up North. Chance and fate finally agreed and I had the opportunity to embark on this road trip of a lifetime. My excitement knew no boundary, my inner being did a 360 somersault to celebrate this journey we were about to embark on.
Total travel distance from Accra to Tamale the capital city of the Northern Region is about 7 hours; it was going to be an exciting journey. I booked my ticket in advance, didn’t want to miss my bus and was scheduled to travel at 3pm. I arrived on time and got a seat directly behind the bus driver. Our buses are not the typical grand coaches that travel long distances in the advanced countries but rather a beat-down bus that has stood the test of time and can actually pass a carbon-14 dating test with flying colors. In summary, the bus was old. Travel luggage for a long journey included more in Ghana, on the roof of the bus was a goat; tied to the railings, apparent of the impending journey. I took a casual glance at the goat, it looked back. I guess it wished us a safe journey. I almost muttered Goodluck and Godspeed to the goat.
A few minutes after 3pm, after all travel protocols were observed the driver finally kicked the vehicle to life. Travel protocol in Ghana include the driver crosschecking the number of passengers in the car with the tickets sold out, accounting for payments for extra baggage which of course included the goat on the roof of the car. Every cargo on board the bus must be paid for. It is at this point that the negotiation skills of the passengers are tested. The goat owner could be seen haggling with the driver of the vehicle as to how much needed to be paid as “boarding pass” for the poor herbivore. Finally they agreed on an amount. Peace at last.
Our bus finally moved. I nicknamed the bus “The Speed Turtle”. It was an oxymoron name but hey who cared? Our bus wasn’t equipped with an air-conditioning system. We arrived at our destination around 4am, battered, tired and full of happiness because it was one awesome road trip.