Chapter 14: closer and closer

I drag myself out of the bed in a daze and head towards the kitchen to grab a glass of water. “You look like hell” Marcels voice comes out from behind me, “I didn’t sleep very well” I groan, “had any ideas for our next destination?” Marcel asks while preparing a cup of coffee, Id almost forgotten, I tell Marcel that I will have a look on the map and come back to him with an answer within the hour then I go back into my room and shut the door.

I get my phone out and add Carlos number into it, I had quickly written it down the night before so to add it to my contacts, that way I wouldn’t have to sneak into Marcels phone, then I find Entrevennes on the map. The closest ferry from here to Entrevennes is from Annaba to Marseille, that would take me and Marcel roughly a 6 hour drive.

“Got it!” I swing the door open and hop towards Marcel “Annaba, I want to go to Annaba!” My excitement maybe a little to evident, Marcel almost jumps back, “Annaba, well that quite a drive away, shall we do a few stops along the way, that way we can break down into a two day trip?” Marcel suggests, personally I would prefer to just go straight there but I don’t want Marcel being suspicious of me so I agree with him.

Marcel seems happy to leave promptly probably because of my change in mood which makes me feel a little bad about my deception.

We have breakfast then pack our stuff into the car and head off.

The first 2 hours of driving consisted of a lot of dry sandy land, the odd scatter of shrub. We stopped in Tebessa for some lunch and a coffee, walking around a bit to take in some of the ruins and old dilapidated buildings. I had managed to get a new sketch book and some more pencils, my positive outlook making it more bearable to catch up of my notes and sketching while adding in additional works from Tebessa.

As the evening dawned we drove another two and a half hours to Souk-Ahras.

The buildings there were a lot more built up and the town was huge. It wasn’t the prettiest of places but made for interesting drawings.

The women wore colourful head scarves and clothing, stalls that filled some streets with market stalls draped in rugs of every size and colour, shapes and intricate patterns on everything. There was a stall with beautiful vases, plates and bowls, nothing compared to me cave though. I thought to buy something for Carlos but decided against it.

The food was fresh and delicious. I had ordered a plate of some sort of curried yellow rice with lamb chunks scattered over the top and herbs.

By the end of the day I was shattered. We found a

Hotel called the Ancien Hotel de ville. The inside was ok, not the best but it had some very interesting history me and Marcel learnt, supposedly being the birth place of Augustine of hippo a foundational Christian theologian and bishop of hippo Regius in North Africa.

I reckoned Carlo would be proud of me for taking an interest in history and learning all these facts.

I didn’t sleep well again due to the fact that I was itching to get going and get on that ferry to see Carlo.

Come morning I was already dressed, I had ordered breakfast to come up for us so we could eat and go. Marcel could sense my eagerness to leave and raised a suspicious brow at me, “you alright there?” He asked, sitting way too calmly with his legs crossed sipping slowly at his cup of coffee, “yeah fine! Just a bit stuffy in this hotel” is all I could say.

That gave Marcel a hint enough to speed up his drink and food. We were back on the road by 9am.

The car journey lasted just under 2 hours, I hummed merrily ti the songs in the radio and Marcel joined in.

With little commotion here in this part of the world, I almost forgot there was even a war going on, that was until we got to Annaba.

The was a lot of foreigners coming in from Europe, the streets were busy but not with the usual tourism or holiday stayers, it was more of a rush of panic, people escaping the chaos from land overseas. Some people travelled alone, other with a partner or with children. I wanted to help so badly and Marcel could tell as he rubbed my back and leaned into me “there’s nothing we can do, for now all we can do is help ourselves” I thought this a very strange thing for Marcel to say considering his caring and warm personality and the fact that he took me in under his wing to help me so easily.

I choose a hotel close to the ferry port saying to Marcel that I like its location best, looking over the water, thankfully Marcel doesn’t question me and seems to believe me. We go and unpack in our hotel rooms. While unpacking I try to think up a way to separate from Marcel for only a moment so I can find out about ferry tickets at the port, just as I was finishing to “unpack” I hear a snoring coming from the living room/kitchen, I peer in and spot Marcel asleep on the sofa having an afternoon nap. This was my time! I grab my bag quickly head downstairs to the entrance of the hotel. I check on the maps and make my way to the front desk at the ferry port. Luckily for me the man there spoke perfect English and I explain to him that I want a ferry over to Marseille. The man looks a little confused, “but why? Everyone leaving Marseille, not going there” he questions, “I have my reasons” is all I say and he pushes no further. “Your lucky because tonight is the last ferry going over there… we’ve had to stop them due to the war, we’re not a threat nor do we have any threats to be alarmed by but it’s better to be safe than sorry” the man informs me, “brilliant, what time is the last ferry?” I ask, “11pm, make sure you get here at 10:30pm though to ensure you don’t miss it” the man advises, “don’t worry, I’ll be there” I say as I pay the man and grab my ticket.

Marcel has already had a nap which means he may not be that tired later on, I needed to make sure I tire him out so that he goes to sleep before 10pm.