Last day on the Edge

Sat. Aug. 1
Our last day in Mtwapa was relaxed and utterly enjoyable. Jami and I took care of some business at the internet, posting blogs and what and instead of returning home to leftovers sans a microwave, we ventured to the main street. Street vendors were always a little sketch to me, a risk I was and am not willing to take without reassurance from a local that my intestines can handle it. We ended up at a little café of sorts.

Café in Africa is not like that in France however as we sat under a makeshift roof, patched together with tin and fabric and held up by fat sticks. The cooks grilled on an open fire pit though this place had a fryer for chips (fries) and a small cooler for drinks. Flies made up most of the crowd while we ate though a few Maasai men ate methodically their ugali and some green spinach/cabbage looking thing. Mmm. Jami and I opted for some chips and chicken and a cold beverage which in the end was perfect. A relaxed meal with no surprises.

Upon our return home we discovered an overwhelming desire to go to the beach. Everyone was itching to hit the waves and sand. It would be our last day on the edge of the world as we sank into the sand of the Indian Ocean. So Jami and I grabbed a herd of kids and off we went. I chatted with Victor about being an actor and writing stories while Jami took pictures and enjoyed the company of Rodney, Sidney, Shirlene, Stella, Faith, Tim, Andrea and Esther. We made a nice crowd as we sauntered onto the beach.

The boys and I ventured out to the middle sand bank so we could dig to South America- I had to remember that since we were on the other side of the world, we couldn’t dig to China. We got pretty deep, maybe even 2 feet before the big boys of the beach wrecked our party. They wanted to play soccer on the bank even though they had plenty of room on the sandy shore. Sidney, the eldest of John’s kids and typical 1st born, was incensed but couldn’t do anything. I would have liked to defend him but as I didn’t know the language, didn’t have a great reason why we should stay and mostly felt completely overpowered by the guys, we left. I reassured Sidney and the rest that we would find a spot on the beach to dig. We might even be able to dig deeper since we’re further from water level. Tears were in Sidney’s eyes but we carried on like we were in control of our happiness.

We found a spot to dig with the help of sticks and spade shaped log. The first couple layers/inches were fine, but then we hit washed up leaves and wood. Meandering through that was a bit more difficult but water sprang none the less. Oddly enough about 4 older gentlemen came over to inspect. At first I though they were going to be like the other guys, bosses of the beach, but instead they were mesmerized by our efforts. Why? What is happening? Why is there water? Will it work over here? While they didn’t quite get down to digging, they would have been A+ observers.

Digging only lasted long enough for us to need to rinse/swim off. The boys didn’t know how to swim but they were willing to come try with us. Jami is a great teacher and knows all the perfect things to say, the places to start like floating rather than butterfly kick. She started with Esther then helped Rodney.
The first-borns stuck together…literally, since Sidney wouldn’t have any of my coaxing to relax and undig his nails from my arm. So we just held each other for a bit. Then I decide we would do it in baby steps and pretend to be a frog kicking off the ground. We were in waist deep water in the middle of the ocean so we had a nice cushion of level ground for hopping. We tried to float again but Sidney, such a wise kid, couldn’t turn off his stubborn brain. Rodney had mastered floating, so we traded children. Jami didn’t have much luck either though she did convince Sidney that he wasn’t going to die since he could hold his breath longer than Jami (wink wink)

In the end I could see frustration setting in so I took Sidney on my back and we swam- he kicked with his head above water while I went low enough for him to feel like he was in the water too. Then I had a brilliant idea. Why doesn’t he float on my back! I’ll go under enough for him to be on top of the water and then slowly he can gain confidence. So long as he rested his head on the back of mine, he was fine. We did it over and over and then tried floating just him and no table. He did it! He was thrilled, we all were. But we were also really cold so we left victorious.