I am definitely feeling better today. I have had a good sleep and a normal bowel movement - almost. I would be feeling even better except for two things. The first is that Carlos has decided to move on. He wants to explore the region north of here, between Quetta and Peshawar in the North West Frontier where the Khyber Pass is. He finds Quetta to be quite boring. Boring can be a good thing. I tell him. I have come to see adventure as a highly over-rated concept. But in spite of his run-in with Iranian forces, he still yearns for it. He plans to roll out of town tomorrow.
The second unpleasant occurrence was running into Kate and Stephen in the cafeteria of the Boys and Girls Club. Stephen asks how I am, and I say I am much better. "Thank you for being concerned," I say, somewhat sarcastically. We both know that neither of them are. "Did you make it to the bank on time on Saturday?" I ask him. Yes, he tells me. "Good, you should be able to pay for your own cigarettes now," I respond, staring Kate in the eye when she glares at me. They don't offer to pay back what they 'borrowed', although I have next to nothing and now they have lots. They don't invite me to sit with them and I don't ask to.
Other than that, it's a pretty quiet day. I walk around the neighbourhood of the Boys and Girls Club a few blocks in each direction looking for interesting distractions and architecture. Although Quetta is cleaner than Zahedan and the sidewalks more complete and even, there is not much to see. It doesn't matter much that my camera generally isn't working because there isn't much to take pictures of. There are several carpet stores and mini-markets that remind me of Chinatown in Vancouver, but I haven't found a bookstore where I might find something in English to read.
There are a couple of travelers, mostly Asians, who have spoken to me in the Boys and Girls Club, but there is no amenity room with a television or other meeting areas other than the cafeteria. I almost ran into Kate and Stephen again this afternoon, but I presume they saw me because they changed direction. I count my blessings.
I am down to $30 cash left.
PHOTO: winter in Quetta
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