"Welcome to America"


 It's amazingly two weeks since I last had you joining me in the States in a little New England town called Thomaston - the town that went to sea.

My other visits to the US and Canada have been sparse.   A nice family holiday also in New England; a stop over in Honolulu; a bus side trip from Miami Airport to Miami Springs; a stop over in Los Angeles; a trip to St Anne de Beaupre and Quebec City.

But there is one more tale I wanted to share from that very first trip to the US.

As I mentioned, it was the 3rd of July, and all true Americans were travelling, north and south, east and west to join families for Independence Day celebrations.   It was a very hot and sticky day.   Our entry point into the US was at JFK New York.  We flew along the flight path and looking down could see that great symbol of Independence, the Statue of Liberty standing on its own island in New York Harbour.  

Immigration took its time.   The plan then was that we - I was accompanied by wife and sister-in-law -would fly on to Boston Logan International, and change flights again for a Delta flight to Portland, Maine. There we were to be met by Hank Carey, whom you've met already.   It was to be an eventful journey.

Anyway, the first thing was to get the inter terminal shuttle to catch the Boston flight.   Hot bedraggled and laden down with cases (in those days it wasn't so easy to check bags all the way to internal destinations) we collapsed into the shuttle bus to be faced with the driver saying "That'll be three dollars"   Change we didn't have, and he clearly was not about to give us any.   There was a short time of mutual contemplation - and then a lady sitting in the front seat, rose, came forward, dropped three dollars in the tray and said "WELCOME TO AMERICA".       At its very best!

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