Hitchhiking!

I hitched for the first time in my life the other day, and I did it twice that day! The first time I was with my friend Kiri. We wanted to go to a nearby resort, so we flagged down a truck that was heading in our direction. In the States, when you want a ride, you stick up your thumb. Here, you stick your hand out, fingers down, and then move your fingers into your palm. That’s the same way you flag down cabs and buses here, too.

Anyway, the truck stopped for us and dropped us off at the resort. A few hours later, we were on the bus, headed to my house. I needed to grab my belongings because Cyclone Garry was supposed to hit 8 hours later, and we wanted to experience/survive another cyclone together.

The bus dropped us off at my house. We grabbed my bag, and discussed how we were going to get to her village. Then I said, “Lets hitch again!” We started walking on the side of the road, and flagged down the first truck that passed us. The driver stopped, and asked us where we’re headed. Turns out he was going to the same village! So we hopped in his truck, and spent the next 45 minutes talking to a complete stranger.

Forty-five minutes later, he dropped us off at my Kiri’s house. As we were getting out, I handed him a package of cookies—our way of saying “thank you for saving us $50WST on cab fare.”

Apparently hitching is common here. Volunteers from previous groups mentioned that they hitched to get around.

Will I hitch again? I don’t know. I wanted to get the experience out of my system, and I definitely did!