Dahab Vibes
A small misunderstanding
When a single mother misinterprets your largesse with cucumbers (and chicken liver) as an invitation to move her and her 2.5-week-old kittens up to your rooftop....
On This Day: The Hungarian Easter Bunny delivers
On this day in 2016, the Hungarian Easter Bunny gifted us this amazing sign on a trip to Budapest. So much happening here. So many questions.
Questions like: How do you pronounce those words? And what did that exemplary public defecator have for lunch? Eight years later, there are still no answers....
Curmudgeon ❤ deseeding pomegranates
Fun Fact: When meticulously deseeding pomegranates seed by toothlike seed is legitimately one of your favourite worldly pursuits, a solid half hour of pure, life-affirming meditative bliss is just waiting there to be enjoyed anytime you want it.
What's more, in Egypt pomegranates are apparently always in season and only cost around €0.50 a kilo, the same as oranges or bananas and a third that of apples. So all of that priceless aforementioned pure, life-affirming meditative bliss is virtually free.
Cours de Français
When you've had quite a few French friends over the years, you can't help but pick up some of the language, which often proves useful while travelling.
For instance, while you might think that 'L’Beach' is simply French for 'the Beach', it's actually a false friend that doesn't have a direct translation in English, but is used to describe an al fresco seaside bar that is owned and operated by highly apathetic canines.
As you can see, French is not only a beautiful language, but also very concise and efficient....
Gremlin Cat learns some patience
You might remember a post from earlier in the month, explaining how Gremlin Cat had no interest in cat food and was thus getting served chicken liver, on a literal silver (coloured) platter.
Well, that arrangement lasted approximately two days, before she decided to press her luck and start turning her multi-coloured nose up at the liver. Now she only eats chicken breast. Well played, Gremlin Cat. Well played.
This is her being told that she's going to need to wait a while yet, as the next batch is still in the sink defrosting. For an Egyptian, you'd really expect her to have more patience....
Winona Ryder Sighting
Hadn't thought of Winona Ryder in years, and then she turns up on a wall here in Dahab, trying to romance a snoozing fox. How random is that? Must be a lost scene from a dream Tim Burton had one time or something....
Dahab Vibes
Star of Dahab
Behold. The Great (Cardboard Box) Pyramids of Ramses (Market). Brought to you by Heineken (and Coca Cola and Pepsi and Nestle). Open your world!
Spot the Difference
This started out as a simple photo of the morning purchase on the way back home to prepare breakfast - with the idea of perhaps posting about the prevalence of single-use plastic here in Dahab.
But then fate intervened (as it's wont to do from time to time), and it turned into one of those old-fashioned Spot the Difference puzzles that used to be in some newspapers and magazines, back when newspapers and magazines still existed.
Go ahead and try to spot the difference yourself.
They may look like identical photos, but rest assured that there's one very minor incongruity waiting to be discovered by eagle-eyed observers out there!
Best €0.20 you'll ever spend
It might be April Fools Day,* but it's no joke or even exaggeration to say that what you're looking at here is very likely the most instantly satisfying €0.20 purchase that has ever been made in the history of commerce.
And while that might seem like a strange assertion about what is essentially a tool of death and destruction - especially since this page is nothing if not peace-loving and pro-animal - it would make perfect sense if you knew how many flies there were around here.
The real question is why it took a full month to think of getting one. Although yesterday was a very apropos day for the epiphany to strike, since Dahab's entire supply of flyswatters is apparently in pastel Easter colours.
*Unless you're Orthodox, then you've of course still got some weeks to wait!
New Rooftop Mates
New rooftopmates finally ventured out of their lair, bearing what one friend described as 'murder claws'. Only time will tell if this was a harmless joke, or some prescient foreshadowing in our story....
Be the…? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
New month. New season. New fiscal quarter. First day of the rest of all our lives. Tabula rasa, carpe diem, etc etc etc.
How refreshing! Be the...hmmm. Be the something or other guys!
Only in Dahab
We'll go ahead and file this one away under 'Only in Dahab'.
