SS Liemba - Day 3

Life, particularly in Africa, seems to hang on a thread. A delicate thread. Traveling the way I am, I can see up front sometimes the daily struggle to survive. It's probably beyond my scope of reality to fully comprehend how poor most of these folks are. But, getting back to the reality of the struggle, we got a dose of it today on the boat. The Liemba came across a partially submerged dhow (sail boat of questionable integrity). I was having lunch when the Liemba made a donut, and most of my fellow passengers piled onto the port side.

Clinging to the bottom of the dhow was a group of 3 adult men and 2 women. Floating nearby was the body of a young child. It was dead.

I made it to the deck late, but I saw quite a few rescuers floating about. News had it that they'd been in the water for 2 days before being found. A fourth adult male perished we encountered them. A sad day on the lake. Lots of people were crying.

I saw Saving Private Ryan and Platoon on Oguda's laptop today. It helps pass the time. The ship's progress is slow. The ship's hold is loaded but it's made numerous stops at tiny villages to pick up passengers and small loads. This happens at all hours of the day. The Liemba stops about 500 metres off shore and what seems like the entire village heads out to meet her in tiny boats.

I'm not in a hurry, but there's talk that we'll be arriving in Kigoma tomorrow night. That wouldn't be very good. I've adjusted to the rhythm of life on board. I've made alot of friends. I love it on board.

SS Liemba - Day 2

Spent the night with the boat docked. Finally got out of Mpulung at 1030.

First class cabins consist of a couple of bunks, loset, a table/chair, a sink and mirror, plus a couple of cockroaches here and there. Very basic... worth 50 bucks? considering the alternative (a spot on a wooden bench and/or deck), it's a damn good deal.

the night went ok. The old hags camping outside the door wouldn't shut up for the longest time [ed. note: can't believe i wrote that. but Africans are really good communicators. they love talking. i swear if mzungus didn't have TV or video games they'd be good talkers as well. wow, talking to one another. that'd be a shocker]. However, the mellow tunes played by my roomie's laptop helped sooth the situation.

D-day on the Liemba. Ironic that the Liemba was orginally a german ship. that's my pal Oguda with his wondrous Dell puter.

My roomie's name is Oguda Joshua Robert. He's Zambian [actually he turned out to be Tanzanian, my bad] on his way to Kigoma (like the rest of us). He's working on his master's degree in environmental health administration in Lusaka via correspondence with the University of Leeds. He's a really nice guy. Loves his eighties musak. I made him change rooms today for no apparent reason. according to "gopher", the ship's purser, we're in a room with better air circulation now.

Docking in Kasanga, Tanzania

whole lotta cargo. get to work boys...while i go get some toilet paper...

tough, tough, tough job...

fit for the pit...
We're in Kasanga taking on a load right now. Kasanga is the first stop in Tanzania. It's been 6 hrs so far. People are mesmerized by the loading process. Most of it are bags of corn kernels. Except for the trucks and crane, it's all done by brute force. 90 kg Bag by 90 kg bag. These "cargo handlers" are built tough, working hour after hour, building neatly stacked piles for the crane to load into the cargo hold using a net.

Life as the lone mzungu took a turn for the worse today. I've noticed that the loo doesn't provide TP. It'd been 2 days since I've gone. I asked the ticket guy, Faust, where I can get some toilet paper. I know. That's weak. In all my travels, I just cannot do the left hand assist. I dunno why. There's no shop on board. Before I knew, Faust starts asking the deck on how the mzungu can get some TP. Really embarassing... Lots o laughs at my expense later, I hopped onto a motor bike and was taken, along a bumpy dirt road, to the closest village with a TP dispensary. I bought the biker a litre of gas and called it even.

Got to go use it before I suffer some kind of toxic septic explosion.

Weak, my friends.

Mpulungu, Zambia/SS Liemba

dude on the deck of the SS Liemba
Wahoo! I'm sitting here in the mess or dining hall of the "venerable" SS Liemba, the legendary ferry (appearing in Bogie's African Queen) that cruises the length of Lake Tanganyika (from Mpulungu, in the south, to Kigoma, Tanzania). They've got a dvd player blasting a concert collection of Bob Marley. That guy's ubiquitous.

