Monday, December 31, 2018 – Closing Out 2018 and Ringing In 2019 – Manama, Bahrain, Alfateh District
City sounds: horns honking in any manner of meaning, long and angry, short and friendly, three short bursts followed by a long tone telling the person ahead to “get a move on,” clipped tones to jostle pedestrians and invite in for a taxi ride; echoing loud speakers mumbling in mixed languages, words bleeding from one into the next; boom box cars rolling on by; etc, etc. Sleeping teens, victims of jet lagged time lapses. A lone leader standing watch for the sake of another.
Life never stops here, never pauses, never sleeps. Night abounds with activity, from the KSAs looking to escape a more repressed clime to the GIs shedding responsibility for the evening. Lights off at home, but flashing neon in the city.
