– LONG STREET –
SCENE 6
It is past midday and The Tourist finally leaves the hotel. He is not feeling very well; the Tanqueray London Dry Gin is probably to blame. He walks down Long Street in the shadows of the old Victorian Houses as if seeing through a veil. ….
Tanqueray Man – by Olaf Dudek
Tanqueray Man
Beggar With The Sad Smile – by Olaf Dudek
Beggar with the Sad Smile
It is past midday and The Tourist finally leaves the hotel. He is not feeling very well; the Tanqueray London Dry Gin is probably to blame. He walks down Long Street in the shadows of the old Victorian Houses as if seeing through a veil.
Why can’t he remember the events of last night and yesterday? What happened? Who is this ominous woman that the Hotel Owner spoke about? Who is this Betty Davisson?
The Tourist sees a man sitting on the side of the road; it appears to be a beggar. The beggar looks at him with a strangely sad smile.
The Tourist realises that he has seen this man with the magical look and the sad smile before. It was in a church in Cape Town, he was sitting next to him on a bench. The man with the sad smile had looked over at him and The Tourist knew that he would never forget that look. It will forever stay with him, like a photo.
The Tourist goes over to the Beggar and asks him: “Who are you?” The Beggar answers: “I am the messenger, but I will not bring you the message. You have to find it yourself.”
The Tourist thinks that the man with the sad smile is probably confused, but asks him anyway: “Do you know “Betty Davisson?”” “She is your Girl, and you will only find her if you know everything”, replies the Beggar.
This annoys The Tourist even more. How can a complete stranger know this woman if he doesn’t remember her?
The Tourist doesn’t know many people in Cape Town, but he knows that his friend Bruce is a man who seems to know everything. Bruce is a local and has a lot of connections thanks to his job. The Tourist calls Bruce and says he needs to talk to him. Bruce tells him that he’s kitesurfing in Table View and that he can come out and meet him there. The Tourist takes the MiCiti bus to Table View.