Cairo collapse.

Hearing: Elissa - Law Ta3refo (Arabic - my cousins suggestion)

Yesterday i was called off my standby for a CAI flight. Turns out i was the only Arabic speaker (way to go CC) but it was ok. I was Business galley and it was a smooth flight till we hit a medical situation. On the way back we had just finished with the service and i was making a pax a cup of coffee when one of the girls looking all flustered came up to me. "You the Arabic speaker?" I had barely said yes before she had grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the galley through the cabin and into economy...

There I saw a guy collapsed in the isle and our CM lifting his legs and calling out to him to see if he could respond. Luckily there was another guy on our crew, with his help the CM dragged the poor man into the galley. Also as luck would have it one of the girls was a trained nurse so she handled most of it but i was there since there was a strong chance the guy couldn't speak English (and he couldn't). I'm sure every airline has this, we contacted a medical center via satellite phone to get permission for hypo stop gel. As it turns out the man had diabetes and his sugar level had dropped. It wasn't a serious form as he didn't use insulin and he refused the hypo stop gel, instead we gave him just some sugar dissolved in water once he regained consciousness after putting him oxygen.

I admit that initially i was worried especially since he wasn't responding but as he was breathing and i could see his eyes flicker under his lids i knew he was just unconscious. Once he started to slowly come out of it and was able to talk a little i was able to explain what happened, ask a few questions, tell him what we were doing etc. He didn't seem surprised at what had happened (apparently its happened a few times before) though he did seem relieved that there was someone who he could communicate with. Slowly he got better and i kept talking to him asking how he was feeling, making jokes and such and then we sat him in business for landing since the airport doc's had already been alerted to what happened and would be waiting for us. He was fine but the docs had to check him anyway. Really a nice guy, good humored too and thankfully it turned out ok and wasn't as bad as it could have been.

One gripe i really have to air is the total lack of consideration shown by the rest of the pax. Though the rest of the crew continued with the normal service i had some really inconsiderate B**tard tell me to take their trays as they guy was being dragged past them. Another kept sticking his head into the galley asking for coffee when he could clearly see the man on the floor with us occupied with doing what we could for him! What was he thinking????!!! Honestly people, do i have to say it? When there is a medical situation, cut the crew a break! Be patient, yes we still try our best to complete a service but believe it or not, it is not our priority, saving a life is, so just get real and don't be so stupid! Sad to say but this is also going under flying 101. Ugh! *eye roll*

Anyway, kudos to the CM, Captain who was just as supportive and helpful and nurse. They were great, and kudos to me too, just coz i can! LOL.

VP

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I can be just as sneaky.

Crew control, give it a rest.

I was woken up early by a call from them but i have learnt my lesson, never answer unless you want to. Last time i picked up they put me on a 9day trip! Today i have a short turnaround and the last thing i want is for them to change it - esp since my cousin is here. And guess what they want to do? Put me on a 3 day trip. HA! How do i know? I signed into my friends account and went through the different flights till i found my name on the crew list.

Bugger off CC, they have called me no less than 5 times since 8.30 am this morning! Im not doing them any favours coz i know they wont do me any. Ugh!

That aside, since i was so rudely woken up i checked out Trays site and did the "What airline are you?" quiz. Since it had such a cool result i decided to post it. Apparently im a Seychelles!! Hee hee, me like very much.

VP

What Airline Are You?

You are Air Seychelles. You are laid back and relaxing. An easy-going person like you knows how to kick back. You could live your life island hopping, taking in local cultures and pursuing exciting water sports. Eat it up, but be careful, you might get sunburned one of these days.
Take this quiz!







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| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

EDIT 10.56am: But CC can be sneakier!!!

Bugger! and double BUGGER!!! Guess what they did? They called my flatmate! She was on standby this morning and they called her in for my flight and then asked her if she was my flatmate and if they could please talk to me since they had been having no luck reaching me - those sneaky little bastards!............ So looks like im on that BKK flight after all and there is one girl on it who i really dont want to fly with too.

Freaking little rats. I hate CC.

