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GOING HOME

Oct 24, 2010 News


DIASPORA LOOKING IN…


By Ralph Seeram

Its one week before our trip to Guyana and the woman is still shopping. The woman goes into a shopping frenzy whenever we are going to Guyana. It’s worse than Christmas shopping. She has over three hundred pounds clothes, shoes, pocket books and anything that is needed in a house than can fit in a suitcase.
I had to remind my wife that for Caribbean Airlines she will have to perform a miracle to fit three hundred pounds into four suitcases that are only allowed fifty pounds each. Well the woman did perform a miracle as the four suitcases checked in at fifty pounds each.
None had my belongings. My clothes for the ten-day trip were reduced to fit in my carry on bag. The woman had a plan.
We are airborne on time at four-thirty pm, with an arrival time estimated at ten-fifty pm in Guyana, a little over six hours.  An hour into the flight cabin service started and I felt this was great. Caribbean Airlines must be improving; they are serving a pre dinner snack. Now I do not trust airlines these days when it comes to food, so I made sure “me belly full at the airport”.
Now we are served the usual four ounces of ice and two ounces soda in a six-ounce glass. The box of snack felt unusually light, but then again it is only a snack, why worry. Since I watch what I eat I pay attention to labels. I was served what appeared to be a sandwich weighed 3.2 ounces with the thinnest slice of meat I have ever seen, cookies half an ounce and chips half an ounce for the grand total of 4.2 ounces of snack. Did I say snack, that was dinner served, with a smile I may add.
I began looking through the Caribbean Airlines magazine to see if purchasing food was an option; no food for sale. Then I came across the message from Caribbean Airlines CEO Captain Ian Brunton who in the last two lines of his message asked “what you think of our service and how we can better serve you in the months ahead.
Captain Bruton also appealed to the Diaspora to “fly with us to experience a little bit of home when returning for a visit.”
Since you asked Captain Brunton, let me ask you this. If you have an alternative would you still fly with an airline that confines you for over six hours and serve you four ounces of snack? Let me tell you this, West Indians are not a “tea and biscuit crowd”. If you want me to experience a bit of home when returning, start by getting some real West Indian food like the old BWEE served. I am coming home, do not give me North American food, I want some jerk chicken, curry chicken, peas and rice.
For US$587.00 you could at least give me a decent meal, not that crap you served. Oh I should make that US$712.00 since you hit me for another $125.00 because I wanted to extend my stay for a few days more.
I am loyal to you because as you said you helped the Diaspora, and that is quite true, you have always given free tickets to fund raising events of the various West Indians Associations in Orlando.
But loyalty can only go so far; and you know competition is coming, so come on “gimme some real West Indian Food” or next time I will be bringing my Curry Gilbaca or snapper and I will tell my Trini friend to “bring he saltfish and bake.”
You can be assured that everybody deplaning will smell like they had a great meal.

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