All I Can Say

13 June 2011 Alicante, España

I’ve edited a message to a friend of Australian Shereen to help her keep travelling alone, reassured Canadian Tyler that she’ll make it back to Bath, UK event though her visa has expired and shaken hands with Australian Daniel.

As quickly and easily as it all came together, it goes again.

Without any waves at the beach, I can’t really bare lounging around in the sun and bathing in just as warm water. Somehow, the Irish can bare more, so I join them in the walk to the beach. I need a pair of sunglasses and devise a plan with Irish Claire. Some cheap Ray Ban ripoffs from west Africans, of course. It’s funny how easy it is to bargain just after the time I spent in Egypt. You walk up holding out the ‘only money you have’, go a couple of euros below the price you want to pay, walk away, come back and give the money you have had sitting in your hand all along. Yes, it is funny, and even a little sad.

This works almost without a hitch, except here there are police. They chase the Africans around because the Africans stand in the middle of the main promenade to the beach. The police honk a horn, maybe sound a couple of sirens and shoo the vendors away. This time, our vendor was shooed away, so he jogs across the road, glancing back over shoulder, then beckons us to the other side of the road to continue with the selling, keeping an eye out for more little scooter-mounted police. I suppose both parties do what they have to do to get by.

I’ve already bought a pair of sunglasses so decide to splurge further. I eat at’the big three’: Footlong at Subway, Whopper at Burger King and a McFlurry at McDonald’s.

I spend my last few hours in the little community of the hostel on the terrace with everybody else. Talking, telling stories. You think that now the gang is gone, things will change, but it doesn’t. Hostel life goes on as normal, with same type of stories being told and the same, unique relationships forming right in front of your eyes.

Only Esteban can’t join in on the fun of sangria (girls’ goon, I’ve concluded) tasting; his claim of having only ten hours of sleep over five nights is true. He’s suffering from it now, and from all the drinking has had to go to the doctors because of all the blood coming from all the wrong places.

I feel truly great when there’s a great farewell from everyone. I can’t believe the reaction after I said I was leaving tonight, but it’s so nice to have such a fuss made every once in a while. I like to think I was making a fuss for everyone else throughout this week. Regardless if that’s really the case, I make a big fuss right now and squeeze every bit of enjoyment I can out of the company I’ve got.