The Word - Vol 31

Time for a Vacation
​
The topic of holidays and vacations came up in a conversation the other night with a friend of mine who said he hadn’t had a real holiday in years. I found that to be astounding. When I was working, I couldn’t wait to go on a vacation, and I’d rather have vacation time than extra pay! I thought that not taking time off just wasn’t healthy, and it turns out I was right.

I consulted “Dr. Google,” and came up with a lot of information on that topic. People who take vacations have lower stress, less risk of heart disease, a better outlook on life, and more motivation to achieve goals. Also, the experts say that traveling makes you more mentally and physically healthy. It can improve your communication skills and expand your horizons exposing you to other people’s cultures and values.

It sounds like I’m about to open my own Travel Agency, and sell you a trip or cruise! But no, I just love to travel! While vacation time at your destination can lower your stress level, getting there and coming home can be loaded with worry especially for nervous flyers. I remember one such flight we took to Mexico that started out fairly routine, but ended up a bit of a white knuckler! 

We left YVR on a charter flight to Puerto Vallarta, with our final stop at a resort in Nuevo Vallarta. It was a Fred and Cathy Wake-up Trip, the prize in a radio station contest. Listeners had a chance to win trips to various cities in the world with Fred Latremouille, his wife Cathy and a few of the radio station people. Usually there were 100 or more winners, so we took up most of the seats in the plane.

The flight was going well until we approached Puerto Vallarta. As we got close to the airport I could tell by the motion of the plane that we were starting to circle the airport and not making the usual approach for a landing. I looked out the window and could see some other planes at different elevations doing the same thing, circling the airport. I’m not a pilot, but I’ve been on enough flights to know that it was either a very busy day in P.V. or something was holding up the landings?

We probably circled 3 or 4 times when all of a sudden the plane accelerated upward and we were heading in another direction. We finally did get an explanation over the public address system that yes we had been circling the airport with other planes, but had to make a quick change of plans. It seems the radar in the tower at the airport wasn’t working, so the 5 planes circling, were in contact with each other and the tower and were taking turns coming in for a landing. We were plane number 5 and doing the math as to how much time was involved in the circling and landing procedure the pilot realized we didn’t have enough fuel, so left the circling mode and headed for the next closest airport for fuel.

The next nearest airport wasn’t expecting us, but we did land safely, and because we were unexpected it took some time to find a fuel truck to top up the plane’s fuel tank! At this point I thought maybe we would have to pass the hat and get donations to pay for the fuel, but that wasn’t necessary.

After some time sitting on the tarmac, we got the necessary fuel and were on our way to our original destination. The thought of possibly running out of fuel was a little unnerving, but we kissed the ground once we finally landed safely. Little did we know our little travel adventure wasn’t over!

We boarded a bus to take us to our resort in Nuevo Vallarta, and just a few miles from the resort, along a winding jungle road, we came to a sudden stop due to a transit bus lying on its side with injured passengers on the road. I suppose the bus took the corner a little too quickly and tipped over. There was a nurse on board our bus who went out to see if she could help the injured. Luckily nobody was seriously hurt but the bus driver was last seen running down the road and into the jungle. One of the passengers on his bus said he was “muerto” (Spanish for dead) . He wasn't actually dead, but apparently when his bus company found out what happened…. he was going to be muerto! Some Federales with machine guns in a pickup truck arrived, followed by a tow truck that hooked up the bus and unceremoniously dragged it off to the side of the road, allowing us to continue on to our resort. Believe me, the ice cold margarita tasted mighty fine after all of that travel trauma.

I realize I started out by saying how mentally and physically healthy it is to take a vacation, and yes, most times it is. This little adventure was something that happens now and then just to make life interesting. So if my friend is reading this, just remember, Dr. Google says vacations are good for your health and mental well being, really! And I’ve never been one to argue with Dr, Google!

So, get out and do it, times a wastin’. Our time on planet earth is the big show, not a dress rehearsal!  

Enjoy, and Bon Voyage!

Till next week...
Wayne

---

---