3rd June 2015. Florence to Geneva
Good weather but have been inside all the time…
Shorter version:
Up early to pack up and I had breakfast in my room, then taxi to airport when driver became another angel & helped me, checked in but plane was 5 hours late in taking off, friend met me at Geneva airport, & home to find my brother and another friend who had brought crutches for me, dinner in a village restaurant & back to my own bed!
Longer version:
I awoke before the alarm as I had to pack up & breakfast & get a taxi to the airport. I called my (Australian!) rheumatologist in Geneva and got an appointment for 9 tomorrow morning! When I hobbled out to the reception desk to ask where the breakfast room was, the male receptionist took one look at me and said that it was up another floor & that they would serve me in my room! 10 minutes later a waitress brought me a great tray of food & hot tea – first kindness of the day which was much appreciated.
I was helped out into a taxi & at the airport I asked the driver to please be sure that I was at the right place as I didn’t want to have to move too much…to which he replied no problem & went to push a buzzer by the entrance to ask for help and he stayed for several minutes until someone came with a wheel chair! 2nd kindness of the day.
I went straight to the top of the line to be checked in and was then wheeled through security etc to the departure gate. Third kindness of the day. We were 8 people going to Geneva on a propellor plane & the departure time passed and we learned that a bird had hit the propellor on the way from Geneva and it had to be fixed…in fact there was no damage but an authorised person had to sign off that it was OK to fly…and that person was very elusive. A passenger sitting opposite started to speak to me and she was an American lyric singer, specialised in very early 17th C music, Jill Feldman who lives in Tuscany with her Dutch recorder-player husband. She was going to Lausanne to be a judge in a lyric competition tomorrow. She was delightful.
Time was passing with no news & Jill kept asking, but still no news forthcoming. Also no refreshment…at one time the young woman at the desk spoke of vouchers which she said she had “in her hand” (& Jill said “well please put them into my hand!”) but they still had to decide whether we’d have the right to €5 or €10 (for 8 people…but I don’t know who would have decided as it was a flight of Geneva-based Darwin airlines, with an Alitalia flight number, operated by Ethiad Regional…), but nothing eventuated… Jill offered to wheel me to the toilet which I gratefully accepted (& even though she’d broken her ankle in 5 places 6 months before in the crater of a volcano in Cap Verde she insisted she had to walk…another kindness).
We were all amused by the older gentleman in a wheel chair beside me who suddenly got up, put his suitcase in the wheel chair and wheeled it off to the bar! He was quite another character…long interesting story… Finally after 16h00 things began to move a little & I was taken away to be lifted up to the plane where I just had to walk to my seat and we took off nearly 5 hours late. The flight was fantastic and as we weren’t flying at great altitude I was interested to recognise a place or two I’d walked to, Sarzana, Pietrasanta, and to see the truly beautiful Apennines with many parallel valleys go virtually into the sea. The rugged Italian coastline was impressive in the late afternoon light, then we flew up and right over the top of Mt Blanc with Chamonix in the valley below, and then I could see the Jet d’Eau of Geneva!
Said goodbye to my travelling companions & was met by a wheelchair & taken right out to meet my friend and then to the carpark lift & I was nearly home, still smiling. At home Ross greeted me and another friend had brought some crutches so I could be mobile. We all had a glass of champagne!
Thursday morning:
My rheumatologist thinks it may be tendinitis (if it is this is great news) which we will treat with anti-inflammatories and cold packs for a few days and, if needs be, I can have a scan next week. So am fine and will sign off from my 2015 Via tomorrow. Thanks for all the concern shown since you have received news of my knee problem.