Sunday 29 April 1984 – Mahe
I am here!
Despite all the last minute dramas!! And what a place it is. Absolutely
marvellous. Even Rab and Matt would, I think, be happy despite the lack of
shops and burgers.
I wasn’t
sure I would make it last night. In fact not only last night. Everyone had
warned me that Kenya Airways would make a mess of my bookings: they always
overbooked: a confirmation wasn’t worth anything etc etc. I had confirmed my
flight in Nairobi
on Tuesday. They told me what Mitchell Cotts had told me in Harare – I was waitlisted for first class but
confirmed in economy. So far so good.
While I was
in town with Freddie on Friday he went to confirm his flights, so I thought I’d
re-confirm mine while I was there although I didn’t have my ticket with me. The
office could confirm the Mombasa/Nairobi flight but not the Nairobi/Mahe leg. I
left it at that. Then last night, just as I had finished my shower prior to
turning in, the phone rang. It was Kenya Airways to tell me that my flight had
been cancelled but that I was booked on the 08.40 flight instead. On the basis
that it had taken us 90 minutes to get to Mombasa,
I concluded that it might take 90 minutes to get back to Nairobi. That meant we would land at 10.10
just twenty minutes before the Seychelles
flight was due to take off. I pointed out what I thought was a rather pertinent
fact to the lad but he assured me there would be no problems. The plane would,
if necessary, wait for me. Not bloody likely I thought!
Well there
was not much I could do (except worry) so I ate my dinner, read for a bit and
went to sleep only to wake in the early hours – about 3ish – worrying about all
the things that could go wrong. I finally went back to sleep using the
technique I had learned last year at Ashridge and slept like a log until the
alarm woke me at 06.00. it was still raining – but not so hard – so at least it
looked as if we would be able to take off. Promptly at 07.00 the porter turned
up for my baggage and waiting at the door of the hotel was the taxi I had
organised.
I must say
that I found everything very well organised here and matters were dealt with
promptly and efficiently in contrast to what I had been told. My taxi driver
was a dear old soul in an equally old Mercedes which made some alarming noises
as we headed through some enormous puddles on our way to the airport. It turned
out that he had been an askari in the KAR (King’s
African Rifles) and had visited Salisbury
before the War. (KAR personnel from Rhodesia and Kenya
had served in Malaysia
and carried out joint anti-terrorist exercises before the start of the War)
his son was now a Brigadier in the Kenya National Army! And, said the old man,
no one had better criticise the British when my son is around – he will cut
their throat!
We got to
the airport in one piece and found that the reason no one was concerned about
my making it to Nairobi
in time was that the aircraft was a DC9 which only took 50 minutes. I also got
my Mahe boarding card when I checked in and they confirmed I had a first class
seat. I was still not convinced, but after another very pleasant flight, which
took off and landed on time, I made my way across to the International
Departures. There my seat was confirmed and I was given an invitation to the
First Class Lounge. A first for me, not that there was much to write home about
the lounge.
I had the
prime seat on the plane – right in front with yards of leg room and an
excellent view. Champagne and French wine all the way and a very good meal of
smoked trout and lamb ragout followed by cheese and topped off with a glass of
Benedictine and a cup of coffee. That’s the way to travel, without a doubt.
Once again the coffee was excellent and I’d say that Kenya Airways coffee is
second only to SwissAir.
 |
| In full island gear |
The islands
looked great as we came in to land and I could see the coral reefs very
clearly. As we came off the plane all the delegates were greeted by a couple of
local girls with frangipani leis – lovely gesture. We shot through Customs and
Immigration and before long were on our way to our hotels. I don’t know why, but
I had always thought the Seychelles
to be fairly flat coral atolls, but they are not. They are massive lumps of
granite which tower up steeply and which are, of course, covered in palms and
miscellaneous tropical greenery.
 |
| That lovely bay |
The hotel is
right on the beach at the high tide mark, the bay sweeps away on either side,
the water is warm and calm and clear and the sand is white. A real tropical
island paradise. I wasted no time in getting into the water and then strolling
along the beach. I found that windsurfing is free to residents so plan to have
a go tomorrow – I felt my balance might have been a bit disturbed today by the
wine consumed on the plane.
The busses
called promptly at 18.30 to take us to the opening cocktail party which I
enjoyed, drinking wisely in moderation – and then we were whisked back here. So
ends a pretty good day. Only two things missing – my Rab and my Matt!!
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