“To fly or not to fly?” No question for me, I don’t enjoy air travel. I once won a pre-Christmas holiday to Paris. I remember my winning slogan “I love to see my family eating pure goodness” It was fantastic, a luxurious hotel, hot chestnut sellers, and wonderful Christmas decorations. However the flight there was horrendous. For some reason the plane wasn’t able to land, so we hovered over Paris for 90 minutes. The pilot kept apologising as we hit air pockets and the plane dropped. I told our children to pretend that we were riding horses on a carousel. Home again, I told our doctor that it was my last flight. He replied “Knowing you as I do, Esmé, if one of your children needed you, you would fly to the other side of the world!”
For the next forty years we used our car for holidays to Switzerland and France. After my husband died and I returned to live in this country. I thought of my doctor’s words. If I wanted to visit my daughter and family, I would need to fly, it was too far to drive by myself. This I did regularly. My plane landed in Nice at 11am, and the coach I used didn’t leave until 6pm. The seven hour wait at the airport didn’t worry me. I had drinks in various bars and lunch in a huge cafeteria. I was never bored as I am a “people watcher”.
One elderly lady always came in early before the lunch crowds arrived. She had a shopping trolley and carried loads of bags. She pulled four tables into a square and put one chair in the middle. Sitting on the chair she unpacked her bags. A vase (jam jar!) full of plastic flowers came out first, followed by many ornaments. She bought a drink, but had her own food. The staff were very patient with her. The only time they became very cross was when she threw her crusts around. As the cafeteria was open to the sky (it had a sliding ceiling) the birds would come swooping down. I used to worry where she slept at night.
Luckily the coach back to Nice linked well with the flight times. I often wrote poems in the coach.Here are some verses from one:-
PROVENCE
The sun beats down so fiercely
A grill upon the vine
Whilst in the sleepy background
Craggy mountains defy time
I love this dreamy region
Colours heightened by the heat
Olives, figs and palm trees
Where shades of all green meet
Even from the auto-route
One shares the sense of space
Everyone should have the chance to explore this lovely place.
Even if we can’t be there
Let’s fill our thoughts with colour -
The colours of God’s Universe
And our love for one another…...
I wish you all a colourful June,
Esmé
For the next forty years we used our car for holidays to Switzerland and France. After my husband died and I returned to live in this country. I thought of my doctor’s words. If I wanted to visit my daughter and family, I would need to fly, it was too far to drive by myself. This I did regularly. My plane landed in Nice at 11am, and the coach I used didn’t leave until 6pm. The seven hour wait at the airport didn’t worry me. I had drinks in various bars and lunch in a huge cafeteria. I was never bored as I am a “people watcher”.
One elderly lady always came in early before the lunch crowds arrived. She had a shopping trolley and carried loads of bags. She pulled four tables into a square and put one chair in the middle. Sitting on the chair she unpacked her bags. A vase (jam jar!) full of plastic flowers came out first, followed by many ornaments. She bought a drink, but had her own food. The staff were very patient with her. The only time they became very cross was when she threw her crusts around. As the cafeteria was open to the sky (it had a sliding ceiling) the birds would come swooping down. I used to worry where she slept at night.
Luckily the coach back to Nice linked well with the flight times. I often wrote poems in the coach.Here are some verses from one:-
PROVENCE
The sun beats down so fiercely
A grill upon the vine
Whilst in the sleepy background
Craggy mountains defy time
I love this dreamy region
Colours heightened by the heat
Olives, figs and palm trees
Where shades of all green meet
Even from the auto-route
One shares the sense of space
Everyone should have the chance to explore this lovely place.
Even if we can’t be there
Let’s fill our thoughts with colour -
The colours of God’s Universe
And our love for one another…...
I wish you all a colourful June,
Esmé
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