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Drunken Gypsy King



Tarifa of Spain is the small town which faces to the narrowest part in the strait of Gibraltar. From the town, you can see Africa. Especially, the perspective from top of the hill near by is splendid.


I passed New Year's Day in Tarifa long time ago. And I learned the fact "Beautiful place is not always suitable for celebrating New Year". The small town was too busy for New Year celebration. Noise of fire cracker and voices of drunk hadn't let me slept through the night.
So I was completely lack of sleep when I came to a bar (cafe) in the morning of New Year's Day. As stepping into the bar, I was surprised. Because all the customers faced down on the tables and slept. Smell of alcohol filled in entire hall, and vacant beer bottles were left on the floor. There was no space to even drink a coffee. So I left.


All the people passing by were drunk. The sun of New Year's Day was rising up slowly and lighting up dully the small town. Hundreds of wind generators on the hills behind the town was rounded loosely. Some how I didn't like the atmosphere, so I took a bus for neighboring city, Argeciras. The bus coming from Cadiz was full with the people who had passed New Year's eve in Cadiz. Dressed up girls and old women, all of them seemed sleep.


Shortly after it departed, the bus stopped. The driver opened up the door and argued with the man out side. "Come on. It's just short ride ..... " "No. You can't take it without money." It seemed the drunk who had no money was asking the driver to have a short ride. The argument had continued for a while. But finally, the driver picked him up. Maybe he thought the argument would be a waste of time. The drunk was getting into the bus holding bottle and drinking it although he was already drunk enough. Now I got another drunk.


The man sat on the seat, and the bus restarted. I heard the music "My Way" by The Gypsy Kings from the car radio. In a silence, the man got start humming with Gypsy's music. Below my eyes, it was the panorama of Gibraltar, opposite side of the strait was the cliffs of Morocco, from here to Argeciras was a climax of the view.


Meanwhile in the bus, "Hum,Hum, huhuhuhum ..... " His humming was going on. Shortly, the music also came to the climax.
"Quiero vivir. Hay nada mas .... (I want live. Nothing more than that. )" The Gypsy sang. Just after that, his humming changed to a vocal. "Quiero beber. Hay nada mas ... (I want drink. Nothing more than that.) He sang.
I laughed. I couldn't suppress it. At the same time, the other passengers also laughed. They had not slept. His vocal was back to humming again. And he got off at the entrance of Argeciras as he had promised with the driver.


The fast ball aimed at punch line and the good timing for leaving, I felt something like a professional spirit for him. What kind of professional is he? Of course, professional of drunk. Here, I give him the title of "Drunken Gypsy King"


Jan. 2006



Today's piece
"January 1st. " Talifa, Spain 1998


Slogan Passing through sleeping cities The town named Brest




fumikatz osada photographie