I wish that I could remember his name. We had a long conversation sat on the bench where I had paused to de-sand my feet after paddling on the beach. Like many before, he stopped to engage me in polite conversation before trying to persuade me to purchase a carved Makalani palm nut. I warned him not to start carving my name in an attempt to oblige me into a purchase and he was good to his word.
He was from one of the villages beyond Swakopmund, trying to earn a living for his family. His people, originally from the huge national park of Etosha, had been forced off the land as a consequence of tourism . His native language was As I listened to his history lesson, and his illustration of the Khoisan click language, I warmed to his character and was happy to purchase my souvenir from him - and permission for a photograph was granted. It took him about 5 seconds to carve my name on the palm nut. Amazing skills with the knife.
I was pleased to have encountered him and if I paid over the odds for the souvenir, well that's ok with me.
