We’ve moved into the rainy season- and that means that it is not only hot and humid outside- but you’ve got unpredictable rain storms that like to get in the way of your daily movements. Activities conducted outdoors and at midday are kept to a minimum- especially during Ramadan when the fasting faithful are trying to conserve their strength. What’s a person to do?
♫ Bring the kids and mom and dad
to Ryan Family Amusements” ♫
Yesterday I did something that I never thought I would ever do while living in Africa. That’s right, I went bowling. Dakar has boasted a bowling alley ever since the chic new Sea Plaza Shopping Center opened up out on the corniche. The entire shopping mall is extremely modern, and its existence really does wonders in shattering your notions of what Africa might be like if all you know of this continent stems from watching The Gods Must Be Crazy.
And you thought all I ever did on the corniche was run. In fact, I’m a big fan of diversifying my activities…
After Red Bowl opened up, I kind of eschewed visiting the alley because it seemed like a place that wasn’t “culturally enriching” from a Senegalese perspective. After all, Africans don’t ever bowl, do they? Well why wouldn’t they? I mean, it’s not like the pilgrims hit Provincetown back in 1620, saw that there was no acceptable bowling teams and opted to press on to Plimoth. Bowling certainly wouldn’t be the first bizarre human activity whose popularity has spread the world over….
Air hockey for example- you can find that here, too….
Remember this rip-off game from the Barnstable County Fair? I can’t tell you how many coins I wasted by rolling them onto this contraption that ever so barely inches all of the “prizes” to the edge but never quite tumbles into the retrieval slot. These games make me retroactively mad.
And what about the claw game? That scam has now evolved into a more dramatic string cutting challenge where you use a blade to cut through string in order to pray score your prize. I have no idea how this is actually played, but I am sure that if I were ten years old again I’d have been suckered into trying to win- rather than just heading to the store and buying it for myself.
But back to the bowling side of the house. I’m a bit intimidated by these beauties- primarily because we only grew up with candlepin bowling alleys- where the bowling ball is much smaller and easier to hurl overhand.
(Psst: I think my dad or some of his friends may have been thrown out of one of these fine establishments after doing this very thing while playing under the influence. But then again, maybe I’m just fabricating that souvenir.)
(Psst: I think my dad or some of his friends may have been thrown out of one of these fine establishments after doing this very thing while playing under the influence. But then again, maybe I’m just fabricating that souvenir.)
The internet tells me that bowling is another genius invention of the ancient Egyptians from back in 5200 BC. Surely they were bowling in the sand. The internet is never wrong!
I also wonder if it was the Egyptians who first designed bowling shoes. In the military, when you start basic training you are issued BCGs (birth control glasses) if you have poor eyesight. They earned this moniker because the frames were so unflattering that…well…you can imagine. I know we’re talking about footwear here in this section of my blog entry- but draw your comparisons appropriately.
(Update! BCGs are no longer de rigeur! The internet just told me- click here to learn about the upgrade.)
(Update! BCGs are no longer de rigeur! The internet just told me- click here to learn about the upgrade.)
So back to bowling- we are off to the races. I have not bowled in years, but one of my favorite all-time movies is The Big Lebowski, so all I need now is a White Russian from the bar (and there is indeed a bar in this place).
“Smokey this is not Nam, this is bowling- there are rules.”
The little guy was supposed to be wearing bowling shoes or sneakers- but he had neither in his size. So he wore his Crocs and we all hoped that he wouldn’t drop a ball on his toe.
The little guy was supposed to be wearing bowling shoes or sneakers- but he had neither in his size. So he wore his Crocs and we all hoped that he wouldn’t drop a ball on his toe.
Here’s the scoreboard at the beginning. Check it out! I rolled a strike on my first go.
The bowling alley really is a nice facility- and while you might wonder if it was only us toubabs interested to come in and play, I will tell you that the place filled up with all manner of the Dakar public. Bowling is fun- and it is an activity that is made even more fun if everyone sucks. I can see the appeal.
Speaking of someone who sucks- here I am with my fantastic skirt and bowling shoe combo. We don’t ever really wear socks in this country, sp luckily the alley gives you socks to wear with your fine shoes. Between my shoes and my pretty lavender bowling ball, I rolled a few frames of “zero” after my triumphant first strike.
Here’s our four year old (he gets the bumpers that automatically pop up on his turn- and I am infinitely jealous). You can see his hands on his head in suspense as we watch the fluorescent yellow ball creep down the lane.
Strike celebrations are quite joyous! Who knew that there would be such thrills to be had in the bowling lane?
The final result? Well I barely beat the four year old. So let’s just say that today was not my shining moment….
…but don’t you worry. I’ve got big plans here at the Sea Plaza Shopping Center. Check out what they’ve got set up here on the roof. I am so fricking excited to come back and try this out next. I can’t think of a better way to bookend my time in Dakar!
In fact, I think it will really tie the blog together.