Wednesday, 2 June 2010
Vancouver, Canada
Another day. Another time zone. Another country. Another continent.
Could’ve taken the bus to the airport but instead opt for a taxi. Mad Mary flies through the traffic and halves the time it would take the bus. Your life in their hands.
Well, dear reader. It’s about 10hrs of flying from Seoul to my next destination.
Vancouver.
And the start of the next leg of my Around the World Trip. Crossing Canada. By rail.
Settle in to my seat with a glass of champagne. Obviously. Might as well keep things in the manner to which I am very much accustomed. Business Class is set in a herringbone fashion which I don’t like. Not much foot space and struggle to stretch out. First world problems I know.
Last time I flew over the Pacific was in 1995 from Vancouver to Hong Kong. 13hrs of extreme turbulence with the aircraft literally dropping out of the sky at one point. Scary stuff, dear reader. Thankfully, it’s reasonably calm this trip.
Disembarking the aircraft upon arrival in Vancouver, the stewardess puts her arms up to me and pulls me to her. I very nearly embarrass myself, dear reader. Due to the odd alcoholic drink enroute and jetlag, for some inexplicable reason I think she’s going to kiss me goodbye so start stretching my arms out to reciprocate. In that split second when I’m thinking this she says, “I didn’t want you to bang your head.”
Ah. I see.
Retort with, “I though you were going to kiss me goodbye!”
Everyone laughs. Including her.
Fortunately.
Have a sentimental attachment to Vancouver.
It’s where it all began.
In May 1995.
A Friday morning.
The young trainee Quantity Surveyor, Touring Taurean, is sitting in a site hut in Loughborough. His boss’s phone rings. Boss is on holiday so he picks it up. His boss’s boss is reading this laughing.
It’s Dave from the head office in Nottingham. He’s just got back from a business trip to Hong Kong working on a brewery project in China.
The young Touring Taurean, making polite conversation, asks how Hong Kong was. It was brilliant, says Dave.
Touring Taurean unwittingly replies, “Ah I’d love to go there.”
Dave replies, “Would you?”
Oh yes, say I. I’d go tomorrow.
“Can you go Monday?”, says Dave.
WHAT?!?!?
“Can you go Monday? Well actually, you’ve got to fly to Vancouver first, to spend a couple of weeks with the mechanical engineers and then fly from Vancouver to Hong Kong to assist with the materials procurement. It’ll be Business Class flights and five star hotels. Is that alright?”
WHAT?!?!?!
I’m 25 years old.
What an opportunity.
And so began my international career.
In Vancouver.
Hence a sentimental attachment to Vancouver.
Never looked back. And had a very nice life out of it. Thank you very much.
Grilled by Immigration for some nonsense and then out on to Canadian soil.
To meet Miss Vancouver.
For a weekend of fun and frolics.
