Transportation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This act is indeed very nice of him, but, alas, of very little use, because when our bus finally arrives, it’s already packed with passengers. This fact doesn’t seem to subdue anyone – they push and shove and shout, and when the bus leaves the station, there must be about 150 passengers, inside, on the roof, and in every other place a person can possibly cling to.

Inside the bus, an obese man offers me his seat, my protests being to no avail. That’s Indians for you! The most paradoxical people in the world. For two hours, I am seated in a most inconvenient position, before the crowds thin out a bit.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Bangui, Central African Republic, we got acquainted with five Germans, who also travelled by car. When we had obtained visas for Zaire, we all went by ferry across the Oubangui River, continuing by road from Zongo to Boyabu.

The first half of our journey is related on the page Travel episodes – Africa 1980-1981: An arduous journey across Africa.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A mule is a crossbreed between a horse and a donkey. In areas without roads in the Himalaya, and elsewhere, most transportation of goods still take place on the strong and sturdy mules. Their total number is not known.

Horse-drawn carriages and donkey carts are still common means of transportation around the world. Some are called droshky, a word of Russian origin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ox carts are still a very common means of transportation in various Asian countries, and in Madagascar.

At high altitudes in the Himalaya, yaks, burdened with bulky loads, are a very common sight. The Latin name of these beasts, Bos grunniens (‘the grunting ox’), is very descriptive, as they grunt incessantly. The females, called nak, yield excellent milk.

Wild buffalos were domesticated about 5,000 years ago, and through selective breeding they have become the docile beasts that we today see working in the paddy fields, or pulling heavily loaded carts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sad fate of the elephants is described on the page Animals – Mammals: Rise and fall of the mighty elephants.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The most important Daoist deity is the Mother Goddess Mazu. During the annual Mazu festival, which is usually celebrated 8 days in April, thousands of pilgrims walk along a route, many kilometres long, from temple to temple. The route is determined by the goddess herself, i.e. by priests ‘throwing the sticks’ in front of her image – two small concave wooden items that must land in a special way to determine the outcome of the question.

During this long hike, all sorts of transport means are used, from trucks to baby carriges. The following pictures were taken during several hikes that Judy, her brother Horng-wen, her niece Guo-chin, and I undertook during Mazu festivals and other Daoist festivals.