Irish Telepathy and The Next Generation
This blog entry about the events of Friday, March 12, 2004 was originally posted on March 14, 2004.
DAY 146: So I was sitting in the kitchen with my roll and Marmite for breakfast. At the table was one of my dormmates, Farhad, a forty-something South African from Ladismith in town to do the famous Cape Argus bike race the next day. Farhad, a second-generation South African of Indian descent — one of the bigger ethnic groups in South Africa — was a teacher and taught me a few things about the days of apartheid.
“In 1987, I worked in an Indian school. There was the Indian school and the African school and they were always separated,” he said. The Indian professor continued by telling me that although apartheid is officially over, the mentality is still the same; the Indians have been conditioned to hate the blacks, the blacks to hate the whites, and the white to hate them all. But it wasn’t like they chose to think this way; it was all because of the legal system before 1990.
“It was the same thing in the States,” I started, feeling all historian-like. “It really won’t change until the next generation is born. It will happen over time.”
As Jason the traveler in my hostel said, “Some people don’t Afrikaans. Hmm… could it be because it’s the language of the oppressors?”
It was interesting being an American in South Africa because both countries have a similar history of racial segregation — the U.S.A. was just thirty years ahead of the game, and even now, things aren’t totally perfect in racial equality. It’s a slow process of mentality change that can only happen as the younger generations get older and weed out the old ideas.
AFTER READING A BOOK AT POOLSIDE, I managed to take a nap in the daytime by wrapping my fleece around my head. Refreshed, I got myself ready to go out that night, the first stop being the bar at the hostel, the perfect place to see those of the young generation. Ingmar the Dutchman was tending bar, chatting with me and his off-duty co-worker Eve, from France, and Anna, a local girl born and raised in Cape Town. As soon as she told me where she was from, I had one thing to say to her:
“I have a friend who’s unemployed in New York, and he wants to buy you a drink,” I said to Anna at the request and expense of Blogreader matto.
“Seriously?”
“Yeah, he sent me money to buy drinks for local African girls.”
“I’ll have an Amstel then,” she requested. Ingmar served it up.
“His name is Matt O’Grady,” I said. “He’s Irish, but he doesn’t drink beer.”
Anna told me that she too had roots in Ireland — she even had an Irish passport so that she could travel more freely than a South African. With this Irish connection, she toasted her beer up to matto. “Tell him that I will fondle him telepathically.”
“Fondle him telepathically?”
“Yeah.”
Anna finished her Amstel and went off with her African friend — it was great to see the two races of the next generation go off together — whether she was busy fondling matto in her mind through telepathy or not.
SPEAKING OF PEOPLE NAMED “MATT,” I remembered that another Matt, Matt from Hout Bay, invited me to his band’s gig at a bar called Rafiki’s that night. I ventured off to the Park Inn Hotel to tell Steph that they would be playing she should come out with the Rutgers crew. Steph was on her way out to the try and get rugby tickets when I got there. I gave her the directions.
JASON, THE TEXAS EXPATRIATE that now lived in Rhode Island, U.S.A. and worked for British Airways, had made reservations at Mama Africa, a fancy restaurant that required reservations for their famous traditional African cuisine. I joined him, English paleontologist Richard and DJ Verne that did weddings and bar mitzahs. As an African reggae band played (picture above), we dined on fine cape wines and African fare — I stuck to seafood being in a seafood-kind of town, with snoek pate and linefish with coconut sauce.
At the table next to us, there were about a dozen Irish nurses of different age groups. I chatted up one of my generation, Claire, who complimented me on my teeth of all things before telling me to sit in her lap for a photo — meanwhile, my all-guys table had already finished dinner and were about to head out. It was only about eleven and I was about two hours late from Matt’s gig at Rafiki’s.
“Come and meet me at Rafiki’s,” I told Claire.
“Spell that?”
“Rafiki. Like the baboon in The Lion King.”
“Oh, ‘no need to worry about it, it’s in the past’ Rafiki?”
“Yeah.”
I dashed off to the bar with the name of an animated baboon, hoping to see her later. Richard, Verne and Jason weren’t too keen on seeing the band and went their own ways.
