As I left, I was greeted by a touching scene... hundreds of people from China, Vietnam and other Asian countries preparing for a huge parade. That's what Canada Day's all about. That and the booze.I met Naheed at the airport, who was surrounded by husband, children, parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and nieces who all came to see her off. At times like those I wish I had more than just my mother and sister, neither of whom are in the country. But her grandpa had to spend almost $50 on frozen yogurt for the whole family and Naheed had to carry an entire suitcase filled with gifts for the Pakistani relatives. I suppose there's always a down side.
I always look forward to flying, and then whenever I'm on the plane, remember that I can't stand it. The 18 hours to Lahore is the second-most grueling flight I've survived. Nothing will ever match the 19 hours I spent vomiting in the Quantas washroom on my way to Sydney. The best part of the flight was the delicious biryani. The worst was when I dropped my earphones into the pool of urine next to the toilet. My ears will never be clean again.
