plans and no plans
Today didn't pan out at all like i'd planned. Par for the course in these parts, really.
I DID manage to do a cross countryside jaunt on my vespa. I drove to Uzi Island, which is about 40km south and east of Stone Town over a good road, then a dirt road, then a bad road, then a rock track across a mangrove swamp, then another bad road to a trail head (with monkeys chowing down on food left in plastic jerry cans cut in half and tied into the trees by fisherman) that lead through a submerged trail through another mangrove swamp and out the other side at beach. I hung out a little while at the beach and then decided that I'd better go. I was a little worried that the coral rock road which cut through the mangroves would be inundated by the coming tide and I'd get stuck. After getting to the dirt road and a small village, I saw an old man selling coffee on the side of the road and decided to stop for a little break.
Sitting down and greeting everybody and getting a cup of coffee, I chatted a little with the mzee about the road and we both agreed that last little stretch back there is mbaya sana. then i noticed the guy squatting half in the road across from me. I thought he looked familiar and then he asked me if I remembered him. I did, but wasn't sure from where. He said, sukomuhogo. I didn't remember, but he continued on.
I had been drinking coffee (again) at Jaws Corner and I met his wife who apparently is mzungu. Then, it hit me who he was. I was drinking my coffee staring in space thinking about whatever, his wife sat down near me (I'd seen her around before) and a sort of seemed like he was drunk crazy guy with scabs all over his legs thrust a tourist propaganda pamphlet in my face. when i didn't take it from him (even though he was demanding that I read it), he set it on my lap. I said thank you and turned thank you, but isn't this her's (I hadn't seen them together and had only seen her out of the corner of my eye. There were other pamphlets laying next to her)? She said, that no, it was his. He kept talking to me. Sort of, rastaman, i & I, one love babble. I finished my coffee and took off.
Now, here he was squatted in front of me in this totally out of the way little village. The respectable and solid wazee from the coffee baraza didn't seem to be put off by him. He even spoke english well, even though his thoughts were downright incoherent. He insisted that I come to his house and meet his wife (I still didn't know that it was that woman from Jaws Corner). I declined saying that I had to be back in Stone Town for a meeting. He insisted and insisted and then said he was going to get here and I should wait. So, i waited and chatted with the wazee some more (they were very cool). Ate a banana.
Eventually, he showed up with that grey haired, spectacled and also very scabby, hippy german woman from Jaws Corner. She told me that she'd lived in that little village for 7 years and was a plastic artist and then insisted on having me visit their house down the road. Of course, I went, but of course, she had to stop off and buy oil and kerosene (they didn't have either), and chat and buy vegetables too, but eventually were on our way. Their house was a very run down and dirty mud house (she called it a pigeon house?), fenced around with palm thatch, and filled with all kinds of random animals - dogs, cats, birds, insects. Her art wasn't so in evidence, but she did show me 2 fish carvings painted day glo colors and embellished with soft dried coral. She smoked. Abdullah, her husband came back and weaved around drunkenly, saying, "I am not a rastaman. I am not a hippy. i am a natural man. i am a good and I am a bad man. If you treat me good, then I am good. if you treat me bad, then I am bad." They invited me for fish sometime. i told them I'd see them at Jaws Corner and made my exit. Abdullah followed me saying that he wasn't a rastaman or a hippy and alla dat again. When we were to shake hands he made a fist instead. I put up my fist and he smacked it really hard and said one love or something.
Back in town, the meeting with Kapande at alekaifak didn't really work out. he had been expecting Khamis to come also and that there and then we'd listen to all these tapes and choose which ones to transfer to CD. Sounded like a lot of work to me. Khamis wasn't around and I had to go and meet Matona. We left it for tomorrow......
Back at the crib, Matona never showed up. I got a text message from Sweet Ray saying that she couldn't come for the 9 pm session, but we could meet tomorrow instead.
I rented a Jet Li DVD and am gonna just chill.