RAFIKI’S WAS ABOUT EIGHT BLOCKS AWAY and when I got there there was not much going on but people drinking and shooting pool. There was no live music — or even a trace of it — and the bartender even told me that they had no bands perform that night. I didn’t know what the reason was for Matt’s absence, but I ran off to tell the others not to go there anymore.
Claire and The Irish Nurses were still at Mama Africa drinking wine. I told them that Rafiki’s was off and that I’d be right back to hang out — I just had to walk over to the Park Inn Hotel and leave a message for Steph not to go to see the band. As I was writing the note to her at the front desk, I bumped into her professor, Dr. Banerjee, coincidentally another teacher of Indian descent like Farhad. “Hey Erik, can I buy you a drink?”
My brain automatically responds to this question with “Yes,” like a reflex. Never turn down a free beer.
I sat at the hotel bar for a quick drink with Dr. Banerjee, or Dr. B as they all called him. I figured Claire and The Irish Nurses would still be drinking at Mama Africa and could contact them right after a quickie.
Dr. B and I got to talking about politics and race relations in America and South Africa. One by one, the Rutgers students came back to the hotel and found us. They were all gathering together to go out dancing again — this time, they even asked Dr. B to come along. After they told me where the club was located, I ran back to Mama Africa to ask out Claire. But alas, The Irish Nurses were gone.
NO MATTER, I went back to hanging out with the Rutgers cast at a club called Baseline, a club that locals raved about, away from the backpacker district. The dance floors were full of locals of the young generation, and for the most part, the groups of races were integrated on the two floors of the club with the bass of the music uniting them all. There were still little groups of one particular race, and so the Rutgers cast set the example for integration on the dance floor — Rutgers is the state university of New Jersey, one of the real melting pots of different races in the United States, and it is seen very much so in its younger generation. (Plus, who else but New Jersey would set the example to grinding and spanking and the exposure of nipples?)
The night went on and we danced and hung out on the terrace amidst the next generation of Cape Town. I paid back Dr. B for his beer with a round of shots for him and the gang. I also offered three local African girls drinks courtesy of a certain unemployed dude in New York City, but all three declined it.
In the end, it was a pretty good night out, although it was a shame I couldn’t find Claire or any of The Irish Nurses.
I suppose I’ll just have to fondle them telepathically.
Next entry: Finishing in Cape Town
Previous entry: Zombie
Commenting is not available in this channel entry.
Comments for “Irish Telepathy and The Next Generation”
HEY GANG: Sorry if this latest isn’t up to par— I did it half asleep like a zombie at two in the morning. The reason for my rush is because I’m off on a tour (ugh, in five hours and I haven’t even packed yet!), possibly putting me in the NIZ for five days.
In the meantime, you can go searching for the hidden video link somewhere on TheGlobalTrip.com of MARKYT on his 1992 appearance of the geography gameshow “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?”
If you find it, please don’t give away the answer. Just brag that you found it and leave it at that so that others can play along.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/13 at 08:30 PM
F I R S T . . . . .
Nice party & nice company. Enjoy the warm weather. It is still winter here & the cold would not go away.
Looks like st. Patrick’s parade will be rained out again..Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/13 at 08:44 PM
Word, isn’t that Aparthied somethin’? A crazier place is Liberia, where the African Americans (who held all the power there) discriminated against the indiginous Africans…
Word Life.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/13 at 09:29 PM
MATTO: how does it feel to be telepathically fondled? is it everything you dreamed of?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/13 at 11:28 PM
i heard of that spot Baseline, it’s the Geronimo’s of Capetown. 103.5 hosts ladies night on thurs. there too. it’s the Hot Spot!!! oh yeh, just to inform u, mr. pink is in sopranos as tony’s cuzin who just got out of jail. ok, its 2am sun. time for ‘she spies’!!!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/14 at 03:37 AM
never fails .. more boobies !
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/14 at 09:49 AM
ERIK: love the pics, nipples rule!
ALL: Found the markyt clip!!!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/14 at 10:21 AM
uhmm…i think anna missed the telepathic coz i just got fondled. ooohh…ahhh…
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/14 at 11:00 AM
Damn LP… How did you get so lucky?!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/14 at 12:17 PM
ah Td0t…i was born with an extra pair of mojo. ;P
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/14 at 12:42 PM
HOLLLLLLLER @ INGMARRRRR! i bet he gets fondled telepathically all the time.
