It’s 3 am and I’ve woken with a start. Someone is trying all the doors in the compound where I’m staying. There’s a heavy scrabbling in the ceiling and there are sounds of a police siren from the street. The manager here turns off the generator at 10pm, so I can’t switch on lights to see. I stay buried under the mosquito net sweating profusely because the air conditioning too is down.
I try to count my blessings:
- I have accommodation.
This is no small feat in Juba at the moment. With the South Sudanese diaspora flooding back into the country, accommodation is scarce.
In fact, I was booked into a hotel for my first few days here, but was bumped when I turned up at night to pick up my keys. Others had arrived before me waving cash and my reservation had been ‘cancelled’. I spent hours going from hotel to hotel to find a room.
- I’m staying in a closed compound.
There’s barbed wire on the top of its high walls and the gates are manned by security guards. In Juba, apartments are very rare. It’s either closed compounds or grass huts. I know which I prefer.
- It only costs $65US a night.
The hotel I first stayed in charged $150US per night for a single room and a bathroom. One down the road charges $180. With the UN in town, the landlords know the sky’s the limit and they’re intent on reaching it.
My work colleagues, some of whom have been in Juba since 2004, recall staying in tents. They had to share and pay $65 US a night and more for the privilege. One told me his tent was so small, he had to slide into it, often leaving his clothes behind.
- It could be worse
My house is humble I admit.
The tap is leaking in the bathroom. There are damp stains on the ceiling and strange black droppings on the walls. My mosquito net is so small I sleep curled up like a swizzle stick.
But I’m counting myself lucky. I have a roof over my head, a comfortable bed, and while I’ve been musing, the intruder has been expelled.
As for the overhead scrabbling, I’m choosing to believe it’s lizards. They are big here, after all.
©Jean Di Marino 2012