I'm the only mzungu on board... that's good.

I don't think we're going anytime soon. The Liemba got in at around noon and they're still emptying the cargo hold at the front of the boat (bag by bag). It's 7 pm now. If we're lucky we'll be outta here at midnight. not holding my breath.

Alas, it's been a long day. I'm glad to be leaving Zambia. It's the most intolerant country so far. I'm not sure where all the anger stems from. Good grief, it's suppose to be a "Christian" country. What the hell happened. Today some guy at the motel, in Mpulungu, came right up to my face and said, "mzungu, where are your from?" The restaurant lady held him off. First time I've been addressed like that... It might get better in Tanzania. Can't get worse than this.

I was thinking back to what my friend Tulya, a Finnish aid worker in Mozambique, said about the African trait of being really jealous of those who are fortunate enough to have [something]. That must have a bit to do with the behaviour I've been observing lately...

Well, I better finish up writing. Some illiterate might see me writing and break my pen in half... [ed. note: I can't believe I wrote that. I apologize.]

Mpulungu, Zambia

for January 16th, click here...

What an awful name for an awful place I should have stayed in Lusaka [ed. note: i arrived early to ensure that i would catch the SS Liemba]. There's absolutely nothing here. Lk. Malawi was much nicer. At least there was something going on [there] - fisherman/beach.

I heard from the restaurant lady at the hotel that the Liemba has overstayed in Mpulungu an extra day for the last few trip. I hope not this time.

I'm really not enjoying myself. I went to a local eatery today just down the road. As usual, i was the only white guy (mzungu) there. I'm quite use to being stared at by now. It's the constant "mzungu", Nihon, Japanese references that are beginning to wear thin. Hell, I'm not even past the quarter way point of the trip. Relax, relax...

On the positive side of things, I got a call from LB/LG and their dad today! I spoke with my sis yesterday on the bus!! I love this phone...

lusaka, zambia

For January 15th, click here...

...I had another dead end conversation with a Zambian guy [at the guesthouse last night]. This time it was with an off duty cop at the guesthouse bar. Usually starts off with the same old pleasantries. Then he starts naming off a list of Zambian places where I should go visit (expensive places). He names Livingstone [town by victoria falls]. [then] i suggested that he should visit Vic Falls as well and partake in rafting. I said not to worry because there are "Zambian prices". He's clearly pissed off. He says he can't even afford the bus ticket. Ok, man, i get the point. Well, things deteriorated after that little terse comment. We go over my African itinerary once again. He sat there shaking his head at how "rich" I was. Totally pissed off, he turned his back to me and I don't hear another peep out of him. oh well, what was I supposed to do.

All conversations lately seem to tend this way. They usually ask for employment or a way out of the country. I hate it.

sunday morning theatre...

a bunch of thoughts come to mind, including these:

1) someone's asking for a taaaaserrring...
2) if you can't beat them (bicyclists vs. car drivers), join 'em.
3) yellow jacketed bicyclists: move along people, nothing to see here.
4) yaabaa da ba dooooooo...


billary should be taking notes on how to handle hecklers in the crowd after watching lil' sadie in action. man, it's unbelievable she's getting flak from her classmate. if i was teaching, the heckler would have been warming hallway linoleum with his backside, pronto.

year of the rat, part 2..

hmmm... abandoned bicycle... backpack contents strewn... must be a missing chinese guy.

despite what it looks like, there were only a few patches of snow/ice along the way. for BTOG overseas fans, that's the WID (western irrigation district) canal on the right. it provides water for dem farmers to the east of calgary. yes, there is a EID. note: should have brought my skates along.

at "the park". chestemere lake is just the WID dammed up. talk about dams, damn it was noisy out there with them redneck ATVers and skidooers. anywho, the "lake" is bedroom community. most inhabitants either commute to the city for work or tend to their basement grow-ops. ah, gotta love livin' in the country, eh.

