Story 6: A Small Patch of Sand

As the taxi pulled away from him, he had a somber look on his face and I felt intrigued about the future... yet excited and peaceful at the same time. I knew I'd see him again.

Upon arriving in Namibia on 13 May 2019, I received an invitation shortly after for an interview with the luxury resort on Mnemba — the vacancy on the private island that Eva set me up with.

In the beginning of June I was informed that I got the job. This changed everything for me.

I knew, without a doubt, that I had to take it and use this as an opportunity to leave Namibia, earn good money and then be open to whatever Thailand had to offer me. It's a strange phenomenon when you know something deep inside your cells, but you can't explain how or why you are so certain about it. There is a term for this: claircognizance. It means "clear knowing", and can be described as an instant download of information where you simply know something to be true without proof or reason. That's exactly what I experienced.

Meditating on Mnemba, Zanzibar

The plan was to leave for Mnemba at the end of July, do a couple of days training and start working on the 1st of August. The contract was for 2 months: August and September. I started to prepare to leave the country. I also had a trip booked through Namibia in July with a friend who was supposed to visit me from Finland. I met her on the Vipassana in 2018, and even though we spent 10 days sitting in absolute silence, we became very close friends afterwards. In the end, she was halted at the airport when she was about to board her flight because she wanted to bring her son along and neither of us were informed that one requires special permission to travel with children to Namibia. This was to protect children from being kidnapped and trafficked but it was news to us both. We were shocked. There was no way she would have gotten the papers in order and arrive in time for the trip, so I decided to do the trip alone, since we already paid for it.

Towards the end of my trip, I arrived in Swakopmund, a German coastal town in Namibia. It was a Saturday afternoon. I was busy painting my nails when I received a message from the massage therapist on Mnemba. She wasn't able to finish her stint and had to get on the next flight home. She asked me if I could come 2 weeks earlier instead, which meant I had to get a flight on Wednesday. I drove home the next day, had 2 days to pack, didn't have time to say good-bye to anyone, and got onto the flight to Zanzibar. I remember I even got a business class seat, because the airplane was full, so they upgraded me. It all felt surreal.

Mnemba was surreal. It was the tiniest island I've ever stepped foot on. The island even had indigenous deer that was petite. They looked like they belonged in Barbie world. But the sunsets and sunrises were some of the most extraordinary I've ever seen. The sky would make hues and abstract shapes of all the colours of the rainbow: sometimes the clouds and mist would paint a mysterious, gloomy painting. Sometimes it would create magnificent strokes of golden yellow, orange, pinks and purples as the sun would rise or set.

Mnemba Island, Zanzibar

I don't think I've ever worked so hard in such a short time... wait, I have. But this was by far the most massages I've done in 2.5 months. The beauty of working on this island, was that the island and the Swahili people working there were so pure, so full of light that your soul was constantly replenished. As I worked and sometimes suffered, I also received so much from the staff, the clients, the ocean, the beach, the forest and animals. The best part was watching the tiny sea turtles hatch and instinctively head towards the ocean after taking their very first breath. This happened on a weekly basis, sometimes daily. But the most breathtaking experience was one morning when the staff woke me up at 4am to witness a female turtle lay eggs. When I arrived, she was still digging a hole in the sand. Her enormous shell shining in the moonlight, waves crashing nearby. It felt as though she carried wisdom from another planet. Unfortunately, I don't have a good quality photo of this as it was taken in the night, so I won't post it here. But she was probably around 1.5 meters in length. It was magical to sit beside her.

Baby sea turtle hatchlings making their way to the ocean

This is pretty much what my morning routine consisted of: waking up before sunrise, running around the island twice (that's how tiny it was), getting ready for the day, going to the staff meeting and breakfast, then starting to prep my basket for the bookings for the day: oils, towels, creams and scrubs. There were 12 luxury rooms located on the North side of the 1.6 km island. I had to walk to every guest's room and set up the massage bed or yoga mats on their "porch" on the beach. The walking, carrying my equipment and setting up was more work than actually giving the massage. Luckily, for the most part, I had someone who would help me carry the bed.

The Swahili people were among the most genuine and warm-hearted people I've ever met. In my experience, they were always eager to help, to keep you company and to give you something to smile about. I would happily return to Zanzibar just to be in their presence again.

A romantic dinner for the guests

I'm not sure if it was the fact that I was stuck on a little patch of sand for nearly 3 months or if curiosity got the better of me, but I engaged in a fling with one of the female managers from South Africa. It wasn't anything serious, so I decided to let myself enjoy the experience. We kept it strictly confidential and no-one else on the island knew and I suppose that only added to the excitement and sense of mischief.

By the end of my stint, I flew to Chiang Mai, Thailand. A couple of days later, she joined me...