The life of a beach vendor

When you sit on the beach here you cannot help but become aggravated by the continuous harrassment of the beach vendors who ply the sand with their goods or services for sale. The vendors selling drinks call, "Cerveza, beer, coke, water, agua fria." They are usually Pakistani people who can sometimes become very bolshy. Then there are Thai or Asian women that go around calling "Masajee Masajee". There are also some Asians selling tatoos and sarongs etc. The Africans seem to sell African curios. All this taking place on the beach while you try to soak up the sun and let your mind float away...

Jewellery vendors at work

I have seen the same beach vendor a couple of times, on the beach. He has begun to say "hi" to me if he sees me. He is not like the other vendors as he is not pushy but polite and talkative. I think this sales pitch works for him as he attracts buyers and not repels them. People may feel sorry and buy a drink! He had previously greeted me in Spanish on a few occasions. I had replied in my somewhat beginner Spanish. I guess he thought I must be Spanish. Today I did not even notice him walking up, when he came up to me to say hi. I automatically responded, speaking English. He responded in English too, and we began a conversation for the first time. He looked tired and weary compared to other times I had greeted him.

The woman with the red bag is a "Masajee Masajee" vendor.

I learnt that he is Pakistani and has been here for 3 years. He has been selling drinks on the beach all the time. He told me he speaks Urdu, Hindi and one other Asian language which I forget. He also speaks English and now Spanish too. I asked him if enjoys living in Spain. He said it is not better here. He said that the only reason he is here is because he can earn some money. In Pakistan he cannot earn any money. I told him it looks like he makes a lot of money on the beach as he is always walking up and down selling drinks and talking to people. He told me that the police are a big problem and demand bribes from the beach vendors.  He said that the police want a daily payment from each vendor. He told me he lives alone here with no family or relatives. They are all back in Pakistan and he is the provider for them. His eyes welled up with tears as he spoke. It was an uncomfortable moment. I will not get irritated by the bombardment of vendors on the beaches from now on. They are just trying to make the daily wage demanded by the police.