Lesotho and the Sani Pass

For the Sani Pass, just imagine the most impassible, rocky "road" you can, winding mercilessly through a veritable canyon and eventually up into the sky to a border patrol guarding the entrance to a vast, dusty plateau dotted with sheep and round Basotho Huts: Lesotho. The country with the highest low elevation point in the world.

The Basotho people are where they are as result of fleeing the Zulu hundreds of years ago. Their autonomy was eventually protected by the British, who, having no natural resource imperative to colonize the place, never imposed any imperialist whims there but protected it regardless.

The Basotho of Lesotho are also known as the Blanket People, because they all wear blankets emblazoned with the Basotho design, the imagery of which reminds me of our playing cards, with what we would call clubs and spades and diamonds throughout. This dress is universal with the exception of the children who wear only strings of beads around their bellies and necks except when tourists arrive, at which time they get covered up a bit.

So we hired a 4x4 driver and guide to bring us up there. He was a good friend of our hostel owners as well as the Basotho people up top (he delivered them eggs and other accoutrements during our trek and every other tourist trek he does), so we got to hang out in the village when we got there.

I was very sad to leave this place!