I DID manage to do a cross countryside jaunt on my vespa. I drove to Uzi Island, which is about 40km south and east of Stone Town over a good road, then a dirt road, then a bad road, then a rock track across a mangrove swamp, then another bad road to a trail head (with monkeys chowing down on food left in plastic jerry cans cut in half and tied into the trees by fisherman) that lead through a submerged trail through another mangrove swamp and out the other side at beach. I hung out a little while at the beach and then decided that I'd better go. I was a little worried that the coral rock road which cut through the mangroves would be inundated by the coming tide and I'd get stuck. After getting to the dirt road and a small village, I saw an old man selling coffee on the side of the road and decided to stop for a little break.
Sitting down and greeting everybody and getting a cup of coffee, I chatted a little with the mzee about the road and we both agreed that last little stretch back there is mbaya sana. then i noticed the guy squatting half in the road across from me. I thought he looked familiar and then he asked me if I remembered him. I did, but wasn't sure from where. He said, sukomuhogo. I didn't remember, but he continued on.
I had been drinking coffee (again) at Jaws Corner and I met his wife who apparently is mzungu. Then, it hit me who he was. I was drinking my coffee staring in space thinking about whatever, his wife sat down near me (I'd seen her around before) and a sort of seemed like he was drunk crazy guy with scabs all over his legs thrust a tourist propaganda pamphlet in my face. when i didn't take it from him (even though he was demanding that I read it), he set it on my lap. I said thank you and turned thank you, but isn't this her's (I hadn't seen them together and had only seen her out of the corner of my eye. There were other pamphlets laying next to her)? She said, that no, it was his. He kept talking to me. Sort of, rastaman, i & I, one love babble. I finished my coffee and took off.
Now, here he was squatted in front of me in this totally out of the way little village. The respectable and solid wazee from the coffee baraza didn't seem to be put off by him. He even spoke english well, even though his thoughts were downright incoherent. He insisted that I come to his house and meet his wife (I still didn't know that it was that woman from Jaws Corner). I declined saying that I had to be back in Stone Town for a meeting. He insisted and insisted and then said he was going to get here and I should wait. So, i waited and chatted with the wazee some more (they were very cool). Ate a banana.
Eventually, he showed up with that grey haired, spectacled and also very scabby, hippy german woman from Jaws Corner. She told me that she'd lived in that little village for 7 years and was a plastic artist and then insisted on having me visit their house down the road. Of course, I went, but of course, she had to stop off and buy oil and kerosene (they didn't have either), and chat and buy vegetables too, but eventually were on our way. Their house was a very run down and dirty mud house (she called it a pigeon house?), fenced around with palm thatch, and filled with all kinds of random animals - dogs, cats, birds, insects. Her art wasn't so in evidence, but she did show me 2 fish carvings painted day glo colors and embellished with soft dried coral. She smoked. Abdullah, her husband came back and weaved around drunkenly, saying, "I am not a rastaman. I am not a hippy. i am a natural man. i am a good and I am a bad man. If you treat me good, then I am good. if you treat me bad, then I am bad." They invited me for fish sometime. i told them I'd see them at Jaws Corner and made my exit. Abdullah followed me saying that he wasn't a rastaman or a hippy and alla dat again. When we were to shake hands he made a fist instead. I put up my fist and he smacked it really hard and said one love or something.
Back in town, the meeting with Kapande at alekaifak didn't really work out. he had been expecting Khamis to come also and that there and then we'd listen to all these tapes and choose which ones to transfer to CD. Sounded like a lot of work to me. Khamis wasn't around and I had to go and meet Matona. We left it for tomorrow......
Back at the crib, Matona never showed up. I got a text message from Sweet Ray saying that she couldn't come for the 9 pm session, but we could meet tomorrow instead.
I rented a Jet Li DVD and am gonna just chill.
posted by Maga Bo at 2:38 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home