Prices

The following blog post was written on the evening of 8th July. Due to technological restrictions it was posted at a later date.

One thing that stands out when shopping is prices. It can be difficult to guess how much an item might cost, some things are much cheaper than they would be in the U.S. and some are much more expensive. In a developing country, specifically one that is an enclave of another country, it is all about access and demand.

Here are some approximant prices:
Cardboard poster tube (which was very difficult to find-only one store in Maseru sells them) – M69 ($9.20)
Bottle of good red wine – M35 ($4.66)
One beer – M8 ($1.07)
One can of coke (coke light or diet coke are unavailable here) – M5.50 ($0.73)
Doctor visit and prescription (one person in our group was ill) – M130 ($17.33)
Soccer ball – M220 ($29.33)
Hand woven Basotho hat – M10 ($1.33)
Math textbook (which students are required to purchase for themselves) – M165 ($22.00)
A large, woven, wool wall hanging (which are very Sesotho, but not very many Basotho people can afford them – M522 ($69.60)
15 minutes of internet (but it is slow, not available in Roma where we are staying, and load shedding prevents use at times) – M3 ($0.40)
1 minute call to the U.S. – M14 ($1.87)

Also, it should be mentioned that Lesotho’s currency is the Maluti, but they will also accept rand anywhere and at an even 1:1 ratio. However, South Africa will not accept Maluti, so we will need to make sure to spend or exchange our Maluti before leaving Leaotho.