VP

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A lazy day in Paris

Hearing: Hotel music and people chatting in the lobby.

This trip has been my first operating trip to Paris, the one I wrote about in my last entry was taken on my 4 requested days off. I was called off standby for it which I didn't mind but it meant that I wouldn't be able to meet one of my friends in London. Anyway I had a wonderful day.

Since I didn't go inside last time my first stop was Notre-Dame. Out front these kids were feeding sparrows from their hands, very cute.



I shelled out 5euro for the audio guide and listened to all sorts of things about the cathedral I didn't know - like one of the oldest tombs is the most modest one and quite easy to overlook, that the cathedral fell into ruin at one stage and Victor Hugos ¨Hunchback of Notre-Dame¨ while exciting controversy, brought attention to the cathedral once again and saved it and that over 12 million visitors come every year. It also explained the significance of its layout, the stories behind famous round windows and sculptures in the portals on the facade. Although there were signs saying photography wasn't allowed tourists everywhere were posing for photos all over the place, in such a disrespectful manner and while I sometimes do take photos inside churches and cathedrals I didn't feel right to take photos here.

From there I i walked to the Louvre where I wanted to see that Da Vinci's smiling lady but it so happens that on Tuesdays the Louvre is closed...Oh well, next time maybe (I love being able to say that so simply *grin*). I sat to the side of the square and watched people taking photos infront of the glass pyramids, kids playing while their parents took respite in the shade and sellers lugging around buckets of ice and water bottles.



A lazy walk through the park infront of the Louvre (Jardin Du Carrousel) took me past the Arc de Triomphe du Carrousel (a smaller version of its famous brother), to the Obelisk and down Ave Des Champs Elysees till I found a nearby metro stop.



The Metro is very easy to navigate and efficient like that of London, so a short ride later and I found myself in the Jardin Du Luxembourg. Its not a typical 'site' of Paris to see but my friend recommended it and it definitely fell within the lazy day category. The garden forms the grounds of the Palais du Luxemborg which was built for the widow of Henri IV but she was banished before its completion and its had many uses since including an air raid shelter built under the gardens themselves. Anyway the gardens cover 60 acres of land and are beautiful. They have everything from tennis courts, horse rides, kids playgrounds, outdoor cafes, a bee-keeping school, puppet theatre to large man-made ponds with toy boats floating around. Being a sunny day the lawns were covered with people stretching out in the sun or settling down for a chat. Naturally these were my kind of people so I pulled up a patch of grass and stretched out myself.

As the sun began to sink and I began the long trip back to the hotel feeling well and truly lucky.

VP

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Colombo, Sri Lanka

Hearing: Objection - Shakira

Guess where i spent New Years Eve? In crew briefing for a Colombo flight...LOL not the best way to do it but at least its different, and you would be surprised how many people traveled that night on the flight, we were almost full. But who can be grumpy about all that when you wake up to this the next day.



It was a nice simple trip. We literally were taken for a ride by one of the Tuk-tuk drivers who took us to this souvenir shop even though we wanted him to take us to somewhere to eat. I should say its a good idea to stick to what you know when eating as i ended up trying a local dish which tasted like it had gravel in it.

Later that day my friend, the first officer and i went for a walk along the "beach" where everyone was out enjoying the public holiday.


Some of the locals were playing in the water fully clothed - i say playing cuz none of them looked like they could swim properly and the girls ran away when the water came too close or got too high.



There were all these little kiosks along the pathway selling all sorts of snacks and drinks - a popular snack was this round doughy looking thing which had 3 shrimps on it and was orange in colour that i decided not to try as i didnt want to call in sick the next day and instead settled for some yummy mango slices.



VP

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Brrrrrr.........

Hearing: The faint hum of the PC

Hello all!! Guess where i am? The hotel lounge in Toronto, Canada and for the record its 3.03am!!! Well quite a lot has happened since my last post but i wont bore you with too much writing as i have photos but i'll have to upload them when i get back to the sandpit.

