Stories about Asia Pacific
It was December 2004 and we were enjoying a warm balmy summer evening on the sub-tropical Sunshine Coast, Australia when the telephone chimed. Georgine grabbed the phone expectantly. “Probably one of the girls or a family member,” she said absently. “Thailand calling!” sang the charming voice of a long distance telephone operator. We were connected then to a strong male voice at the other end … Continue reading Kanchanaburi, Thailand
I disembarked at the Soekarna-Hatta International Airport and began the long walk down glass walled corridors to Immigration and Customs booths. The clearing officers took a cursory look at my belongings, checked my passport and made sure I had plenty of money to spend during the time I’d be visiting. I was waved through to the luggage carousel making a careful study of the crowd … Continue reading Bandung
We recently celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary. A number of messages were read out at the celebration but this one from my eldest daughter would have to take the humor prize. This photo was taken in India in the late 1970’s, much of our children’s childhood recollections here are from that era. Ian _____________________________________________________________________________________________ Happy 50th Anniversary!! You made it this far despite having children! … Continue reading Our 50th
“I would suggest you take the flight from Manila to Davao on the southern tip of the island of Mindanao, South Philippines, and for your forward journey take an Indonesian airline across to Manado.” The travel agent stared at me as I looked at options for my journey. It made little sense for me to return to Singapore and make a round trip through Jakarta … Continue reading Flight to Manado
Sri Lanka was the next country on my auditing itinerary. In antiquity, Sri Lanka was known to travelers by a variety of names. Known in India as Lanka or Sinhala , ancient Greek geographers called it Taprobane[17] /təˈprɒbəniː/ and Arabs referred to it as Serendib (the origin of the word “serendipity”).[18] Ceilão, the name given to Sri Lanka by the Portuguese when they arrived in … Continue reading Colombo
I’d noticed the security guard and airline desk clerk at the Singapore Canadian Airlines check in counter observing me for some time and wondered what was going on. From my vantage point behind a long line of sweating and irritable passengers carts piled high with electronic equipment bound for Bangladesh I’d time to study my surroundings. The security guard beckoned me to the first class … Continue reading Going FIRST CLASS
Well it seemed to be a good idea when Don suggested we hop into the Cessna and check out one of the jungle strips to see if it was still functional. Wrong! It had been a long time since that particular strip had been used, but we were considering a development project in that area and a plane trip of one hour sure beat a … Continue reading A Cessna Experience
Traffic was thick as we made our way inch by inch toward our destination. We’d wisely decided to leave our car at home and take a taxi, as this gave us freedom to walk the last few blocks and avoid traffic jams. Crowds were converging on Singapore River for their annual dragon boat festival. This festival is not as threatening as the name may indicate … Continue reading Dragon Boat Festival
“My husband would like to take you golfing.” I was examining requisition requests with Suzanne our Chinese Purchasing Officer at the Singapore office when she dropped that one on me. I smiled, and her face clouded over with uncertainty. “Did I say something wrong?” “No, I was just remembering the last time I attempted to play golf fifteen years ago. It was at Kodaikanal in … Continue reading Golfing in Asia
Pan Am had been in financial difficulties for several years before finally facing up to the fact the once proud leader of an airline industry was no longer financially viable. The bones of the once proud giant were still being picked over by industry vultures and I noted there were signs of former Pan Am markings on the United Airlines aircraft I was about … Continue reading High 5 for Airline Crews
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