30 day
Leribe to Semonkong
After breakfast we backtrack slightly to visit a riverbed close to our accommodation to view evidence of prehistoric life forms. If the river is in flood these ancient footprints are hidden but usually the water levels are low enough o look at the Dinosaur Footprints. We leave the main road to Maseru and travel to the Kome Caves, home to modern cave-dwellers. These caves were originally inhabited by clans escaping the Lifqane wars and cannabilism. We make our way to Thaba Bosiu along the back roads which go through many rural villages. Thaba Bosiu is a cultural centre of utmost importance to Lesotho and its history, We then drive into the capital city Maseru for lunch. This gives one a good understanding of modern-day city life in Lesotho. Mid afternoon we head back into the highlands of Lesotho going through the Mantsa Pass to the highland town of Semonkong. Dependant on weather and water levels, enjoy a lovely sunset over the Maletsunayne falls before checking into Semonkon
g.

oh no, our vehicle broke down and we’re going to spend the night in the wild.

https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/places-global-african-history/m…

discuss what you discover in the information and in the pictures. If you lived back then how would you handle cannibalism? Join in or become a vegetarian How did you cope with the breakdown and having to rough it over night.

Sorry it took so many pages to scroll through to get to Lesotho but it was interesting reading.

I learned the city of Maseru was founded in 1869 following the Free State-Basotho Wars between the Boers and the British. Boy the Brits were into everything at one time or another. ( my apologies if you’re a Brit but the truth is looking at the different countries so many did have British influence) Maseru was originally established as a small police camp by the British. Between 1871 and 1884, Lesotho was governed from the Cape Colony (present-day South Africa) and remained the administrative capital after Basutoland (current-day Lesotho) became a British colony in 1884. The small settlement survived being burned down during the Gun War of 1880-1881 between British forces and Basotho political leaders over the right of indigenous people to bear arms. The Basotho people won the conflict. At the beginning of the twentieth century, Maseru was a small settlement that consisted of a small number of colonial administrative buildings, a trading store, and several outlying villages. It later grew into a busy market town and it grew and grew. I believe it said over 200,000 maybe even more now since the article was written 2009.

We’re heading to Kome Caves, whoa the last time we were in caves we got tricked into smuggling opals. These actually are group of cave dwellings made out of mud in the district of Berea, Lesotho. The main purpose for the cave dwellings was to serve as a hideout from other Basotho people who had resorted to cannibalism during the drought in the late 18th century. The name of Ha Kome comes from the Kome family in the Basia tribe, the first inhabitants of the cave. Oh oh, we’re going to be dinner. Where’s that Norb or Charlie when we need them. Those boys are better smooth talkers than me.

This doesn’t sound or look good. The van we’re in won’t start. I look at my fellow squidders and squawkers and wonder what they’re thinking. I know what I’m thinking, I’m not going to be on the menu. All I can think of is the article I read 288,000 people fell victim to cannibals.

https://www.amusingplanet.com/2018/06/the-kome-cave-houses-and-cannibalism.html#…

Photo credit: Amada44/Wikimedia

I suggest we stay together in groups. The guide asked that we gather wood for the fire. Yikes, roasted body parts… I need to stop thinking the worst. Its going to be quite chilly tonight up in the mountains. I had to chuckle Sandy and Petra rubbing the sticks together. Thankfully one of the guides brought over dried grass and lit it with a cigarette lighter.

I had to admit once I shut my over-reactive mind off it was actually fun seeing the stars up above us while the guides sang songs and played these weird make shift instruments. I mean make shift, one took a hup cap of the vehicle another used a bucket, while another took a stick and bent it slightly with a string. He tied several more sections of string. They invited us to sing along. One thing for sure, our voices will never be good enough for Broadway but it was a lot of fun.

One guide returned with water for us to drink and some berries to go along with the snack bars we had brought with us. He mentioned he stumbled across several hikers that were heading back to Maseru, they promised to contact the police.

BCoF There’s some interesting people from Lesotho. Pretend you’re interviewing one of them, what questions would you ask? Give us at least 7 good questions. Don’t forget to mention how you handled the unexpected adventure after the vehicle broke down. Improvisation time.

http://countrylicious.com/lesotho/famous-people

See above, I definitely answered but now I have to really watch my snarky mouth so I don’t ask questions that might get me shot or worse eaten. Yeah, as you’ve probably guessed cannibalism makes me uncomfortable.

Oh my Thomas Mofolo is from this area. I can’t wait to ask him 1.) what made the Basotho turn to cannibalism 2.) Did people volunteer because of their age?

Cool I didn’t know Tsidii Le Loka the actress, vocalist and composer is from Lesotho. She is best known for originating the role of Rafiki in the original Broadway production of Disney’s stage musical, The Lion King.
That is just amazing. I have to ask 3.)what she thought of Manhattan? 4.) Did she like or dislike how the Big Apple never sleeps after living in Lesotho.

