Travelling in the Wake of the Gold Stampeders
Sun 21 Jun 2009
We sailed north past Canada all of Sunday 21st and the morning of Monday 22nd. There was a little wind and swell, but not enough to make anyone really uncomfortable. We spent the day discovering the ship (and we would need more than a day to really explore it), to eat (well, what else was there to do?) and to …. play bingo! Yoohoo!
While a day of luxury and being spoiled is great, it does not make for great reading, so I looked back to think about our flight over.
Does Travel Broaden the Mind? (or Cynical in Seattle)
Sitting beside me was an American woman travelling back from Italy. She told me she was returning from visiting her husband who lives in Italy. The husband is a Syrian who applied for, and got, political asylum in Italy (I know – it’s complicated isn’t it?) She told me she is an anaesthetist technologist, and travels to Italy two or three times a year to visit her husband to whom she has been married for about 5 years. They are trying to get him a green card, but so far no luck as he is on an American risk list of some sort.
They met when she was on holiday in Italy, a whirlwind romance during which he convinced her she was the love of his life. She was a nice woman, clearly intelligent who does a responsible job and had brought up 2 children well. But listening to her I was saddened to find that my instinctive reaction was cynical. I thought that a 35 year old Syrian asylum seeker had a very good reason for persuading a woman 15 years older than him that she was the love of his life, and that reason was that green card. She was even beginning to make remarks which indicated she had changed her thinking to suit him to the extent that she hinted she believed 9/11 was a government plot!
It was a fascinating story, but interesting as much in that others’ reaction to her was much the same as mine – that she has been taken for a ride. I really hope we are wrong, and that they get things sorted out. I really hope that somewhere in the future they will have a peaceful, happy life together in the States.
Setting Off
Seattle 20 June 09
20 June 2009
How lucky can you get? A Cruising holiday in Alaska on a luxury liner – fantastic!
We set out on Fri 19th, Steve having booked our seats on the internet weeks before using his silver travel card. The seats had looked really good – all behind a bulkhead, and though one was separated from the other three, this would not matter. I said I would take the separate one and if I got too lonely they could visit and play with me for a little while.
Sadly, the actual seats did not look like they had on the internet. There was a row of 3 between the bulkhead and our 3 seats, so the others were squashed behind 3 people who, despite having all that space in front of them had no hesitation in tilting their seats back during the flight, practically putting the seat-back TVs into the faces of those sitting behind them.
I know they are entitled to do this, but on a long flight like this, and with so little room between seats, you would think that people would be a little less selfish. I have also heard, though it might be a myth, that most animals travelling would, by law, have to be provided with more space per pound of bodyweight than we had! British Airways take note!
However, we got through the journey and got to Seattle 1.5 hours after we left London – weird isn’t it, when the flight had taken 9.5 hours. The hotel (the Doubletree) was huge but very nice – rooms were big and well appointed, public rooms were great – brilliant start to the holiday. We all slept well, but were up early, too excited to stay in bed.
Over the next few hours we had breakfast, signed in for the cruise and got bussed to the docks. What little we saw of Seattle looked great.
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