It's Tizwaz day and our day off. We're going to see a Tamil film called 'Indian' (Hindustani, of course!) about slavery in India. Grreat! The post and phone strike's been on for 3 days, Hmm, I wonder if it's us. We're getting severely overfed; so I guess malnutrition won't be a problem. But the water is. We tried to purify some water yesterday, and it turned brown. Maybe today's will work. We could always go and buy some but 'that job's too hard!'

Went to the TTS and there was no one there! So no fax today Mum!

The people don't exactly pester you, but the threat is always there. I feel really conspicuous, especially with this hat (very dodgy, bright and blue from Honduras). Some kids came to talk to us and C. is so tentative and self-conscious they didn't know what to do. I really feel for the guy, he's never been overseas before so he's incredibly shy (more than usual) and so eager to do the right thing that he often loses the plot with whoever he's talking to.

He keeps saying that my family's more interesting than his to avoid talking about them, and refuses to admit that he is good at art. No one will recognise him when we get back because he's bound to come out of his shell sooner or later. I'm not going to carry on making the decisions and all the conversation, from my experience in Bosnia¹ and the fact that here isn't much different from Zimbabwe, I think that I'm getting on okay so far. The kids here are just like in Bosnia and most people speak English. We both reckon that Ramnad's going to be much worse than here. I just hope I've got enough to survive on.

...

Later: The film was fantastic, apparently it was the first time the Bishop had been for ten years! Good Christians don't go to the cinema because it is obviously Satanic. Bishop Pothi is full of the Wonders of Western Civilisation so he doesn't care.

It was about this guy who watches his people being oppressed by the British as a young man and fights against them. It included the famous act of total humiliation where a group of English soldiers stripped some Indian maidens and made them all jump off a cliff (it's true). This hardens his heart and he goes mental, after rescuing one of them, of course! A classic scene: English soldiers are being brutal, trying to force poor women to salute the Union Jack; 'Indian' stands on a rooftop and throws aforementioned flag, pole and all, thus piercing nasty soldier 'Omen'-style through the heart. C. and I were getting quite nervous at the substantial applause that frequently erupted whenever one of our countrymen was killed! Pretend to be French, it's the only way.

The other half of the film was the hero 'Indian' doing weird things with his fingers and killing corrupt politicians. The moral being that he had fought to get rid of the British and was now fighting his own people. The twist comes when he discovers his son has been selling driving licences to all and sundry, thus making him directly responsible for a great many deaths and so must die. Lovely.

It's amazing what you can understand from a lot of violence and a Bishop's translation, isn't it?