day 14

Although there are a lot of cars about, after all this is the capital city, they are primarily new cars owned by those who can afford them. The majority of the labor force in this country don't have vehicles, and so the companies they work for pick them up from where they live in the mornings and take them home at night. This scene is just down the street from where I live and you can see the coverall-ed workers getting on this mini-bus going to work. There are a lot of these buses on the road. The truck in the forefront of this picture is used to haul laborers to and from job sites - these would be the guys who bust rocks beside the road, dig the ditches, work the construction sites - general laborers. The guys in the buses are a step up, they appear to be skilled workers of some sort - factory floor or better. Anyway, you'll see these trucks packed to the gills, swerving through the roundabouts. I am told they didn't used to have shelters over the truck bed, this is a recent government requirement. Apparently this shelter is to help prevent these guys from spilling out all over the place if the truck tips over. It doesn't look too effective to me, but I haven't seen an accident either. At least it provides some shelter from the direct sun, which has got to be a godsend especially in the 120 degree heat of the summer.