And while seeing such a sign naturally makes you feel a bit sorry for the poor, misunderstood goats of this world, it's also quite complimentary, as it presumes that goats can not only recognise symbols and memorise numeric passcodes, but also have the dexterity to press those tiny number keys with their hooves.
If any goat is capable of that, then it should really be able to go wherever it pleases....
Who needs Netflix, when you've got kittens on your rooftop?
NB: Soundtrack provided a full village orchestra, with the first chair goats stealing the show with their big solo!
On This Day: Haiku for Nepalese power lines
🇳🇵 Ah, dear Kathmandu
🇳🇵 Nowhere in this world does
🇳🇵 Power lines like you
Originally posted on 3 April 2023 in Kathmandu, Nepal:
We always try to respect local customs, culture and (most importantly) laws wherever we travel, because, let's be honest, we most certainly would not do well in prison. Not. At. All.
So just to make sure we don't run afoul of Nepal's legal requirement that all tourists who stay more than 96 hours in Kathmandu must post to social media about the city's most famed attribute, its raison d'être, its proverbial bread and butter, here's a final shot of some of those glorious, gravity-defying mystery* cables.
They not only add some breathtaking photogenic scenery to nearly every photo you take in the city (whether you want them to or not), but also provide shady relief from that intense Himalayan sun!
*FYI, word on the street is that the vast majority of these cables were strung up by start-up internet providers, who then went out of business and never took them down, but 'mystery cables' sounded better than trying to explain all of that above.
NB: We never take photos of homeless people (or most people for that matter), but this shot was taken on a bridge in the middle of the afternoon a few metres away from where a homeless chap was sleeping curled up next to a stray dog ('spooning' would be an accurate description), with two other stray dogs curled up at their feet. It was both adorable and heartbreaking, but probably more of the latter after some reflection....
Yin and yang
Photos coincidentally taken just a few minutes apart a couple days ago. On the left is exactly what a goat looks like when they're silently judging you, passive aggressively thinking 'Of course I can recognise symbols and memorise numeric passcodes, you fool!' While on the right is a face that simply wants more chicken. Nothing more, nothing less.
Also relevant:
"Yin and yang is a concept that originated in Chinese philosophy, describing opposite but interconnected, self-perpetuating cycle. Yin and yang can be thought of as complementary forces that interact to form a dynamic system in which the whole is greater than the assembled parts."
No competition for geckos
The look on your face when an exceptionally large gecko is much more interesting than whatever it is the guy who's been feeding you chicken everyday for more than a month is currently saying....
After many a summer, just more of the same…
It's equal parts impressive and depressing that a book from the 1930s paints such an accurate picture of the ills of American oligarchy masquerading as capitalism and democracy that it could have been written yesterday.
Impressive for the author (who you might know from that Netflix show Brave New World - it was originally a book!), and depressing since obviously nothing has really changed for the better part of a century, and probably never will at this point.
Some random excerpts from the first few chapters:
"He returned to the car and they drove on. Mile after mile they went, and the suburban houses, the gas stations, the vacant lots, the churches, the shops went along with them, interminably. To right and left, between palms, or pepper trees, or acacias, the streets of the enormous residential quarter receded to the vanishing point.
CLASSY EATS. MILE HIGH CONES.
JESUS SAVES.
HAMBURGERS."
"Leaning back in his seat, Mr Stoyte thought of those poor kids and the money he would make out of the San Felipe business. ‘God is love', he said yet once more, with momentary conviction and in a whisper that was audible to his companion. 'God is love’. Jeremy felt more uncomfortable than ever."
"‘Uncle Jo’, she said, ‘I think you're wonderful’. Her voice had the ring of complete sincerity. She genuinely did think him wonderful. In the world in which she had lived it was axiomatic that a man who could make a million dollars must be wonderful. Parents, friends, teachers, newspapers, radio, advertisements - explicitly or by implication, all were unanimous in proclaiming his wonderfulness."
