Alaska-2

PART2
It could be that those guys were demanding a real aircraft or refusing to part with their beards. They finally left. Snigdha, who had previously travelled by this toy craft museum piece, assured us that it did a good job of transporting. As expected, we could not take any carryon. I was allotted number 1b seat. Basically right behind the captain's seat. No kidding! If I stretched my arms forward, I would be changing the gears. Believe me, there were no cockpit doors and a special announcement was made, not to panic if any alarms were heard, which was a normal navigational process.
No food was served, as a pilot had to do that. None of us preferred that pilot leave this archaeological wonder unmanned in midair! However, we landed safely in Toronto. Immigration was a breeze. We were cherishing our newly found permanent residency status. The flight to Vancouver was a real aircraft. Journey was long, but as I did not have a skeptical Madrasi mother or confused Pakistani mother-in-law (that was another story), I was left in peace and in one piece.

Vancouver is a great city. It is no joke, if I said, majority of the population was either Chinese or Sardarjis, I found were homeless! It appeared Asians migrated with their land as well. Next day was July 4th and we boarded Glacier Dome train, which is full of glass to reach Whistler Mountain, the venue for winter Olympics in 2010.

The train journey was very pleasant and the scenery was stunning. The waitresses were winsome. They engaged us in a delightful way and fed us to the extent that I would have put on at least a pound by the end of the journey. Being, enchanted, entertained and contented, I thought of gratifying them with a handsome tip. I was trying to build up a case to convince Radha as to how a generous $20 may be appropriate for the services they rendered. I was trying to ensure that she would not impart sinful significance to my unusual generosity.

Well! She looked at me scornfully and I felt I failed to convey my honest and truthful feelings and reasons. "You will never change" Radha said. I was preparing to ward off a possible brouhaha. "How could you be so stingy?" she continued and made an instantaneous recommendation for $50. I was awestruck dumbfounded. My magnanimity turned into instant parsimony. I finally settled for a $40 tip.

To be Continued..