The sun shimmered like an orange in a pan of boiling water. We were at Sussusvlei, in the heart of the Namibian Desert, atop a sand-dune that had survived several hundred summers.
"Aw, Stacey, Gav's done 'is knee in, I'm gutted he's not made it to the top, right shame, innit?". It was a mid 20s bleach blonde English voice, piercing the murmerings of the well mannered line of tourists who'd climbed the dune a few minutes earlier for this thoughtful start to our day. It triggered a chunder of guffaws and gossip from her friends, comparing notes on their boyfriends' various merits. The English at their most appalling, I thought primly, more Newport Pagnell Service Station en route to the match, than Namibian sand-dunes at dawn. I had flashbacks to the time, eight years ago, when two complete strangers (female, middle aged, English) had discovered their mutual taste for Cambridge's Waitrose supermarket, and shared it blindly with myself and a handful of others as we gazed upon Uluru at sunset in central Australia Back then, I'd lacked the courage to invite them to take their observations elsewhere, whilst I enjoyed the moment I'd travelled half way around the world to enjoy.
Not this time. Stacey and her friends did look a bit startled, but they moved away briskly. And I resumed gazing at my sunrise, my heart beating a little faster, and not just because of the eternal sight I saw before me.
JY
Musings of two Englishmen who have popped out of their Comfort Zones - and into the Southern Hemisphere ...
The Story So Far ...
We said farewell to our work friends at the RSPCA and BBC on 14 September, farewell to our families on 3 October, and set off for Africa to save cheetahs, decorate school buildings, and look around a bit. After a trip home for Christmas, we headed for South East Asia on 6 January -- where we were stunned by Qatar and Cambodia, taught novice monks in Laos, and acted as security guards at an Elephant Festival. It was back home for four weeks to look after John's dad, before we tangoed our way through five South American countries in fifteen days. We then snooped our way through New Zealand, dipped our toes into Fiji, drove-thru California and were home from home with family in Vancouver.
Now, we are home itself. Fulfilled, happy, and ready to earn the respect of our friends and family by knuckling down and earning some money once again ...
Well done, striking a blow for manners! At least the mobile didn't go off, playing some crap R 'n' B track - Paul
ReplyDeleteIs Cambridge Waitrose worth going to then?
ReplyDeleteKeep up the penmanship. Has your photographer exposed himself yet?