After a five hour journey (one way) over land and sea, I arrived in Gumare, which after nearly two weeks, seemed like it might be heaven. I spent all day at the internet at the RAC (FREE!!!!!) and leisurely uploaded blogs and pictures, and read most of the 90 emails I had received over the course of two weeks (I loved every one). I walked home as the sun crept out of the sky, illuminating the horizon in pinks and flashing across white white sand to Richard and Stacy’s house, where I could smell the spicy pasta sauce cooking as I walked up to the house. I smiled to myself and thought, “this is bliss”.
Richard had cooked pasta sauce and bought nice pasta in Francistown, so it wasn’t all gummy and pasty like the stuff you get in bulk. He had made a salad with two kinds of lettuce (that was actually cold!!!! And there was dressing!!!! Also cold!!) and garlic toast in their toaster oven. We sat at a real table and I had a plastic cup of red wine, AND a glass of cold drinkable water. Straight from the tap!!! I later took a hot bath, no stove required and settled in to write these blogs to my heart’s content, as there was plenty of electricity.
I kept exclaiming about things, simple things, and was beginning to feel even more like the country bumpkin I was apparently becoming (Especially in the presence of Richard and Stacy- who hail from NYC anyway). Another clear instance of this extreme relaxation and happiness has been known to occur when I drink English tea with Simon in the setting sun on his veranda overlooking the delta and the tea’s got just the right amount of sugar and full cream milk in it, I’ve taken to sighing, kindof repeatedly and a bit out of control. Simon has recently pointed out that I sound a bit like a lunatic.
I’ve often been asked if I’ll visit home over the course of the next two years, and I think not, if I can barely handle the wonders that are Gumare, what would I do if there was toilet paper and hot running water all the time again and I had to leave it all to come back here? Or really, to Seronga, the place I love and hate, and maybe love to hate, and slightly miss, amongst all this luxury. There’s no place like home. But after a while where is home? Hmm….
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