A STRANGER IN A STRANGE TOWN

I walk down unfamiliar streets
Exploring, searching
I came upon a market square
Full of hubbub
Stall holders calling out their wares
Amidst the background noise of chatter
Babies’ cry and women gossip
An argument ensues
Between trader and punter
Words are exchanged
Just out of earshot
“Asylum seeker” was all I could make out
A trader or a punter?
I moved on
It was a typical spring day
Too hot for a coat
Too cold to go without
As I leave the market I passed an office building
Smoker’s skulk outside
Social pariahs
Consigned to the gutter
With the other misfits and addicts
I pass people on mobiles
All talking loudly
I lose count of the number
Teenagers chatting
What on earth do they have to say?
Whatever! Bovvered?
I stop at a pavement café
To my left sit a party of French
I thought how apt it was
And how when the coalition went to war
To fight global terrorism
The French went to lunch
To my right sat a mixed group
A forty-something female
Holding court over a younger crowd
Celebrating a 22nd birthday
The oldest in the group by some distance
Was obviously angling to put another notch in her headboard
On the farthest table sat
A party of downs syndrome sufferers
One kept blowing raspberries of admirable proportions
And another was doing chimp impressions
The birthday group obviously found them amusing
Remarking “he looked like Clyde from the Eastwood movie”
Why do people have to be so unkind?
A passer by said loudly
“Look at the window lickers”
What a vile world it can be
The waitress arrives
Complete with tattoos and multiple piecings
Wearing an ill-fitting skirt and blouse
Making her look like a badly stuffed pincushion
I’m sure she felt she was making a statement
Presumably to the fashion police.
She eventually took my order
Why cant you just get a coffee anymore?
I continued my journey
Along the pavement
To avoid stopping at a red signal
A cyclist mounted the pavement
Scatting pedestrians in all directions
In response to calls
His reply was at best unarticulated
Mostly he just gesticulated
I decided to go back to the hotel