A rainy evening in Hargeisa

The wind blew and showers started coming in the late afternoon towards evening and the power was gone. heard later from the watchman Bashir that some tree had fallen on the lines somewhere and it would take a while before restoring. So, all of us decided to enjoy the drizzle. It was getting a bit humid indoors too. Outside it was pleasant though. Tejas enjoyed jumping and reaching the wet leaves of the trees and shaking them so the droplets would fall on him and Yohan. Though, Yohan wasn't amused by it. He constantly made his disapproval clear by screaming in denial. He just wanted his dad to carry him around and show him things in the yard. As it grew dark both were really tired and dozed off in the living room in the dark. We still haven't got an alternative to electricity for the lighting. The flicker of the mobile phone was being used to maneuver around. J was now confused whether he should be going for the dinner invite he received from an ex colleague of his as he didn't want to leave us in the dark alone. By the time he got his next call for the dinner, he had to tell him about the situation and as a solution we were all invited to join in. It was a relief to be away from the dark at least for a while. We grappled in the dark to put on something appropriate to go out and clothed the children in their sleep and slipped out carrying them. Fuad was waiting outside with the car and we drove through the light drizzle past the half wet, dimly lit Hargeisa streets with the small shops in the corners who were pulling down their shutters. Finally the car pulled up in front of a typical Hargeisan house and we were quickly showed in by J's friend who was waiting outside. A cosy home with royal dinner waiting on the table. That was a great evening and reminded me of 2004 -2006 here in Hargeisa, the Somali hospitality and the lovely banquet that they serve when they invite you. I call it a banquet because the food on the table will usually be so varied, a single person if just tastes each dish, he would be too full for the dessert which itself is of so many varieties. I regret that I couldn't photograph the lovely sight. The evening was pleasant accompanied by chit chats with the other invitees and the host and then we left for our home- back to the darkness again with Bashir guiding us with a flashlight to put the children on their beds. As we settled down, thank God ! the lights came.