Turn It Up

Travel is filled with odd little moments which defy logic or categorization, and which sadly/happily drive the insufferable Type A personalities insane, but which are actually the best part of travel.  When we left Pemba we took a four hour ferry ride to Zanzibar, which I highly recommend because it was beautiful and gave us an extraordinary view of the island.  It was air conditioned and the seats were comfortable and the good, while limited and in oddly short supply, was OK.  While we were killing time, and before we were welcomed up on deck to take pictures (more on that later), we enjoyed a Chinese gangster picture.  What made it most enjoyable was that it was in Chinese, but also included Chinese subtitles, which allowed us to not understand the story on many levels.  At a certain point one of the porters came over to the TV and turned up the volume, which added to the overall Fellini-esque feel of the experience.  That said, it was one of my favorite moments, and a teachable moment in its own way.  The Chinese are all over Africa at the moment, pouring in a ton of money, while we're busy blowing up big chunks of the Middle East.  I don't think it takes a Ph.D. in economics to figure out which is the better investment.

"You're right, that other guy is a bad person, thanks for sharing."