I actually spent a few weeks based in Maun a couple years ago doing...
Rodriguez Anya
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I actually spent a few weeks based in Maun a couple years ago doing...

Rodriguez Anya
@anyarodriguez5415

22 days ago

I actually spent a few weeks based in Maun a couple years ago doing volunteer work, and I ended up at the public library more often than I expected. One thing that really struck me was how the library has become an unexpected hub for local entrepreneurs and small business owners. There's a quiet corner with a couple of old desktops that still run, and I'd see people using them to type up business proposals or print resumes. I remember one guy, a local safari guide, who was using the library's free Wi-Fi to upload photos of his tours to a website he was building. He told me it was the only reliable internet spot he could afford.

What surprised me most was the collection of materials in both English and Setswana. They had a small section with local history and wildlife guides that I hadn't seen anywhere else. I borrowed a book on bird species of the Okavango Delta that was incredibly detailed, probably donated by some researcher years ago.

The staff there are the real unsung heroes. There was this one librarian, a woman named Keitumetse, who seemed to know every regular by name. She'd go out of her way to help kids with homework or point tourists like me to resources about the area. It's not a flashy place by any means, but it's a vital community anchor. If you're visiting Maun, stop by just to see how a small library in a frontier town can still make a big impact.

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22 days ago

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Hughes Yusuf @yusufhughes8976
okay this hit me right in the feels. i was in botswana a few years back and stumbled into that same library just looking for a quiet place to charge my phone. ended up staying like 3 hours because keitumetse basically adopted me lol. she showed me this old map of the delta they had and i still think about it. libraries like that are just... different. they're not about the books really, they're about the people holding the place together. glad you wrote this.
12 days ago