The first Wandering bus

The first Wandering Bus is now on display in front of the Dja Reserve pavilion. Photo: Petr Hamerník, Prague Zoo

Since 2013, Prague Zoo has been running a Wandering Bus project in Cameroon, which provides children from around the Dja Faunal Reserve with an educational programme including an encounter with live gorillas. Parked in front of the Dja Reserve pavilion is the first Wandering Bus, which eventually became mechanically worn out and was replaced with a new one.

The retired vehicle, which has travelled tens of thousands of kilometres on both asphalt and dirt roads and transported hundreds of Cameroonian schoolchildren, was brought to the Czech Republic, its interior was refurbished, and it now serves as an educational exhibit about the project. Czech children can put themselves in the shoes of their Cameroonian counterparts and, aboard the real Wandering Bus, gain a first-hand insight into practical conservation. They can even try answering some of the questions from the test that Cameroonian children take before setting off, and explore the route that young people in Cameroon follow as part of the programme.

The first Wandering Bus travelled tens of thousands of kilometres on Cameroonian roads. Photo: Miroslav Bobek, Prague Zoo

 

Originally, the Toyota Coaster that would become the first Wandering Bus was used to transport schoolgirls in Saudi Arabia. Photo: Prague Zoo archive

 

 

The launch ceremony was held in the town of Somalomo on the edge of the Dja Faunal Reserve, where the bus is based. Photo: Vít Lukáš, Prague Zoo

 

The patron of the project was the famous Czech footballer Karel Poborský, whose popularity helped win the favour of the locals. Photo: Khalil Baalbaki

 

For many of the children, the bus trip was their first ever trip outside their village. They spent several days on it. Photo: Prague Zoo archive

 

In the early days, the bus travelled as far as the Limbe Wildlife Centre on the Atlantic coast, almost 600 km from the Dja Faunal Reserve. Photo: Khalil Baalbaki

 

The state of the roads eventually took its toll on the bus, which ran out of service after four years. Photo: Prague Zoo archive

 

It was replaced by the new Wandering Bus, which differs not only in appearance but also in its extended itinerary. Photo: Martina Matysová, Prague Zoo