Alvaro Mutis was a Colombian writer of prose and poetry and a good friend of Gabo, a contemporary from Bogota, who also lived in Mexico as an exile during the turbulent years of Colombian politics. His alter ego, called Maqroll el Gaviero, is a personality to get to know. I pride myself having taken on the cloak of Maqroll el Gaviero Judio, the Jewish Maqroll. There are very many interesting characters in the life of the original Maqroll and it is so universal that we would find similar characters in our lives also.
Abdur Bashur, Ilona, Warda..and the memorable name belongs not to a person but an ageing steamer which was complicit in many of Maqroll's adventures.
The name of the ship was Halcyon. and I went to Pollenca in Baleares, Spain asking for its whereabouts and was told that it had sailed to Sfax in Tunisia and heard from no more..
I was recently in Tunis, the capital of Tunisia and along rue Cairo I was attracted to a restaurant serving Sfax cuisine. I imagined Maqroll and his friend Abdur Bashur enjoying some fish dinners at the port of Sfax while harbouring the hope that the ever listing HALCYON could brought back to life. I entered and was served by a waiter who has worked there since 1968 when the restaurant opened
Tunis used to have a large Jewish community and many were made refugees in France, Canada and Israel after Arab Nationalists burned the synagogue, looted the shops and forbade jews from public life..I was introduced to the Tunisian Jewish life by books of Albert Memmi.
In search of Halcyon
From Paris, one can fly to Tunis, Monastir or Djerba, the historic jewish presence of thousands of years. From Djerba you can reach Sfax either by bus or Louages which are vans with specific destinations, much like the Sherut taxis in Israel.
I will walk along the harbour for any signs of HALCYON, the ship that helped Maqroll through some rough times ..