My trip home was fantastic, not long enough but still managed to catch up with a bunch of gfs over brunch, chat into the wee hours with the Cookie Monster, visit our lovely harbour and of course buy all the Picnics, Cherry Ripes and Pizza Shapes i could fit into my luggage!!! It was great!!!

Then something changed and all hell broke loose...im exaggerating of course...My flight out of Syd got cancelled due to an electrical storm, it was rescheduled for the next day at 6.30pm only it got delayed again by and hour. Then my connecting flight also got delayed which landed me in an airport waiting and waiting about to have a nervous breakdown cuz i was due to be on a flight out to FRA in a matter of hours and calling my friend in tears asking her to call in sick for me, naughty i know but desperate times call for desperate measures, if the flight hadnt been cancelled i would have been home a whole day earlier!!

So that managed, i was put on a 9 day trip to Brussels (BRU) and then Toronto (YYZ). Imagine, i was barely home for a day and had to unpack and repack for 9days! So being at my wits end i didnt pack enough snacks, or another pair of shoes (walking around for hours in boots is not fun), or my credit cards/bank cards...(i can feel all the heads shaking from here, in my defence though, i did pack them in a bag i was taking but didnt take the bag...truely a ditzy moment) and therefore was left with only about 70 or 80 Euro on me.

Anyways, its all sorted now. I was lucky and have a great crew that really get on well. BRU is an amazing city, very beautiful, famous for chocolates so i was in heaven! But i'll let the photos do the talking though im not sure they'll do it justice. We also decided to make the trip into Amsterdam by trip, a 3 hr ride for 40 Euro, as the cabin manager was familiar with it and could show us around. All the crew, bar 2 girls who had gone home, the captain (CP) and first officer (FO) went. It was so worth it!! The city was alive with people everywhere since it was the weekend and the coming Christmas holidays had brought out the night markets, decorations and festivities. Again i took lots of photos there, our group actually blocked a bridge at one stage we were so busy taking photos!

And now im in Toronto. Our plan was to go to Niagra Falls but being so cold we decided against it. Both prior cities were cold but YYZ...whoa!! My gf and i had the bright idea of taking a walk to see the city...hahaha we froze our butts off!!! No joke!!! Our butts were litrally numb it was so cold!!! But we braved the weather (stupidly), went down to the harbourside and checked out a few places before seeking refuge in the shopping centres, some hot soup and delicious coffee...i told my friend were should be certifiably insane...i think some of our crew would agree. I havent taken much photos here but i'll post some anyway.

In the meantime, my friend has just joined me not being able to sleep herself so till next time i hope all of you are nice and warm. Take care, VP.

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Nice weather isnt it?

Hearing: Ride of your life and my flatmates pottering around

Ive just woken up to the sandpits more unusual weather, ive grabbed myself a mug of coffee a pen and paper and thoughts id make an old fashioned post.

So its 10.30 am and i hear my door banging as though someone cant figure out that you need to turn the handle, but its just the wind as ive left my window open. My eyes slip over to the window to look outside and im momentarily confused, instead of a bright blue sky and sunshine its dark and gloomy...ah well that explains it, the the wind and all its probably just a sandstorm. I get up to take a closer look, instantly thinking of my friends flying out this morning and how this would effect their flights.

It wasnt a sandstorm, to be sure there was strong wind but it was cloudy!!! Now this may not seem like a big deal but here clouds are not common, especially big black and heavy ones. I remember my friend exclaiming to me a few days ago about how she saw a small whisp of a cloud and not believing it... :)

I cant help but laugh at myself at the moment...such an odd post but anyway...

I walk out into the apartment and i run into my flatmate K. the oddness of the weather seems to have had an effect on us, i look at her wondering if shes noticed the weather and she whispers to me that no one is here except our other flatmate E who incidently was peeking at us from just inside her room. We all are silent and looking at one another but then E mantions that weather and the spell is broken. We can speak easily but we all feel like staying in our jammies and curled up in bed as though it was a rainy winters day......but it isnt the girls have plans, i make coffee for everyone while they set about getting ready and then settle down to make a most unusual post.

It makes me wonder what it would be like if it actually rained here....

VP

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