we’d be back in time when the ship
was scheduled to sail, we frequently
took the tour bus. Now that was an
experience! The buses all had different
types of steps to board them.
There was one that needed a stool
to climb up to the bottom step and
some needed a stool to get up to
the stool. If you couldn’t manage
that, then it became the mission of
the assistant to the driver to boost
you up to whatever step you could
reach. I won’t tell you where the
placement of his hands started
but I bet people fought to get that
job. Getting off the bus sometimes
took just as long. By the end of the
voyage, I wouldn’t say that I gained
weight, but part of my body was still
coming off the bus as I was walking
down the street.
In one of the outdoor exhibits, as
I was looking at the rear view of an
elephant sculpture, I had a premonition
that I was going to look like
that when I got home. Eating and
eating, sitting and sitting is not good
for one’s “girlish” figure. Who am I
fooling? Girlish figures and Gloria
Beck disassociated themselves from
each other too many years ago to
even pause and think about. The
true test would be the seat on our
flight home. If they up the charge
on my transportation home because
of my personal overweight I’ll be
mad because this is the first time
my luggage wasn’t overweight.
I told you in my first story about
this trip that my largest piece of
luggage was now filled with meds,
my carry-on was now filled with
medical equipment and my backpack
had my clothes. The name of
my airline was supposedly “A Wing
and a Prayer.” You have no idea
how close I came in my description.
We almost needed Lassie to find a
way to take us home.
Our plane was delayed 7 ½ hours
in take-off from Singapore. Now
I know how people feel when I
see them on TV and are stuck in
an airport. Our “problem plane,”
which we were going to fly on for 24
hours, had to be changed to another
plane which was being re-routed
from Auckland. The horrible fire in
Australia somehow changed those
plans. At that point being tied to
the wings of a giant Roc and flying
across the ocean in a storm would
have brought a welcome smile to
my face of now two million more
wrinkles. Oops. Not sure. With all
the body cream I had smeared on
me I’d probably slip off. Maybe
Dumbo the elephant? With his
flapping ears and my flapping arms
we could have spelled each other
and it would have made it a safer
choice.
Anyway, the plane finally showed
up 4:30 am the next day. At that
point I only wanted to sleep, but
the airline had other plans. We ate
a sumptuous dinner at our hotel
before we left for the airport so who
was going to be hungry? We noshed
at the airport and then we were given
a dinner and breakfast menu on
the plane. So that would have been
our fifth meal in 24 hours, starting
with breakfast and then lunch after
leaving the ship. When we stopped
in Frankfurt for a two-hour layover
we were given two more meals and
I’m sure they gave me something
intravenously while I was asleep.
To be exact, we left our ship at
8 am on a Saturday and toured
Singapore until it was almost
time to have dinner and “board”
the plane on Sunday, and when
we arrived in NY it was Monday
Singapore time – three days. In my
last column about this trip, when
I predicted 24 hours or maybe 48
hours for our flight back to NY, I
was sooo close. I am so jet-lagged
that I’m not sure of what the date is
and what meal I need to eat. I think
it’s revenge by the airline because I
renamed it “A Wing and a Prayer.”
By the way, I’m still afraid to
look at the “rear” of me in a mirror.
Come to think of it, I don’t know if
I have a mirror big enough. So far
it hasn’t been hit by our elevator
door, so I guess I’m good.
Gloria's premonition...oh my...
February 2020 ¢ NORTH SHORE TOWERS COURIER 25