Wow, there who’s who listed just keeps getting better. I’m a huge fan of track, I love watching the Olympics. That’s when I first heard of this area when Mosito Lehata a Lesothan athlete, primarily known as a 100-meter runner. He is the current holder of the Lesothan record for the 100-meter at 10.33 seconds, and has consistently won the national track championships on shorter tracks. Isn’t that crazy. Unfortunately, Lehata was eliminated in the first round of the Men’s 200m event at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Lehata found success in the 200 m event at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics when he finished in the first round ahead of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt and advanced to the semifinals. It takes a lot to beat the Jamican sprinters. Just look at the New York and Boston Marathons. I would ask 5.) Why haven’t you competed in the NYC Marathon or the Boston Marathon? 6.) How do you think Covid-19 is affecting the athletes that would have competed this year? 7.) Will you be competing in the next Olympics or will you be too old?

Today’s theme is “hate.” Hate is a strong word, but I have no doubt that there is something or someone each of us hates. Is it a person? Food? Some aspect of society? Your job? Share a story, a poem, a photo, a drawing, some music, or whatever you wish to share about hate.

https://fivedotoh.com/category/dog-days-of-august/

I’m not particularly fond of the word hate but there are occasions it fits the situation perfectly. I apologize ahead of the time, this post has become a rant unintentionally but I did end it with a good song. 🙂

As some of you know I’m not a Trump supporter, I detest the man. I have absolutely no use for liars and he has been proven time after time of not telling the truth.

But I have to take this discussion further, I am extremely disappointed in our government overall. When this country was founded it was about freedom from oppression (taxation and religion). Religion hasn’t become oppressive but taxation has.

We live in a town house on a quarter of acre of land. In Lawrenceville the taxes are 10,000 plus dollars. It’s a nice looking house but seriously in a town house that is attached to three other houses. In 14 years the taxes have doubled with no major external or internal improvements.  I wish I could say we fancy sidewalks, street lights or even a park within walking distance. I detest what the local and state governments have done to the residents of New Jersey. It’s a ludicrous burden on top of a mortgage.

I took a break with Vic for a few minutes while I was writing and one more thing came to mind that irritates the heck out of me is the price gouging in the medical industry. Like for instance, advair which is an inhaler. With Vic’s insurance it costs 50.00 after the insurance pays their part. On my insurance the same inhaler costs 203.00 after the insurance pays their part. I checked to see what the goodrx  price was an discovered it was 313.00 dollars. I checked to see what a friend of mine pays for hers that lives in Canada and she pays 49.00 without any insurance contribution. One damn pharmaceutical makes the inhaler.

Same thing when it came to my Botox injections for my migraines which was the deciding factor on my insurance company was it cost me 102.00 versus what Blue Cross wanted which 1935.00 dollars, yup you read it right 1935.00. Same damn drug.

Needless to say since I am fortunate not to have to use the inhaler everyday only as needed which comes down to when it rains and things get wet. I’m really allergic to mold. I have a rescue inhaler for a whopping 30.00 and benadryl to get me through. Instead of having a 203.00 price inhaler that I might use 5 times in a year. Vic and I couldn’t even share because my dosage is lower.

We need to go to a system like the Netherlands or Brazil, everyone is covered without the insurance companies or doctors making a fortune at our expense.

https://pcguyiv.wordpress.com/2020/07/28/truthful-tuesday-july-28th-2020/

Welcome to this week’s installment of Truthful Tuesday! Or in this case, The Post that Almost Wasn’t.

The Question

Since it’s called, “Truthful Tuesday”, and the entire point to share a bit of our personal truth, I’ll start off by stating that I almost decided not to post a question this week. It was a rough and taxing weekend, and I just couldn’t come up with a topic. Thanks to Dr. Tanya’s “Blogging Insights #41”, I quite accidentally stumbled on the topic in my response.

Is there something that you like or love now that you used to dislike, hate, or at the very least, have no opinion of before? Or perhaps there is something you now dislike, hate, or maybe even loathe that before you liked, loved, adored, or at least had no opinion of? In either case, or both cases if you so choose, what changed your mind?

1. I used to hate spaghetti sauce as a child because my mother would throw all the left-over meat from the week into the sauce. Once I left home, I soon discovered the spaghetti sauce didn’t include, hot dogs, porkchops, chicken or fish tossed into together. I love spaghetti sauce sometimes with ground beef and sometimes simply just with onions,peppers and diced tomatoes. I still won’t eat my mother’s sauce.
2. I disliked milk as a child. As an adult I found it quite tasty. But now at this point in my life milk is causing me discomfort so my new pleasure is chocolate almond milk. If I have to have a substitute than let it have chocolate.
3. I didn’t have an opinion of Trump prior to his running for office, since that time I’ve developed an intense loathing for the man. His childish behavior on twitter and in the media has made us the laughing stock of the world. His inability to lead our country during this pandemic has taken my disrespect and loathing to levels I never believed I was capable of feeling.

