We took a three and a half hour bus ride back from Lagos today. We were ready to go, fueled up and well rested for the journey ahead. For breakfast we had the left-over rice and beans along with the last two eggs. We've been doing well with our snacks and light groceries. So, now we're back at our Lisbon. It feels like a home base now.
I think we're both thinking about going home now. We're coming down from some sort of long term high. It's sad... in a way, but really good to be heading home, back to our regular pursuits. Although, as soon as I get back I'll be heading to Nampula for a month. That will be more of living on the edge - without a consistent routine or level of predictability that people have . i like the uncertainty for now. I'm good with going wherever I need to for the sake of living a full life.
Yesterday - Dallen, Benne, and i went off the path a ways and found ourselves right in the middle of the most beautiful beach I have ever encountered! It was difficult to get there. Naturally, there was a lot of walking to be done. first, we tried taking a short-cut and got lost in a well-to-do, exclusive neighborhood in front of a long stretch of white sand beach. there was a restaurant/cafe so we figured it was a good opportunity to rest and have our first coffee of the day. A cola for Benne - he's not a coffee man. And then we were on our way back up through no-man's land. Dallen mentioned that the place gave him a forbidding feeling. like, we weren't welcome in this place. It's not meant for pedestrians, only fast moving cars. It was stale, fake, foreign. And as soon as we saw what appeared to be a local walk down a dirt road, on the outskirts of this place, we followed, and started to feel normal again.
The dirt road turned into a single path through plants, and tall amber grass. the nature helped me feel more at home. I got into one of those hiking trances, where I wasn't noticing many of my thoughts, only the feeling of my body moving me through time and space. Completely immersed in the natural world of dirt, rocks, pollen, trees, and ocean air. Right where I belong.
Suddenly, the path opened up into more tall grass and the big blue sky above and up ahead. the land dropped of to the ocean below, miles, miles, and miles of dark blue water expanded out in front of us. We imagined our United States across this vast Atlantic Ocean. Continuing along the windy paths we worked around the cliffs, just admiring the scenery below. Really wondering if there was any possible way to get down to the imagined paradise below without high tech climbing gear.
I took the time to work with my camera. I had set it to fully manual so i could play around, experiment, with the various setting of aperture, sensor sensitivity, and shutter speed. I think I took some good shots. By the time we had worked our way around the edge of the cliff, we thought that it might be too difficult to get down to the perfect beach below. A group of tourist kayakers floated and paddled around the corner into the small bay below the cliffs. And across the cliff we saw a man, inching his way down the side of the steep path, closer, and closer to where we ourselves were being drawn. We never saw that man again. maybe he turned back half-way. fearing heights and the terrible fate accompanying the spacial factor and human error. One missed step.
Nonetheless, you might guess with certainty what we did. We ventured to explore the condition of this trail back across the heights of paradise bay. And we did find it. And we did work our way down. Carefully. Yes, mother. Carefully... And down a conveniently placed for assistance down the most treacherous portion of rock and sand. I said, "don't trust this rope too much and don't trust the rocks either." "So we can't trust anything?" - Dallen said. "Exactly" - was my response.
We had arrived, "Peace", "Bliss". One of those moments in my life experience I hoped I would carry with me forever.
-Silas Dickie
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