25 March 2023 06:00 am Views - 442
Did I mention that my better half and our good hostess were products of the same educational institution that has its headquarters down Flower Road Colombo 07, and goes by the name Ladies College? Anyone who has hitched his wagon to a product that has been churned out of this seat of learning would understand when I say that these ladies somehow seem to possess an iron will and strength of purpose that would put Maggie Thatcher aka the Iron Lady seem like a babe in the woods (to those who intend to spend the rest of their lives with one of them, here is a bit of sage advice from a veteran, “never argue, always agree,” and peace will reign supreme).
Middle Easterners enjoying coffee and conversation, Europeans with bemused expressions on their faces taking in the street life, the locals plying their wares, street walkers with their radar working overtime looking for a unsuspecting mark, weed shops offering a variety of substances with the promise of taking you to never never land, masseurs kneading the aches of weary bodies after marathon shopping sprees, lady boys who looked prettier than some of the females plying their trade on the pavements (some unsuspecting gentleman have at times accompanied these Goddesses for an intimate evening, only to discover to their shock and consternation at discovering what lies south of the border was what they had not imagined). One of my pastimes being people watching I was loath to leave the street and retire to bed, so I suggested a coffee, which to my surprise my better half agreed to (late nights are not exactly her forte) so we entered the Arabic restaurant conveniently situated right next to our hotel and lining the street from where we had birds eye view of all the little stories being enacted around us.
Did I mention the effect that coffee has on my companion, let me take a slight pause here and enlighten you on this. I on the other hand can drink jugs full of the stuff and sleep like Rip Van Winkle, in fact my nightly routine usually has a coffee in it and bar of kit kat to help the diabetes along. Whilst on my life companion’s metabolism it has the opposite effect, the mists of sleep evading her and the slightest noise awakening her in battle mode. Since I am a nocturnal creature, after much practice I have begun to master the art of opening a bag of chips in total silence (try it if you haven’t, it requires a certain skill set that requires practice) then comes the actual consuming of this thin slice of potato without the crunch and crackle it usually brings, you insert the chip into your mouth, bring lips together, let the chip moisten and then bite down, if you do miscalculate be prepared to awaken a sleeping tigress. Anyway, back to my coffee shop.
Our coffee arrived at our table, a thick Turkish brew in which you could stand a teaspoon up straight in. The cups they came in immediately caught the eye of my companion; gold rimmed white cups with the familiar Harrods of London logo emblazoned on its side. Immediately all thoughts of coffee went out of the window to be replaced by the collectors gleam in the eye of my travelling companion. Using a mixture of pidgin English and sign language the waiter serving was informed of her wish to purchase the cups, he interpreted this as wanting more coffee, after much gesticulation and a repeat of the arm waving pantomime the Manager was called, and we repeated the request. The manager oozing all smiles and charm informed us that this unusual request had to be conveyed to the owner. The owner appeared, a sprightly, elderly looking gentleman with all the hallmarks of an astute businessman. Seeing our desire to possess these items he smiled, I feared for my already thinning wallet, but I was thankfully surprised when he gave the green light for the crockery changing hands at a very reasonable rate, after saying thank you and the typical middle eastern gesture of the hand over the heart to express our thanks (and a sense of relief on my part that my wallet had survived) we repaired to our room with the cups in my companions possession and me hopefully to my book and my bedside munchies.
I remained blissfully uninterrupted from any onslaughts from my better half that night with complaints of lights kept on and crunching sounds from my side of the bed, largely I am assuming due to the fact that my successful negotiations had met with success and coffee can be served within the walls of my humble abode in gleaming Harrods crockery. I was left to my munchies and reading with only the sound of contented deep breathing, ( I refrain from using the word snoring just in case these words are read and objections raised) a day’s work well done, though I say so myself .