Thank you for the prompt.

We’re going to be here for a couple of days.

https://www.safaribookings.com/tours/t29369
The mountain kingdom of Lesotho is out-of-this world for its sheer mountain beauty. Combine that with its unique culture where the people have combined a 21st approach to certain day-to-day activities whilst holding onto their culturally unique way-of-life and it blends into an amazing experience. Our guests are often visiting Lesotho whilst on holiday in South Africa. We have perfected a 3-day tour which incorporates many of the top things to do in Lesotho, despite being on a time budget.

This is our lodging, Bird Haven.

https://www.birdhavenleribe.com/

We’re leaving from Dar-es-Salaam, it’s a seven hour flight from Tanzania. We will be arriving at 3:00pm then directly heading up the Pass. So get some sleep on the plane because we have a real long day ahead.

https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Tanzania/Lesotho#r/Fly-from-Dar-es-Salaam

We travel up the Pass into Lesotho in 4×4’s, looking forward to the afternoon of culture, history and amazing scenery. Cultural Immersion – a visit to a local Basotho village. Roof of Africa Route – spectacular views from the top of Africa! Bushman Paintings – interesting history into the nomadic Bushmen.
Overnight accommodation at Bird Haven in Leribe, in traditional style rondavels.

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g293803-d1764272-Reviews-Katse_Dam…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sani_Pass
what was your impression of Sani Pass?

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g293803-d2414232-Reviews-Thaba_Bos…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sotho_people

This culture is very unique. What were your impressions?

I’m inclined to agree with one of my traveling cohorts 50% percent of me says this ride is insane, they should be calling it in Insanity Pass not Sani Pass and the other 50% of me is too damn scared to open my eyes especially when the 4×4 bounces all over the place and the gravel crashes down the embankment. I’m going to strangle our guide…oops that me, what was I thinking. The route up to Sani Pass by South African law can only be traveled by 4×4 vehicles. It’s totally understandable after seeing the conditions.

I don’t know about you but once we reach the stopping point I’m jumping quickly to the ground and even sigh in relief. Phew. My first glimpse of the village made me chuckle. All I could think of was fairy houses or bird houses. The inside is perfect, that bed looks so inviting.

“Lesotho is the land of the Sotho people, the Basotho (previously spelled as Basuto), a Bantu people who have lived in southern Africa since the 5th century CE. The Basotho nation was forged by King Moshoeshoe I, when he united disparate clans of Sotho-Tswana origin in 1822. Most Basotho live outside Lesotho, in what is now the South African province of Free State, an area they lost to the Boers in 1858. Sesotho, the language of the Sotho people, is, with English, the official language and spoken by almost everyone in Lesotho. About three quarters of Lesotho’s 2 million people live in rural areas, mostly in small villages. Friendly people, they are very welcoming to visitors.”~ https://ozoutback.com.au/Lesotho/people/index.htmlci

There was a Mokhibo dance performed by the Basotho women. It’s amazing how quickly they move upon their knees to their feet. Then we were serenaded by a group of young men that the guide called herd boys with an unusual instrument called the lesiba. It’s a stringed and wind instrument consisting of a string and feather on which the musician blows, using his mouth as a sound box, kind of like a jew’s harp.

I’m so tired after the flight from Tanzania and then the ride in the mountain air I just want to crash but the guide is insistent we see the
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BCoF:Prompt: Write about Katse Dam https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g293803-d1764272-Reviews-Katse_Dam…

“The Katse Dam concrete arch dam on the Malibamat’so River in Lesotho, is Africa’s second largest double-curvature arch dam.he dam is part of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project, which will eventually include five large dams in remote rural areas. The dam is just below the confluence of the Bokong River, which forms the western arm of the Katse reservoir.” ~ wikipeida

Unfortunately the families displaced because of the dam have struggled to re-establish their livelihood. A plant refuge was created, it is called the Katse Botanical Gardens and many of the plants that would have been destroyed are now here. And if these situations weren’t bad enough corruption was discovered and the court systems had to intervene, convicting those who took bribes and even banned one company from ever functioning by the World Bank.

The view is amazing and the structure is unique, the way the arch curves is unlike any other damn I’ve seen. The water marks on the stone remind me of Lake Mead. I’m always afraid to look whenever I go to see my daughter because in the years I have been there the decreased water is clearly visible. Lake Mead is very dependent on the Colorado River and without the snow run off the river is also quite low. I worry that Lake Mead will become totally dry before my demise.

But with idiots like we have in office who deny global warming exists, it will probably happen sooner than my demise because there’s no accountability on water usage.