Shopping in Hellville
Beez Neez now Chy Whella
Big Bear and Pepe Millard
Thu 1 Aug 2019 23:57
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Shopping in Hellville
 After a morning of chores, research,
lunch and a backgammon win for me, growling,
we went toward the jetty. A very busy place, ferries,
small supply boats, a wave from Jimmy and soon parked next to the floating
pontoon being helped out by willing hands.
 Many offers of tuktuks, tours and
snacks, we bimbled up the hill to the elderly
park.
 Well, out came the
trigger finger.
 A very happy
chappy.
 The Lady of the
Park.
 We bimbled through the park, to the far left lots of stalls selling bedding,
clothes and all things tapestry. All the ladies were so welcoming, most were
sitting enjoying lunch and waved.
 A colonial style
building completed by a cannon each side of the gateway.
 A sorry
sight.
In 2006 the people of Madagascar
generated a tiny 9 kilograms of rubbish per person per year, compared to the USA
who generated 715 kilograms per person per year. Being a poor country no
recycling or incineration occured. 419,000 tons of rubbish was collected which
represented just half of the actual amount. 96.7% was dumped in landfills and
3.5% was composted. Five years later, in 2011, the figures remained pretty much
the same. We had been warned in the yachting books that rubbish doesn’t go far.
Ours disappeared............
 The St Peter and
St Paul Catholic Church on Rue Passot – renamed as Cours de Hell -
suddenly Highway to Hell was not seemly to the tourists. I rather like
it.
 Admiral Anne
Chretien Louis de Hell (1783 – 1864) also has a gastropod named after
him. Mmmm, prefer to have a town named after me rather than a slug or
snail............
 Another little
green space before we found The Bank of Africa ATM.
  We had a look in the supermarket before heading to buy a French stick – wow.
  This chap actually stopped for us to
take his impressive cart.
  En route
views.
Then we bimbled to the fruit and veg
market. Toms, cuc, cabbage, watermelon, four apples, carrots, limes for Bear’s
rum and some green beans. Offered local vanilla, expensive prawns and spice
baskets we went off to find the DHL office. No idea where to go we jumped into a
tuktuk. Every journey in and around town or down to the port costs 500 Malagasy
Ariary per person or eleven pence each.
  The DHL
yard was a bit Drop it Hide it Lose it. Bear went to ask a chap, the
office is upstairs but closed for the next half an
hour. We passed a watering hole, time to try the local stuff then.
 Chickens in the
basket............
 Nanidos.
Pizza three pounds fifty, lots of bar meals, we will be back.
  For now Bear enjoyed a local beer. I enjoyed a white rum and coke. We liked the
bottle tree. Back to the DHL office we found a
pleasant young man with good English who explained the best way to get parcels
in. UK to here a week, USA three weeks and via Italy no tax. Anything above 50
Euros will be taxed at 59%. Time to indulge long missed tastes in the
supermarket. My 70cl Smirnoff lookalike £2.57, local Priskaia £1.91. Litre of
white rum £2.23. Small Bailey’s lookalike £3.00. Bear’s whisky for his loaded
cappo’s a whooping £3.38 and his chosen bottle of rose wine £2.79. (Just to add
to the bargain prices for completeness - 200 cigarettes £9.03).
Now for the serious stuff. Bear raced
to the deli and grabbed a round of Camembert £4.50 and I needed to get him a
packet of wraps as I like to have them as standby when we have no bread. OUCH
£6.57 (they are the big ones though but also
the dearest thing we bought.....). Tins of tomatoes, ratatouille, sweetcorn and
the like as per Tesco as well as tinned jam, cakes and veg. I treated myself to
five skinny pork sausages 88p and bought Bear two enormous pork chops £2.35. I
also bought him a wide selection of tinned pate, eggs, a small Brie for me,
chorizo and a packet of ham. At the till Twix and Snickers were 50p each.
Another expensive thing we bought was two big bags of lollies as we have no
other gifts just now for little ones who may visit. A full weeks shopping
including all the booze, sweets and treats came to £124.47. All in the tuktuk,
into Baby Beez where we handed over £1.13 to the chap who looked after her
(double for a full day but negotiated down with Jimmy).
 On our way back to Beez we think this
mainsail is beyond repair. Within minutes of getting
the shopping indoors Bear was tucking into camembert, French stick, a tomato and
a try of his rum. Me, bread and Marmite and a vodka with soda stream coke –
Marvellous. After his sizable snack Bear only needed one pork chop, mash, beans,
sweetcorn and gravy, so.....same again tomorrow night. Wonderful. I had three of my sausages with ketchup, a
handfull of liquorice comfits, a few Haribo stuffed liquorice fingers, handing
over the duel-layer crocodiles to himself. A quick win for me at Mex train
growling, showers and a couple of episodes
of Perception and we thought to sleep soundly. NO. Four days of festivals have
begun in preparation for Independence Day celebrations. All night partying, a
terrible band and soca-cum-reggae music of all things to hear. Bit of a shock
after the silence of Chagos methinks, wethinks.........
ALL IN ALL SOME WONDERFUL
FINDS
A BIMBLE BACK IN
CIVILISATION |