"I feel like everyone is staring at me..."

At one time or another, each of us has had the feeling that 'everyone is staring at me.' This is especially true if you have lived through female adolescence or spent much time somewhere outside of your native country. There are places in Gaborone where diversity is the norm and I am definitely not any more stare-worthy than anyone else. However, my daily trek to work takes me through a few places where I definitely stand out. One of those places is the bus rank. This is where all of the mass-transit (combis, buses, taxis, etc.) off-load and pick-up passengers. There are dozens and dozens of tuk shops where you can buy individual pieces of candy, cigarettes, bananas, Coke, etc. and massive numbers of people going here or there.

I walk through the bus rank every day and I had a pretty good indication that I stood out because I am frequently the target of some pretty bizarre salutations (some of which I cannot repeat here). However, I tried to tell myself that these were just random acts of curiosity and I usually smiled, waved and was on my way.

This week gave me occasion to reconsider how much people must really be staring at me. It has been raining (rather, pouring) all week and I had to delay my trek to work because I knew my route would be flooded and I would have been drenched before making it two steps toward my destination. When I finally did embark on my route to work through the bus rank, I didn't really know what to expect. I am usually there during the 'rush hour' so I wasn't sure what it would be like later in the morning.

Well, it was still just as busy as it usually is at 0715 and I still got some of the same greetings as I made my way through. But, what affirmed my thoughts of feeling like I was being stared at was when my attention was summoned by a group of women and one of them yelled, "hey, you're late!"

She was right, I was late. I don't know whether to be fearful or flattered that I am being kept track of. Oh well. Until next time, here's staring at you. Thanks for reading my blog.