Harry Holcroft - The Spice Route

Below is an diary extract from The Spice Route and some sample paintings.

Pagan, Burma The Irrawadi River

Bali, Indonesia Rice Harvesting

Yemen
MY ADDICT DRIVER 'QUAT'
Friday, 3 April 1998

His name is Abdul - honestly! He is about 30, looks like a bandit - he is. Next to his gear stick is a Kalashnikov rifle with six full magazines. Hardly your London cabbie!

Somewhat concerned, I climb in and we head for the mountains.

Next to his Kalashnikov is a large 'branch' of leaves, which he starts eating like a goat. This is 'Quat'. It is a narcotic similar to cocaine and marijuana but with its own properties. I had already discovered that the whole Yemeni population grinds to a halt every afternoon for a 'Quat' session. When in Rome do as the Romans do.

We stop at a mountain village. In the Head Villager's house everyone sits around the walls. In the middle of the floor is a forest of leaves, which everybody eats. The object is to masticate the leaves into a cricket ball, which sits in one's cheek, as though you have the most appalling toothache. Gradually the sap from the leaves leaks down your throat. Over a period of four hours' chewing, the world becomes a much better place. Time no longer exists, and Abdul, despite his Kalashnikov, is my best friend.

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