Pawns on a board game

 

Today I have a few items on my To Do list. Searching for a house, of course, but also sorting out MoMo. MoMo stands for mobile money. It is a system in which you load money on your mobile phone and use that to pay in shops and cafes. You don’t even need a smart phone. But it is smart. Even the smallest shop has the codes for MoMo pay clearly visible. But it has to be activated, and that cannot be done online. You have to go to the MTN shop.

Last week I already visited an MTN shop to get a sim card. I was queueing fort wo hours. What a difference compared to my arrival here 11 days ago. Passenger locator form check, vis an and passport check, PCR test, it all went as smooth as possible. The results of the test were available within hours.

This time I come prepared. I have a book. Plus, I am trying another MTN shop. Maybe I am better off here?

On the pavement in front of the building I can see big yellow circles painted on the floor. Each circle has a number. To the left of the entrance number 1 to 9. To the right of the entrance 10 to 16. Each circle at the left is occupied. I take circle number 11. It feels like I am part of a board game. The pawns are not moved via the dice but via slight nod, rather a raising of the eye brows of one of the security guards. One step to the front, one to the left, one across to the right. And then crossing over to the other field. It works. People keep their distance and no one jumps the queue.

My feet follow the patterns, I hear the buzz from the commercial heart of Remera. But my mind is in my book, in the rural village of Astene at the end of the 19th century. The main character, Guust Lareu, walks with me, from circle to circle. Until I am allowed in, through a metal detector (not my bag though). Five minutes later all is sorted. Now I just need to find out how it actually works.