Ek Dollar

One Dollar

Five hours left. Eagerly  waiting for the announcement. I fought with myself  not to fall asleep even for a second. I was afraid that  I might  miss the flight.   I went up to the board again and saw  it again and again. Yes my flight is not listed. As time passed, my visits to board became more frequent and finally I stood there glazing at the rolling board expecting that next change would be mine. Only my flight number alone did not appear.

I approached  the  IA counter and enquired about my flight. To my shock,  I was told that the the flight to Singapore was cancelled.  I do not know why I did not hear the announcement or have they not announced ?.  At that time I was   concerned only about what to do next  ?.

My flight to Jakarta was on Sunday. I was to travel to JAKARTA via Singapore. This  being the first international flight, I reached Delhi one day earlier  and being the first trip,I was bit nervous and  consulted everyone possible before the trip. Those days mobiles were un affordable and usage of internet was also not very common.

My flight was to leave from Delhi at  4 AM. The Indian agent  of the company  did not accompany me and I could not talk to him from inside the airport. Air India however, took me  in their next flight which started after 3 hours.  But I was afraid, whether the company rep  will wait for me for this flight at Jakarta.  Just cold not control he sleep,

It was 9'o clock night, I landed in Jakarta. I got down with lot of curiosity, tension, and excitement. Everything is new. Most of passengers in that flight were Indonesian citizens.

So I was alone standing at the immigration counter.  But I was made to wait. Then someone   came, asked some questions. Then he checked my passport and asked for  50 dollars. I enquired the reason. He told me  that they are very poor compared to India and requested me  to donate 50 dollars.  I said ,'No'. I cannot pay.

 He started bargaining.  50,25,15,10,5,1 he pleaded.  The bargain went for five minutes . When it came to 1 Dollar, I really felt sad. For I dollar is equivalent to 55 Indian Rupees and it is equivalent to 55000/- rupia in Indonesian currency.  What an experience for the first time traveler.  Later I travelled to many other countries, but never again such an experience. finally .....when I came out  he was there with a placard. But my return journey was still unforgettable. The Singapore airline. air hostess taught me a great lesson in life.I will write that in my next blog...