“Short cut” is what we heard over and over again about the Petauke road. But it took us nine hours. We compared notes with other travelers and learned that the alternative through Chipata was likely less time.

Well, it turns out that “short cut” has no relevance to time. “Short cut” means less fuel.

That’s such a cultural difference that it is cool to think about: Time doesn’t matter, cost does. That’s exactly opposite to my personal reality.