Somaliland adventure: Bumbling in Berbera {Gadling}

May 22nd 2010 3:44AM Hey Sean,
Enjoying your posts!
Wow... didn't realize all that was going on with your Berbera trip.
In your last post you wrote "People can sit for a couple of hours eating the leaves and socializing, and then go off to their job and be productive. "... while that's the theory... having lived in Somaliland for the last 2 years... if find that not to be the case at all... a view shared by many expats and some Somali's as well. Unfortunately, you discovered that for yourself by your drivers actions.
While i do agree with Raage's comment's above... the problems you encountered with you driver are actually very common among drivers in Somaliland... and khat just exasperates the mindset. I understand the "hustle" mindset... but Somali's pride themselves on their moral platform as followers of The Prophet and his writing in the Qur'an... and honesty and your word are values that "socio-economic inequality" does not excuse anywhere in the world.
There are some good drivers out there... but you need to have the time to pick and choose... spell out EXACTLY what you expect of their services... and under no uncertain terms, forbid the use of khat while driving for you.
Hope you make it to the reefs someday... and glad you got the equipment back to the shop and had a great overall experience in Somaliland!
M