Posted by hanalei on 03/14 at 02:34 PM
Well, I did feel something. Should you run into her again, apologize for me for “finishing early” telepathically. It’s never happened to me before, I assure you. Still, I guess it was worth the money. Good job, Erock!!
Posted by matto on 03/14 at 04:39 PM
HANALEI: Yeah, you read my mind. He’s a hottie.
Fondling telepathically, huh? No wonder Russell Crowe’s always smiling! I get him at least once a day!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/14 at 06:45 PM
Australia is very segregated too Erik. You may have not noticed it while you were there. Long way to go yet before the younger ethnic generation start getting the jobs that are held by white Australians.
PS Sorry you missed Claire.
Posted by Neven on 03/15 at 11:29 AM
ALL: So while Erik’s in NIZ, let’s all fondle him telepathically, and use our strengths to bring some good entries and photos when he gets back….
If you don’t want to, who’s got something funny to share? I’m having a dry spell for this NIZ!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/15 at 11:46 AM
I can’t find that video of you MArkyt…
I used to watch that show religiously!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/15 at 01:20 PM
are we talking about the time markyt was on “where in the world is carmen sandiego” ?
Posted by hanalei on 03/15 at 01:56 PM
Td0t - Find it!
HANALEI - Yup…Do it Rockapella!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/15 at 02:04 PM
here’s a lil’ something for the NIZ *props to BigSideLeft*
http://64.106.216.34/heavy/heavy/qtdemand/contagious/video/christ.mov
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/15 at 05:49 PM
Thanks LP!!!! Much better than the “educational video” you sent me last time, but let’s leave that one off the Blog.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/15 at 06:25 PM
I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!!
Rockapella is my FAVOURITE band!!!
Someone PLEASE just e-mail me a link damn-it!!!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/15 at 07:46 PM
Td0T - If you find it on your own, I’ll burn you a copy the Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego cd.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/15 at 07:51 PM
Really?! How about I place flashing markers on the various countries of a giant unmarked map of Europe?... No… Okay, I look harder this time!
No one email me the link… I HAVE to find it on my own!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/16 at 12:11 AM
I FOUND IT!!!!
Africa is the hardest map! To bad you didn’t get South America.
Do you really still have the Rockapella CD? I would trade my passport for a copy!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/16 at 12:43 AM
Hey Erik/Markyt: That Pilot Guide show with Ian Wright dancing in Carnaval was on today.. he said that a person could pay up to $300 to be in the Carnaval parade, but the upside is you get to keep the costume..
We already know you sent yours home, but how much did it cost you?Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/16 at 04:26 AM
Td0T - email me your address and you’ll get that copy of the cd by the end of the month….
or i can hand deliver in in june when i’m up in toronto if you are around…either or, who’s the big winner now?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/16 at 08:11 AM
DARCY - Wasn’t in the parade, so Erik will have to answer it via telepathically or when he returns from NIZ.
IRISH Telepathy on this St. Patty’s Day….
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/16 at 08:13 AM
MEEE!!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/17 at 12:14 AM
Markyt: wassup wit’ the porn links? ... I know we are in NIZ and all .. Hey I just got fondled ... who was that? ...
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/17 at 10:51 AM
SIM: I guess all the porn sites know when to SPAM out the blog when Erik’s in NIZ….It’s a C-O-N spiracy…..
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/17 at 11:19 AM
things that make you go “hmmmmmmmmmm?!?”
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/17 at 11:48 AM
More NIZ blues?
BEWARE: You might be GROSSED OUT!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/17 at 12:30 PM
That’s just wrong!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/17 at 06:57 PM
...But decidedly funny.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/17 at 06:58 PM
DID YOU KNOW…
that the original rockapella deep voice guy quit the group? either entertainment tonight was right, or he magically morphed into a black/af-am man.
Posted by hanalei on 03/17 at 10:20 PM
HEY GANG… As predicted, I have been in the NIZ. I’m still on my Garden Route tour on the way back, on a quick stop in the seaside town of Hermanus. I’m glad you are all fondling each other telepathically.
