Pain in the neck

Thursday, 28 February 2013

(Recommended song choice for this blog entry: "Love Love Love" - Of Monsters And Men)

I woke up today cringing.
What am I saying... I hardly slept.
I sat on my allocated bunk bed with my right cheek pressed against my right shoulder.
I was sore, and not even the house cat could console me.

I had finished the last of my painkillers on a silly (but deep) cut on my foot. I had acquired it two weeks earlier by stubbing the ball of my left foot on a rusted nail (I had not mentioned this as it boiled down to my own stupidity).

I realise (now that my right gland is sticking out like like a small pregnant belly and I have to keep my neck tilted at an odd angle to minimise the throbbing) that I must have been bitten by a spider while walking down the mountain from the Bushman paintings two days ago. I vaguely remember itching behind my ear furiously as we crossed the golf course back towards Sani Lodge.

I managed to get my driver to stop off at the local pharmacy for anti-biotics as we left Sani and made our way to Howick, where I would once again hop on the Baz Bus all the way to Soweto, Johannesburg. Luckily I had made sure my GP had given me an emergency anti-biotic prescription before embarking on this journey.

It was still a long way to Howick. I lay in the back seat of the taxi stretched out as comfortably as possible, clutching my travel pillow to my neck, trying to catch up on the rest which I had managed to evade the previous night.

I thought back to the Basotho people - a proud people, and simple. 
I say this not in a degrading way, but more in an envious way. They were so proud - proud to be the new owners of those grey and white striped blankets with the Sani Lodge logo sewn on to the side - flashes of white smiles as their brothers jeered at them on collection.

A different culture. When was the last time I was this proud of something, let alone a blanket?
Out the corner of my eye I remember seeing one shepherd take out his mobile phone and snap a picture of me while I was busy photographing some of his friends.
I suppose we were both tourists in that moment.
I must admit that it took me by surprise that he had a mobile phone to start off with. But then again, why wouldn't he? How ignorant or naive am I to have thought that technology had not made its presence known in this corner of the world.

I don't know what is worse: me thinking it hadn't, or me wishing it hadn't.
And to whose benefit?

Ali.