Chapter 5
“You again,” the girl snapped, as she spotted Luyanda, Jabu and Amina approaching.
“Nice to meet you too,” Luyanda quipped.
“I see you know each other already?” Amina asked.
“Not really,” Jabu said. “I’m Jabu.”
“Nomsa,” the girl replied.
“Luyanda.”
“Great. Now that’s out the way,” Amina remarked, “let’s get started. We must be quick. Follow me.”
She led them down a short walkway and into a wide gallery. Steady sunlight streamed in through the windows, illuminating a magnificent array of archaic battle-arms hanging on the walls. Luyanda had never seen such beautiful weapons in his life. There were arrows, spears, shields, swords, daggers.
“Quite something, eh?” Amina replied, noticing Luyanda’s surprise. “They’re all originals.”
“That’s impossible!” Nomsa gasped. “These look five or six hundred years old at least!”
“Oh, there are several pieces that are even older,” Amina said. “Dr Uru owns the largest collection on the continent. And he’s lent them all to the museum.”
“You mean the dude we met downstairs?” Jabu asked. “Distinguished looking chap going grey prematurely?”
“Yes, but I’d be more respectful if I were you. He’s the museum director and therefore your boss.”
Jabu reached for a glittering sword. Amina gave him a sharp rap across the wrist.
“No touching! This is a museum.”
They followed her up a ramp that led into a large, airy display room.
It was packed with artefacts. There were wooden masks, ivory tusks, sculptures, necklaces and amulets. Some hung on the walls. Others stood on small, glass covered pedestals. Students milled about, putting the finishing touches on the items on exhibit in the gallery.
“This is our permanent exhibition area,” Amina explained. “The artefacts you see here are from various parts of our continent.”
“Why only Africa?” Luyanda asked. “What about the rest of the world?”
“You must ask the boss that,” Amina answered.
Luyanda scanned the room. There was a huge wall map of Africa on the opposite wall, with tiny red dots scattered across the entire surface.
“That map shows all the countries where the artefacts are from.”
Nomsa squinted at the map. Red spots dotted the tip of the continent, the far west, the east and the south. “Wow. You’ve covered the whole continent,” she mused.
“And that applies to us interns as well.”
“Where are you from?” Jabu asked.
“Harare,” Amina answered.
They stepped out of the permanent exhibition area and into another straight passage. Beautiful rock paintings lined the walls to their left and right.
“Are these originals?” Jabu asked. Nomsa’s withering stare answered his question. “Okay. I’m sorry I asked.”
“It’s a legitimate question,” Nomsa quipped. “It’s not impossible to transport an entire rock painting from a cave to a museum.”
Amina giggled. “Our aim is to promote, preserve and protect our history. Not to destroy it. And some things are better left where they are found.”
“So I guess that means these are copies, eh?”
“And very good ones at that,” Nomsa added.
“And this,” Amina continued, leading them into a wide-open lobby, “is the main entrance. We sort of came in from the back.”
Luyanda looked up at the massive windows that stretched from the floor to the high ceiling of the Museum lobby. Warm, inviting sunlight flooded the entrance. A pair of glass doors slid open as a set of visitors sauntered out. Luyanda took an immediate liking to it.
“And that’s the gift shop.” Amina nodded to the right.
They turned towards the four glass panels that rose from the floor to the ceiling, creating a little room right in the middle of the floor. T-shirts, caps and coffee mugs covered its shelves. Most of them had the letters “PAHM” printed on them in bold, red letters.
“What’s PAHM?” Jabu asked.
“Pan African Heritage Museum,” Amina answered. “That’s what the boss prefers to call this place. Though the university thinks otherwise.”
She led them to the entrance of the gift shop. Tiny wood and stone carvings of elephants, rhinos, lions and giraffes lined the shelves. And some were of people: an old man seated in his chair; a woman suckling a child; lovers embracing.
She turned and walked past the reception area and gift shop and down another passage.
“But how could the university afford to dedicate so much space to this?” Jabu asked.
“The boss’s got some very good connections. And this has been his life project. He’s been raising the funds for it for over a decade. The buildings themselves took three years to complete. His vision is grand, to say the least. This leads to the restaurant and the garden area,” she said, pointing down a passage.
“You have a restaurant?” Jabu asked.
“We have a restaurant. Hang on,” she froze in her steps. Luyanda bumped into her. She wheeled about and looked them up and down. “You will need to get some uniforms.”
“No way.” Jabu stepped back. “I don’t do uniforms.”
Amina laughed.
“I don’t look that bad, do I?”
“You most definitely do not,” Jabu blurted out, staring at her face. Luyanda poked him in the ribs and pointed at Amina’s t-shirt. Jabu glanced at the black t-shirt with gold letters emblazoned across the sleeves.
“Yes, yes. I love it. It’s awesome.”
“We’ll get some from the gift shop.”
Amina swivelled around and led them back into the souvenir shop. Working her way down the shelves, she sifted through piles of t-shirts, hoodies and tracksuit pants. She pulled out three t-shirts and handed them to them.
“Try these for size.”
They tugged them on over their own shirts. They fitted them perfectly.
“Great! And to cap off our little tour, I’d like to show you our indoor garden. We’re the only department in the entire university that has one.”
“I’m sure the botany guys have a greenhouse,” Jabu quipped.
“It’s an indoor garden,” Amina fired back, as she led them through the back doors of the restaurant, out through a wooden deck and onto the manicured lawns.
“Wow! This is beautiful,” Luyanda gushed. He took in the grass, the trees swaying in the gentle artificial breeze and the garden benches. “Is that a pond over there?” he asked.
“Yes,” Amina answered.
She led them across the grass and over to the rock pool. It was small, with a fountain playing in the middle and koi fish swimming about in it. Three crescent shaped stone benches sat on its edges.
“I enjoy coming here to read in the afternoons,” Amina said. “And now, to show you guys where you’ll be spending most of your time.”
“Where will that be?”
“The offices.”
She snapped around and led them back into the restaurant. They walked through the restaurant and into a wide, airy passage. It opened out onto a wide exhibition area on the left.
“That’s Gallery B. The temporary exhibitions space,” Amina explained, in response to Luyanda’s questioning gaze. The passage now narrowed into a long corridor, lined with doors. She paused outside a door at the end of the passage.
“And these are your offices.” She opened the door and stepped into a low-ceilinged, open-plan office. There were long, low desks, computer monitors and black office chairs. A gentleman was seated at a desk, working away at his PAD. “Dr Uru, we have some new recruits.”
The man looked up, and Luyanda recognised the distinguished looking man who they had met earlier.
Dr Uru broke out into a warm smile. “Welcome to the team,” he said, and turned back to the images on his PAD.
“That’s the boss,” Amina said, as they walked out of the offices. “And those are your offices. All volunteers do a minimum of five hours a week.”
“You mean I have a desk job?” Jabu muttered.
“Yup, I’m afraid so,” Amina beamed.
They followed Amina back out to the main gallery.
“There you are, Luyanda. Did you try to shake us?”
Maddie and Devon walked down the passage overlooking the main gallery.
“Why are you wearing that funny t-shirt?” Maddie asked.
Luyanda and Jabu cleared their throats and squirmed.
“Oh, that’s what all the volunteers wear,” Amina answered.
“What do you mean?” Maddie asked.
“Oh, he’s joined us now.”
“He’s what?” Maddie shrieked.
Luyanda wished the ground could open up and swallow him whole.