I’m planning to spend all day Sunday to catch up on the stories of the past week. Stay tuned for tales of me riding an ostrich (wow!), flying an airplane (get the fuck outta here!), and foofie sliding (huh?)...
I’m off early in the morning (Saturday) to dive with great white sharks. If you don’t hear from me, “I think you’re going to have to send a bigger boat.”
P.S. DO IT ROCKAPELLA!
DARCY: I paid $260 for the whole shebang in Rio.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/18 at 08:29 AM
she bang she bang
MARKYT: Would you like to fill out a bracket?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/18 at 12:25 PM
Damn NIZ! and now the tease that he’s writing/posting soon….
How will we live?!?!?
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/18 at 05:09 PM
Who will be FIRST on the new posts???
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/18 at 05:41 PM
The suspense is killing me!!!
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/18 at 05:47 PM
FOOFIE SLIDING! aww yeah….
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/18 at 09:45 PM
“It’s gonna be me!”
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/19 at 01:10 AM
HANALEI/CHRISTY: Oh, so Ingmar IS a hottie? Jason (the British Airways guy from Rhode Island) couldn’t stop raving about how “gorgeous” he was, and I just didn’t get it. (Jason was gay, obviously.)
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 03/19 at 10:35 AM
SHARE THIS TRAVEL DISPATCH:
Follow The Global Trip on Twitter
Follow The Global Trip in Instagram
Become a TGT Fan on Facebook
Subscribe to the RSS Feed
This blog post is one of over 500 travel dispatches from the trip blog, "The Global Trip 2004: Sixteen Months Around The World (Or Until Money Runs Out, Whichever Comes First)," originally hosted by BootsnAll.com. It chronicled a trip around the world from October 2003 to March 2005, which encompassed travel through thirty-seven countries in North America, South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia. It was this blog that "started it all," where Erik evolved and honed his style of travel blogging — it starts to come into focus around the time he arrives in Africa.
Praised and recommended by USA Today, RickSteves.com, and readers of BootsnAll and Lonely Planet's Thorn Tree, The Global Trip blog was selected by the editors of PC Magazine for the "Top 100 Sites You Didn't Know You Couldn't Live Without" (in the travel category) in 2005.
Next entry:
Finishing in Cape Town
Previous entry:
Zombie
THE GLOBAL TRIP GLOSSARY
Confused at some of the jargon that's developed with this blog and its readers over the years? Here's what they mean:
BFFN: acronym for "Best Friend For Now"; a friend made on the road, who will share travel experiences for the time being, only to part ways and lose touch withThe Big Trip: the original sixteen month around-the-world trip that started it all, spanning 37 countries in 5 continents over 503 days (October 2003–March 2005)
NIZ: acronym for "No Internet Zone"; a place where there is little to no Internet access, thus preventing dispatches from being posted.
SBR: acronym for "Silent Blog Reader"; a person who has regularly followed The Global Trip blog for years without ever commenting or making his/her presence known to the rest of the reading community. (Breaking this silence by commenting is encouraged.)
Stupid o'clock: any time of the early morning that you have to wake up to catch a train, bus, plane, or tour. Usually any time before 6 a.m. is automatically “stupid o’clock.”
The Trinidad Show: a nickname of The Global Trip blog, used particularly by travelers that have been written about, who are self-aware that they have become "characters" in a long-running story — like characters in the Jim Carrey movie, The Truman Show.
WHMMR: acronym for "Western Hemisphere Monday Morning Rush"; an unofficial deadline to get new content up by a Monday morning, in time for readers in the western hemisphere (i.e. the majority North American audience) heading back to their computers.
1981ers: people born after 1981. Originally, this was to designate groups of young backpackers fresh out of school, many of which were loud, boorish and/or annoying. However, time has passed and 1981ers have matured and have been quite pleasant to travel with. The term still refers to young annoying backpackers, regardless of year — I guess you could call them "1991ers" in 2013 — young, entitled millennials on the road these days, essentially.
Spelling or grammar error? A picture not loading properly? Help keep this blog as good as it can be by reporting bugs.