the WID path was sparsely populated that day, until the paparazzi showed up.

dang it's lonely out on the lone prairie...as you can see the path was mostly clear of snow.

alright, i had a chance to rock out with my girlfren jessica simpson this past weekend. a quickie vay cay out in strathmore to be specific.

instead i chose to spend time with my friends at bikeclub and head out to chestemere. i could not let the team down.

my impression of the trip: dang, it da tundra out there in january. i figured if i couldn't hack blizzard like conditions or permafrost i didn't deserve to be a canadian.

ok, it was a beauty day out there. a handful of degrees above freezing. dead calm. the only wind going through my luxuriant locks o' hair was the one created by slick moves of my bike.

seriously, it was a really good time. winter biking? bring it on...

dunno if the cold numbed our brains or it was just mine, but we came up with this idea of converting the WID canal into the world's longest skating rink.

all we need are couple of zambonies and a load of smart investors.

year of the rat, part 1...

bikeclub in front of "the chief"...

bikeclub

soapydave.

sunset over the frozen water supply...

had alot of fun last weekend, eh.

managed to go biking with soapydave and gina, eh. felt a bit nippy outside but, dressed appropriately, it felt like hawaii out on the tundra.

made it out to the new native american, aboriginal, first nations, indigenous peoples casino located on the western outskirts of town.

i went in and had a look around the premises.

very, very, very nice interior. lots of blinking lights. lots of happy and sad customers. lots of old folks playing the one armed bandits, eh. lots of cigarette smoke wafting in the air.

and how about those washrooms? immaculate.

one con though. no bike racks. i spoke to the armed guard/manager outside about that. i told him, 'dude, bicyclists are big-time gamblers'. they're gonna think about getting racks. maybe in the spring. wahoo...chalk one up for bicyclists!!

one more tip: build a singin' palace for celine. i'll be first in line for tix.

had to bug out fast 'cause it the sun was settin'. man, it was only 3 PM or so. i thought the days were getting longer, eh?

movie review: brick (2005).

not to be confused with the brick furniture store, brick (2005) was perhaps the best film noire i've seen in years. simply delicious. a masterpiece. humour was sardonic as it gets.

dudes, who the hell am i kidding? i felt like a mouth-breathing Luddite after the viewing.

i dunno get it.

i'm sorry.

do i recommend? yes, with 2 caveats.

1) before watching, get a good night sleep, avoid rigorous exercise and eating a heavy but delicious meal (thanx soapydave/gina).

2) have available a star trek-type universal translating device that converts mumbling, jive, detective lingo, and metaphors to plain english.

if the above don't help out, fforward to the last 5 minutes of the film.

bonus review: bridge on the river kwai (1957).

obi wan kenobi goes off deep end. you know. obi wan goes for a walk on the dark side.

whoops. too much detail.

bridge at first glance was pretty slow for a war movie. i almost drifted off but hung in there. my frail attention span was rewarded with a spine tingling, barn burner of an end to the film.

the brilliant alec guiness, played a washed up british colonel WWII POW, leading his fellow POW's in constructing the bridge for their nasty japanese taskmasters. his character was soooo weak, succumbing to old school pride and prejudice in the building process, it made me sick.

william holden held his own as the token smart ass american. there's one in every crowd, eh. ha!

definitely give this one a chance. it's a freebie dvd rental at the local liberry.

long or wrong?

some days i feel like a brown bean...

bon news, bad news...

bad news: i went to the optometrist this week for a much anticipated eye exam. he told me that i was getting very old, my vision will only get worse, and when i get sick of taking off my glasses to see close objects, come back for bifocals. ouch. i forked over ninety bucks to be shot down in flames.

good news: the egyptian opticians did a really good job with my current glasses. they got the prescription spot on according to the doctor.

walk down memory lane...

