Chapter 714 Iringa
After five days of travel, the train finally stopped at the city of Iringa. The train had to stop at almost every station to replenish supplies. Iringa is also a big station, so the train would stop for a longer time.
As Wales' hometown, he also wants to meet his family here.
Walking out of the carriage, Wells felt a little lost. The first thing he saw was an unfamiliar station building. It was two stories high and built with red bricks, just like the ones in Europe. When Wells left Iringa, there were only a few small houses and a simple wooden station sign, and there was not even a platform under his feet.
Standing on the platform constructed of cement and bricks, and looking at the station building in front of him, this is not the "Iringa City Railway Station" in Wells' memory.
"What's wrong, Wells?" Mary asked, hugging her son and seeing that her husband looked a little helpless.
Wells calmed down and said, "Maybe it's because I'm homesick, and the station in Iringa is very different from what I remember, so I have mixed feelings."
Adlis: "Mr. Wells, this station should have been built three or four years ago. Although I often take the Central Railway Line, I don't remember the construction time of each station very clearly. However, many stations in East Africa used to be in very poor conditions, so it is understandable that there is a big gap between what you remember."
"Yes, the Iringa Railway Station was not so luxurious at that time. The entrance to the station was surrounded by simple fences, and the surrounding area was mud and grass. The train stopped on the railway, and it was very difficult to get on the train. You had to move the box onto the train first, and then climb up by holding the door frame." Wells recalled.
He stamped his foot on the ground. "Now we use concrete countertops. There is only a small gap in the middle when you get out of the car door. If you put a pedal in, you can walk across the car smoothly."
He pointed at the station building and said, "There used to be only four small houses here. I remember there was also a warehouse. Now they are gone. It has become a grand waiting hall. Are passengers and freight separated now?"
"The freight station has been moved. You should have seen it when we passed through Dodoma City before. Now it is separated by branch roads, which can greatly improve efficiency. I think there should be such a branch road leading to the freight station not far ahead." Adlis explained.
In the past, there were few trains in East Africa, and most trains were mixed passenger and freight trains. Passenger trains like the one that Wales and his party were riding on were unusual in the past.
"If even a little-known East African city like Iringa can be built so well, then other cities in East Africa should not be bad either," said Wells.
"In fact, Iringa is not a small city in East Africa! After all, along the entire railway line, from Dodoma to Mbeya, Iringa is considered a relatively large city," said Adlis.
The development among East African cities is uneven, especially those that are nationally developed or have obvious locational advantages. Of course, apart from these factors, eastern cities are generally stronger than other regions, mainly because they were developed earlier.
"The question is who's going to pick you up now?"
Wells has been away from home for so many years, it is impossible for him to run back home with such a large amount of luggage, mainly because his home is in the village, not in the city of Iringa, which is far away.
"The government has notified your family, but trains are not a very punctual means of transportation. We may have to wait here for a while. If that doesn't work, we can only spend the night in a postal system station," said Adlis.
Trains in East Africa cannot be guaranteed to be punctual, which is common in this era. However, unless there is an emergency, such as a severe natural disaster, the error will generally not exceed six hours. The trip for Wells and his group was very smooth, so they should not be late for too long.
Wells looked at the time on his watch and said, "Our train is an hour early. Could it be that they are picking us up according to the normal schedule?"
Adlis: "Let me ask the staff first. Do you want to wait here, come with me, or go back to the carriage first?"
"Thank you for your kindness, Mr. Adlis, but I'll just wait here!" Wells said.
He didn't want to be separated from his family because of his mistake, so it didn't matter if he waited here for a while.
Seeing this, Adlis had to find a place to rest by himself. He definitely didn't want to stay with her on the platform.
"Wells, it's still quite sunny here. I'll take Wiggins to the carriage first!" said Mary.
"Well, go first!" said Wells.
Although the current Iringa railway station has undergone a lot of changes, it is still an open-air station with no shed to shelter from the wind and rain. Of course, this is a common phenomenon all over the world.
Wiggins had to wait alone on the platform. In order to kill time, he had to walk around and chat with the railway employees at the station.
A local employee who has been responsible for maintaining order all year round started chatting with Wells.
“Are you an East African who returned from studying in Germany?”
“Yes, not only that but I am also a native of Iringa City.”
"That's amazing. It's hard for people without real talent to go abroad. You must be a genius. The kids in my family don't study hard and can only work in society after graduating from high school."
"Actually, I'm not a genius. The courses in East Africa are still very simple. I've experienced this deeply in Europe. Europeans learn more than us, and their schools are more strict."
"Sir, you are too modest. Only a few people from East Africa can study abroad every year. You must be smart, otherwise you can't compete with so many people."
Wells could only smile and say nothing. What he said was the truth. There was indeed very little to learn in East Africa at that time. In his elementary and middle schools, the teachers basically read from textbooks.
Therefore, learning mainly depends on self-study, and Wells just concentrates on studying the knowledge in the textbooks, because there are some principles that the teacher may not understand clearly.
But when he arrived in Germany, Wells discovered that the students there were truly well-versed in a wide range of subjects, sometimes learning several languages, unlike in East Africa where only German was taught.
Of course, East Africa is different from Europe after all. There are so many countries in Europe, so language is a very important subject. Otherwise, you may only be able to wander around in your own country in the future.
However, Wells, who only knew German, felt it was not bad because there were many German states. But later, in order to understand new technologies, he also taught himself English and French.
"Knowledge is always useful. Our generation can find good jobs with knowledge even in Europe, settle down and start a family. After all, in the industrial age, the country attaches great importance to the value of knowledge-based talents," said Wells.
"Who said it wasn't? It's a pity that there are a few good-for-nothings in my family who don't know how to make progress. Successful people like you should be their role models."
This is probably the drawback of universal compulsory education in East Africa: things that are too easy to get are not easy to cherish.
"If you don't have too high aspirations, it's also fine. For example, I have been in Europe for many years and have few opportunities to meet my family," Wells said. This is Wells' true feeling, and it cannot be compensated by the quality of life.
Of course, this situation will definitely improve in the future. After all, East Africa is gradually opening up, and restrictions on the movement of people will be further relaxed.
(End of this chapter)
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