Teepee For My Bunghole

Some of you might have noticed that I keep my hair kinda long of late. So when I want to cut it, the length I want is longer than what a machine would cut it. This means I have to find a barber (hairdressers don’t seem to want to deal with me) that can use a scissors and that really has become a harrowing mission. Something I’ve learnt from travelling around is that you gotta choose the old barbers. The old guys have been around since scissors was the only way to cut hair and so at least they know how to use it. It’s a pity that their doesn’t seem to be much old schoolers around, only pants-hanging, hip hop R and B, what’s-up-bro, I’m-a-gangsta youngsters.

I mean, I think it’s perfectly obvious that if some asks you to only cut the tips off of long curly hair that you have got to employ some method of getting to the ends of the curly hair so that you can cut it. But no, the method apprently is to rush in with all the subtlety of a hedge trimmimg gardener (admittedly there were startling similarities between my head and a hedge at the time). To tell you the truth, I should have shoved the idiot’s cornrolled head up into his, no doubt, cornrolled ass. He knew nothing about cutting hair! I tried to patiently explain but he diligently watched my elaborate mimes and listened nodding to my English/French/Portuguese directions and went heedlessly on continuing his pedagogical application of The Idiot’s Guide to Being an Idiot.

I can’t apportion all the blame away from myself. It is after all the second or third time I make a hopeless choice of barbers in my travels and I watch in horror as my politeness comes to an end just after its too late to stop the butchering. Then I have to sit it out in agony, waiting for the my hair to resemble some measure of symmetry before I can ask them to stop. Please, please stop. And another thing: why do barbers always have to do this one or two clip-clips of empty air above your head just before they finally finish? Is it embellish their image of being the ultimate Class A perfectionist? Or is it to give you some comforting sort of closure?

At least this time I managed an intervention before I lost too much hair, unlike the idiots in Morocco who cut everything level down when they felt the hair was uneven and I was left the exact amount left on my head that they were supposed to cut off.

Anyway, I’m off to my hotel room to do some trimming in the bathroom mirror.

Actually Praia is the capital on the other side of Sathiago island. I’m in Tarrafel which is a smaller but more beautiful city. Unlike Sal and Boa Vista, which looked like someone spat some houses along with some fishermen and tourists onto the land, this place actually has some life. The drive from Tarrafel to Praia is nothing short of fantastic. The driver motor’s along the cobblestoned mountain roads passing villages, incredible views and stunning peaks.

I meant to take a local ferry to get here from Boa Vista but a family I knew from Dakar offered me a ride on their boat. There wasn’t much wind so we took quite long for this distance but it was a cool trip nonetheless. They even caught a 9kg fish just before we reached land. Just in time for an arrival lunch.

It’s fun though being a landlubber again and back on the backpacking scene, even though that’s rare here. I forgot how much I missed my independence. Boats are cool (and cheap to live on) but it also hampers you in other ways. I’m supposed to start thinking about getting back home now but it seems like I’ve just recently started travelling again.

And now that I think about it, somewhere along the way I was supposed to think up a way to keep travelling infinitely but I must have forgotten to do that because apparently I can’t go on travelling forever. Or so it seems.

I’m on another island now but you’ll have to wait for later for more info on that. I want to tell you about Boa Vista and its beautiful light.

We went one day to braai [barbeque] a fish head somewhere along the beach near a small oasis (it’s the best way of preparing the head of a tuna). The light was crystal clear. The sand, bushes and mountains in the background were spectacularly sharp. The water was also spectacular and some turtles swam nearby just to add some more exotic flavour.

It was heaven for taking pictures, especially the orange dusk light and I would have taken more pictures if I wasn’t so busy enjoying the view (and fish head).

Today’s Lesson: Just because the bank doesn’t accept your card, it doesn’t mean the one across the road with the same name won’t accept it.

Also: Don’t expect the staff of the bank to volunteer this information.

Cape Verde doesn’t accept Mastercard only Visa. This means I can’t draw money. Western Union doesn’t operate from South Africa anymore after accusations that the system was being used to launder money. This means I can’t get someone to send me money. Tomorrow the boat leaves without me and I’ll be left here with just under 100 Euro in my pocket. Enough for a few days and after that, after that I might just be a little bit screwed. [Insert nervous laugh here]

Yep yep, photo time. I’ve added some photos. Not many, but at least you’ll get some idea of the architecture and environment of Cape Verde. Also you’ll get some pics to go with the stuff I’ve been writing.

Six hours later (most of which I slept) and I am on Boa Vista Island. I must say, this is more like it! It lives up to its name and has the harbour to the left, nice small city next to it, a small island just in front of it, some hills or mountains in the rear and a ridiculously long gorgeous stretch of beach off to the left bordered by sand dunes.

Boa Vista only has 3000 people and they’re all in this city, the rest of the island is unspoilt. Not that I’ll have much time to explore the further reaches with all the fishing we’re doing. Not that we’re catching much fish and that’s really sucks because it means we have to spend money on buying fish. Luckily, fish is cheaper on this island but is also the same price as a kilo of tomatoes or potatoes or an hour of internet (i.e. 3 Euro). 

We also managed to rent a tiny local fishing boat for quite cheap because our dinghy is too small. The first day we were here we tried to go four in it to the beach and turned around after 50 meters because the dinghy was converting into a submarine. So we went to the city, rented the boat and off we went fishing like little boys. The first time we went fishing we caught nothing and had to be towed back by fisherman because the motor died on us (we’re using our own motor).

I wasn’t too worried but realised during discussions afterwards that if the fishermen weren’t there we might have ended up adrift in the ocean discussing which body parts would be good to eat.

Anyway, the next day we were sure we knew where to go and set off into the very ocean we had to stalled in the day before. We caught very little fish (only one worth eating) and were very far out. I only realised when it took us so long to get back. Luckily the engine didn’t quit on us.

Tomorrow we try fishing off the small island in the bay. I’m starting to realise why the fishermen in the small villages are never fat – its because there’s never enough fish to feed you all the time. That’s my theory anyway and I’m sticking to it never mind all the different types of freshly caught fish in the market.

Okay, I’m still here on Sal Island. Which is okay since it gives me a chance to check out my options for when I want to leave Cape Verde (which aren’t much and mostly expensive). Also I take the taxi to Santa Maria every now and then and just go chill on the beach. Nice beach if you ignore the long stretch to the right expressly developed for tourism. It’s like this freaky movie set environment.

Sal has very little vegetation and I suppose that’s typical of these volcanic islands. It’s still beautiful though Palmeiras where the boat is anchored is kinda tiny and inductrial looking. The people in this village are good looking but in that hard life Cape Flats kinda way. They seem to be quite rough around the edges in demeanor too.

Anyway, I doing nothing much else except maybe catching no fish and learning how to ride the dinghy. It’s easy but it doesn’t help that the dinghy is tiny and takes on water and there is lots of wind. Will maybe also try diving with the bottle soon. And then…dum dum dum… it’s onto the spear gun. [Insert evil laugh here]