i had a big bag of old t-shirts to sort out yesterday. THE find of the day? a shirt commemorating the 1978 commonwealth games in edmonton. my friends, it was like finding the holy grail. here's the bonus, it can be yours!!! wow, the first ever BTOG contest with a real prize. submit an essay, 1000 words or less but at least 50 words, expressing to BTOG the emotions you experienced as you watched diane jones-konihowski light the games' flame in commonwealth stadium back in '78. you have till december 19th to make submissions - just in time for xmas. out of town winners will be responsible for postage. good luck.

if there aren't any takers, i'll ebay the sucker. t-shirt memorabilia is sellin' for big bucks these days.

on more of a personal note, i found shirts that i wore for house league sports in junior high!! they still fit!! well, not really. anywho, i loved junior high. these shirts will be the first artifacts in the BTOG museum of natural history.

movie review...

on tuesday night, gina and dave showed up unannounced at my doorstep. i love their spontaneity sometimes. ha. they wanted me to go to the flix with them. the weather was frigid that dark and stormy night but i decided to go with them. it sure beat huddling in front of the puter all night long trying to draw every btu of heat coming off the screen trying to keep warm.

off we went to see the Bourne Ultimatum starring the always hot matt damon. i was in trouble even before i stepped in the theatre. little did know watching the first two movies of the trilogy would have been helpful in understanding the third. dave told me to focus on two words during the movie: amnesia and revenge.

without his advice i would have been totally lost because the the action started about 10 seconds in and kept going, at a million miles per hour, all night long: brilliant chase scenes, fisticuffs, gun play, bad guys posing as good guys, and relentless plot twists. with the occasional flashback, dave's answers to my constant questions that began with "what/who the hell was that...", and the mantra of "amnesia...revenge..." rattling in my brain, i managed to follow along.

my review: Ultimatum was astounding in a flabbergasting way.

my recommendation: go to the library and sign out the Bourne I and II dvds, then watch III again.

global warming...

what would a blog posting be without talking about global warming?

first, congrats to all my aussie friends for voting out their Bush crony of a PM.

second, my take on the current post-kyoto global warming talks in indonesia is this: china and india should call PM Steve-o's bluff and sign on to a pact that calls for mandatory c02 emission targets.

my prediction: PM Steve-o still won't sign on but it'd be fun to watch him squirm for a while.

the hills...

is this tv show for real? it's hot...

public service announcements...

(caution: do not lick metallic poles in sub-zero temperatures, you may be in for a nasty surprise)

for all those who know me, i'm pretty much a night owl. when i'm not partying or out on the town till all hours, i'm watching cool shows like letterman or conan.

suffice to say, the anguish i've suffered because of the writers' strike has been immeasurable.

for the love of god, i hope the repeats come to an end soon.

here's to the writers. studios, show them the money. they're not asking for the moon...

bubba's running tip of the day...

i'm often asked, "bubba, how do you pull off the herculean effort of running in minus 20 Celsius weather?"

good question, my friends.

first, minus 20 Celsius is nothing.

second, dress for the occasion. as with everything in life, it's not the volume but the quality of the clothes you choose that is the salient feature.

wear layers and wear them often.

for example today, for my upper torso, i wore 2 wicking layers comprised of nike "dry fit" material and 1 cotton long sleeve t-shirt. not finished yet... these were sandwiched between a base layer of MEC midweight transport long-sleeved polypropylene t-shirt and an outer windproof nylon jacket.

for the lower body, i wore a base layer of MEC midweight polypropylene long underwear. on top of that, my usually jogging shorts. then finally the gnarliest wrecked sweatpants (complete with strategically place vents) ever.

add mitts and a toque (with a totally breathable lining made of a super secret material), and i'm good to go.

(caveat emptor: the above ensemble is only meant as an anecdotal suggestion. if emulated, beware of any high voltage taser-like static electrical discharge that may occur upon disassemblage. persons with medical histories such as cardiac arrhythmia, and/or psychotic anxiety episodes should consult with a physician before wearing similar clothes and/or embarking on cold weather activities. BTOG is not responsible for any injuries resulting from electrocution or any other contraindications resulting from the above garment suggestions or extreme exercise programmes.)