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‘This is my land,’ he says proudly. ‘When we have visitors, I live here in the camp. All the time. When there is no one here, I go home to my village. It is only ten kilometres to walk. Not far.’
‘You speak excellent English, Dominic.’
‘I speak my own dialect, Swahili and English. We learn all of them from the age of two. I know many bad English swear words, Just Janie.’
‘The first thing anyone learns in any language.’
‘Lovely jubbly,’ he says, laughing.
Then dinner is served and we move to a long table set out under the stars. We’re all given plates of grilled meats and rice with beans and dishes of fragrant greens. Hurricane lamps provide romantic lighting. Once again, I find myself seated next to Dominic. Sean and Maura are quite engrossed in themselves and the two older travellers, Pat and John, seem to be getting along just fine together.
‘You’re not eating?’ Everyone else is served, but Dominic has nothing before him.
‘Maasai warriors do not eat, Just Janie. We still live on a traditional diet of milk that is fermented then mixed with the blood of our cattle. I drink this at six-thirty in the morning and again in the evening. It makes our bodies strong.’
‘That’s it?’
He shrugs. ‘Sometimes I will take a little meat or ugali which is like your porridge. That is all we need.’
‘I can’t imagine a life without chocolate.’
He smiles indulgently at me. ‘In many ways, your life is very different to mine I think.’
‘Oh, goodness me. So different,’ I agree. ‘My life is really boring.’
‘I cannot believe that.’
‘It is.’ I shrug. ‘I live in a nice village, but it’s not wild like this. I work as a hairdresser, which I quite like, but it’s nothing special. Then I go home at night and watch television. I like films,’ I say, then realise that this sounds particularly lame. I should say something to make my life sound more interesting, but I can’t think of a single thing. I’m talking to a man who is as exotic as the wild animals on the plains, who is as different to me as chalk is to cheese and whatever I say will make me sound as dull as dishwater in comparison. ‘This is the first time I’ve ever really been anywhere different,’ I confess. ‘This holiday, coming here by myself, this is the most daring thing I’ve ever done. If I’m honest, I feel a bit out of my depth.’
‘I think that you are a very interesting person.’
‘Really?’ That makes me laugh. Me, interesting? ‘I’m not,’ I assure him. ‘I don’t know that much about the world.’ Or anything, really.
‘Then I will be very happy to share my small part of it with you.’
‘Thanks.’I smile shyly.
‘Asante,’ he tells me. ‘Thank you.’
‘Asante,’ I repeat.
When we’ve eaten, we retire to the warmth of the campfire again. But Sean and Maura don’t last long before they’re feigning yawns and retiring to their tent and soon, Pat and John take their leave too and head their separate ways. It’s been a long and tiring day but, somehow, I don’t want it to end. Dominic and I are alone again under the stars. I’m feeling mellow after good food and two glasses of wine.
Dominic produces a traditional Maasai blanket. ‘This is a kanga,’ he tells me, as he wraps it around me. ‘Now you are a Maasai.’
‘Thank you.’
‘Asante,’ Dominic reminds me.
‘Asante,’ I copy again as I stroke the blanket and snuggle into it. ‘It’s very beautiful.’
‘Karibu. You are welcome.’
We sit silently for a moment until Dominic turns to me. ‘May I ask you,’ he says, ‘where is your husband? Why is he not in Africa with you?’
‘I’ve never been married,’ I explain.
He looks surprised at this. ‘Maasai women marry at a very young age. It is not the same in England?’
‘No, no. We tend to put it off for as long as we can at home.’ I think that’s a joke, but I’m not so sure these days. ‘It must be a mistake on the booking form that I’m down as Mrs Johnson.’ Truth be known, I probably pressed the wrong button on my computer when I filled in the details and ticked the wrong box. ‘I was with someone. For seven years. But we never married.’
‘He was your husband in everything but name?’
‘Yes, I suppose so.’
‘But why were you never his wife?’
‘I don’t know,’ I admit. ‘I don’t think that we loved each other enough.’
Dominic falls quiet while he considers this.