"Dr Mulge was a college president chronically in quest of endowments; he knew all about the rich. Knew, for example, that they were like gorillas, creatures not easily domesticated, deeply suspicious, alternately bored and bad tempered. You had to approach them with caution, to handle them gently and with a boundless cunning. And even then they might suddenly turn savage on you and show their teeth."
A 45-second commute
Kittens are distracting little creatures. But it's always nice when you remember that the beach is only a 45-second* walk away. And even nicer now that the water temperature is back up over 24°C....
*Full disclosure: 45-seconds is a fairly brisk paced walk. At normal pace, the walk timed out to around 70-seconds, depending on where you consider the path to end and the beach to start.
Kitten House Theatre
A Monday morning presentation of Kitten House Theatre: Future bouncer v future slapstick (ahem) cat burglar. And, action....
Couple things to note:
1) The sniffling at the beginning is not the cameraman but the highly unprofessional executive producer (who also makes an unscripted appearance at the very end), and
2) The rustling of the reeds really sounds like paparazzi cameras, which adds to the overall TMZ aesthetic of the scene.
On This Day: 55 minutes to basil pork
A year ago today it was a record-setting arrival in Bangkok - only 55 minutes from wheels down to a plate of spicy basil pork. Or at least it would have been, if such records of importance were actually kept. But alas....
One thing is official though, just seeing these photos officially brings on vivid flashbacks of oppressive humidity and air thick with the aroma of fish sauce and exhaust fumes, as well as the urge to watch 'Only God Forgives' again. Ah, Bangkok....
Originally posted on 8 April 2023 at Don Muang Airport in Thailand:
Landing to exiting the airport* = 20 minutes
Exiting the airport to hotel check in = 15 minutes
Hotel check in to midnight basil pork = 20 minutes
An efficient arrival to Thailand if there ever was one.....
*Including getting a visa on arrival, a local sim card and cash from an ATM....
Mint. It's what's for breakfast.
Mr Wing takes her meds
The look on your face when someone tells you you're going to have to start taking antibiotics for that respiratory infection.
On a related note, 'Administering meds to an Egyptian street cat' has now been ticked off the old bucket list. Although no idea how it even got on there in the first place. Not exactly bucket list material, is it? Hmmm. Oh well....
Tragic
When it's too windy to properly enjoy a morning swim, so you have to make do with just staring at the majesty of the sea and mountains and sky instead. Tragic. Simply tragic....
Priceless
When you discover that your newly purchased flyswatter can also be used to entertain kittens (and yourself) in the early morning sunlight....
Flyswatter = €0.20
Local fly population = As robust as ever
Playing with kittens in the early morning sunlight = Priceless
On This Day: United Express Passenger Removal
Thanks Meta! It's always good to be reminded that modern capitalism is a total scam based on lies, false narratives and misinformation, and not only do massive corporations care about profits for their shareholders above all else, many also openly loath their own customers - to the extent that they'll even give them a good beating from time to time, just so we don't forget who actually runs the world and makes all the rules.
If you'd forgotten about the '2017 United Express passenger removal' incident (great euphemism United PR team - that's why you guys get paid the big bucks!), you can freshen up your memory here.
Originally posted on 11 April 2017 in Ljubljana, Slovenia:
This info card is almost as hilarious as the fact that United's market value decreased by more than $800m today......
On This Day: Matryoshka doll of holidays
When it's exactly one year later and you've accidentally found yourself in yet another seaside town full of Russians (and Ukrainians), only this time it's mostly families and hippies. Small world. Also, here the sea is much cleaner, the cost of living much cheaper and the weather much more pleasant.
Originally posted on 11 April 2023 in Jomtien, Thailand:
When you unexpectedly take a vacation within a vacation within a half-year remote working trip. It's like we're on the Matryoshka doll of holidays at the moment, which is fitting because this place is literally FULL of Russians. What a beautiful, bizarre world we all live in....
Seat thief
When you get up for just a second and some shameless freeloader with total disregard for societal norms tiptoes in, steals your spot and refuses to leave. This aggression will not stand, little buddy!