Volleyball

Flew two trips this morning!  Woo hoo!

But it's not all fun and games.  Well, actually.....

I quite like beach volleyball, but as in many doomed relationships, the attraction isn't exactly mutual.  Twice weekly, a varying array of ex-pats and locals meet at a nearby net, spread over uneven, rough, gravelly dirt as opposed to "beach", and play volleyball until it gets too dark to see, and swatting mosquitoes takes precedence over volleying the ball.  There's a few people who always turn up, some dropping by to just give it a try, a few Germans who take it far too seriously, and some who are quite happy to catch the ball and throw it back over the net, or perhaps kick it, causing the exasperated Germans to stomp and grump providing us with even more entertainment.  Forget the beach volleyball scenes from Top Gun, this is far more Benny Hill.  It's good exercise too, but when I showed up fresh from six weeks back in Canada, proudly boasting of my new kick-ass beach volleyball shoes, within twenty minutes of the first volley, came down with my foot somehow askew, and tore the ligaments running up the side of my left foot.  I began to wonder if volleyball didn't love me back.

After hobbling around and groaning for most of the tour, I decided to give beach volleyball one more go when I got back this time, my foot had healed up nicely.  I made it an hour into the game before coming down from a spike and badly twisting the ankle of my other foot.....I think it's safe to say our relationship is over.



A common toy that you see in Mtwara is an empty water bottle, with wires stuck through it for axles, and blue plastic bottle caps on those wires for wheels, and a string tied around the neck so the child can pull it along making car noises and smiling happily.  They appear to be quite happy, and are so quick to beam a huge genuine smile at you, it makes one wonder if we are somehow doing it all wrong in the West.   While walking near Stanley's old residence in Malindi (limping due to my sprained ankle),  I found some boys proudly pushing this home made beast.....

They seemed extremely happy to have garnered the interest of the limping mazungu, and posed for the shot above for some ice cream money.   Kind of humbling, considering my love for the best of everything.......