My first solo trip to Dar

So my sickness continued to a point where I could no longer function at my site. I am an hour bike ride away from the road and a two hour ride from town which is just physically to demanding to do when you feel like garbage. Fed up with feeling like crap and not knowing why, I called the medical office and took a trip to Dar to figure it all out. So with a headache that wouldnt leave me alone and a temperature hovering around 102 that kept me in a constant sweat, I got into Mafinga to board the bus which was supposed to be there at 8. I was told it was late because of all the police road blocks so at about 10 I was informed the bus would be there shortly. About 20 minutes later I watched my bus fly past the bus stand and I half chased after if for a few hundred feet. I then went to the guy who sold me the ticket and he assured me in swahili that I will get on the next bus. So this guy sold my ticked to another bus line and put me on another bus which was over capacity a bit. So i stood but I was finally in my way to Dar not much more than 3 hours behind schedule. I was crammed into the back seat of the bus with 4 other adults and 2 children. About an hour and a half later one man left and I took over the window seat, thank god, I was burning alive. So I sat there straining my neck looking out the window trying to keep cool. You are of course not advised to fall asleep on public transportation because you things will almost undoubtedly get stolen. So after a 3 hour night of sleep the night before I sat there sweating instead. We made 2 stops, 1 I actually got out, used the bathroom and bought some juice. At the other I just bought stuff from the vendors that shove shit inside your open windows and they yell prices at you. Of course the woman next to me had to buy eggs so she leaned completely over my lap as I am trying to drink my mango juice and yelled at the guy with her head out the window. So she paid for the eggs brought them back inside and then yelled at the guy right infront of my face for some chumvi, salt of course. I couldnt shut the window fast enough so no one else could buy anything. With the window closed the temperature soared somewhere near boiling point i am sure. So by the time we got back on the road after the second stop we were still over 4 hours out of Dar and nightfall was not much more than an hour off. Another man from the back row departed at our second stop so that left an empty seat next to me. This was soon snatched by a child who prefered to stand up and look out the back window. I wasnt excited. The thought of putting my feet up... to good to be true. Shortly after dark, about an hour from Dar the child gets restless. He gets up and looks out the window again but something is definetly different. An odor fills the back row that apparently only I notice. I slam my window open all the way and stick my head almost fully outside. This child had surely just pooped his pants. I had no doubt about it. After a bit i bring my head back inside and find the mother checking the pants of the young culprit. Apparently she finds nothing worthy of action and leave the child alone. So for the rest of the ride I choose polution and exhaust over the smell of human feces. As we pull into the bus terminal, I remind myself not to touch the seat as it could have been smeared anywhere. So I get a ride with some taxi driver who has decided to screw me for everythign I own tonight, this was the first taxi ride i had been on where the price just kept escalating after we had already negotiated it. If i had anything in my stomach this would be the time to throw it up in his back seat. That would have been sweet but insteat I pay this man a rediculous amount of money and go into the hotel for the night.

I have been in dar now for a week. Getting healthy so I can return to site. It has taken a while but I think everything that was wrong with me is better now. I havent felt this good in probably close to a month. I still have not really checked out my market town of Mafinga yet. There are a couple of internet cafes there which I could concievably get to once a week. so for now I will leave you. there are still more test results that need to be known.