2Promises

by Phil Armstrong

  There were buildings of all shapes and sizes making an interesting skyline. Beth thought this would be an eye opening experience. Very different from the landscapes she had witnessed in India. She wondered about Toronto, what would it be like? The rest of the magazine had an article and pictures showing the Winding Street in San Francisco, the Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City, the Guild Houses in Brussels and the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul. The pictures were beautiful but Beth had done enough reading. She just flipped the pages and looked at the images. It was dark outside and the cabin lights had been dimmed so that passengers could sleep. Beth looked around; the cabin was quite full for a business class section.

  Occasionally she would see a flight attendant but the activity level was low as people slept. Dinner had been served and cleared away. The man seated in front of Beth unclipped his seat belt and rose from his seat to retrieve some papers from the overhead compartment. Beth raised her eyes at the motion and lingered her gaze upon him. As he reached up to retrieve his papers his tee shirt rode up exposing his abdomen above his black leather jeans belt. Beth’s eyes immediately settled on the bare skin. Just as she looked he turned his head her way and caught Beth looking. She saw him smiling at her and immediately realized she had been made.

  “Shoot, what do I do now?” thought Beth.

  Beth did not smile back; she immediately looked at her magazine because, sheep farming in the Orkney Islands, was far more interesting than this guys fit body. As she glanced up again he was still looking her way and grinning. She politely smiled and returned to her magazine. He returned to his seat turned his back on Beth and resumed his journey.

  “Smooth Beth, real smooth,” she thought.

  Beth opened the entertainment screen and lightly tapped her movie selection. She chose a movie set in California, a romantic drama of love unfulfilled. Beth realized she was subconsciously looking for a mate. She adjusted her headphones and settled back into her chair to watch the movie. Beth had been running on adrenaline and decided she was far too tired to sleep. After the movie had finished and the credits had rolled she made another selection. She selected a short segment film entitled ‘Your Destination.’ Inspirational music played as the distinctive Canadian flag with a red maple leaf flapped furiously in the wind. The scene changed to a helicopter ride over tall skyscrapers. The narrator mentioned that “Toronto” came from a native Indian expression; it meant “trees standing in water.” One of the buildings seemed to be made out of gold colored glass reflecting brightly in the strong sunlight. An odd shaped building which looked like an upturned cereal bowl came into view. A grand looking building rose majestically. You could tell it was from a bygone age. It was not made from modern glass but instead a copper roofed stone building. The signage read, “The Fairmont Royal York Hotel.” Images of a modern subway train service with TTC logos were shown. Streetcars like San Francisco rumbled through the streets on wires. A modern town hall building in the shape of an eye from above was profiled. Parks with ponds, beautiful golf courses and gardens were shown. The Rogers Center came into view and the film was viewed at high speed as the domed roof opened. The camera switched to a night view showing the bright lights, large crowds and thrills of the Blue Jays Baseball team rounding the bases. The same location now hosted the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. The stadium was filled with large men in uniforms, cheerleaders and crowds. Continuing on with the sports theme the camera zoomed in on an oversized woodpecker; a piece of art located outside of the Air Canada Center.

  This is the home of the Toronto Maple Leafs NHL ice hockey team. Toronto is known as an ice hockey city. The film showed the flashing blades, white ice, slashing sticks and pucks flying into heavily armored goaltenders. More images were shown of white uniforms and blue maple leafs adorned by players of the Toronto Maple Leafs ice hockey team. The ice disappears and makes way for the hard court. Now showing was the Toronto Raptors Basketball NBA team exciting the crowd in their purple and silver uniforms. The film cuts away to the Hockey Hall of Fame with large silver trophies and old hockey jerseys. Finally the movie moves to a night scene showing the city with its traffic, bars and active club scene. It was now back to daylight and the helicopter had moved west to Ontario Place and BMO field, home of the Toronto Football Club from the MLS. Further West and the wineries of Niagara are profiled. The camera lingers on bottles of wine and Ice wine. The promotional film then moves on to the spectacular Niagara Falls. Various views of the falls are shown, the Maid of the Mist boat ride and the casino with its nightly shows. The short film wets Beth’s appetite. Toronto looks modern, clean and exciting.

  “Wow, what a place,” thought Beth.

  The Canadian national anthem completed the film with the obligatory shot of a Mountie in uniform and waving red Maple Leaf flag.

  “This could be fun,” thought Beth.

  She had left the hotel booking to the travel concierge at The Astor Hotel. She hoped he had found her a place right in the heart of the city. She could sense her excitement growing as she traveled to Toronto. When she started her journey to India she felt a combination of excitement and fear. She realized that she had matured and the fear had gone. What remained was just pure excitement. Beth quickly became grounded as she reminded herself that Subra was on a time limit. She was in Toronto to find the portal not to be a tourist. Flight 5059 Jet Airways to Toronto landed at Lester B. Pearson airport on time at 10.05pm at terminal 1. After leaving the plane Beth walked up the boarding ramp and into the terminal. She had a long walk down a glass-enclosed corridor. At the end of the corridor she followed the other passengers and walked through many twisting corridors.

  “How far away is this place?” thought Beth.

  Beth continued walking through corridors and moving escalators. Finally she passed through a set of glass doors and entered into the customs hall. It was a large rectangular hall with a bank of customs officers facing inwards towards the oncoming crowd. Beth walked towards a booth and stopped at a red line painted on the floor. The customs officer could see Beth but ignored her for a while. He looked up and motioned for her to join him. Beth walked forward; he had a dark uniform with silver buttons, badges and epaulettes. He was wearing a scowl as Beth presented her customs form and passport for inspection.

  “Where are you coming from?” he demanded looking at her passport?

  “Kolkata, India.”

  “What were you doing there?” he asked.

  “None of your god damn business,” thought Beth. “Vacation,” she said.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked.

  “Vacation.”

  “You like to vacation. How long are you staying?” he said with a glance upwards.

  “A couple of weeks,” said Beth.

  “Got any alcohol or cigarettes?”

  “No,” said Beth.

  She was handed back her passport with a fresh ink stamp applied to one of the pages. He wrote some letters in red ink on her customs form. Both were returned to her and she was dismissed.

  “Have a good visit.”

  Beth moved through the customs booths and reached a man in uniform sitting on a chair and looking thoroughly bored. He seemed to be looking at the customs forms. Beth handed him her form and started to walk away.

  “You keep this for now,” he barked.

  Considering Canadians are known for their politeness she hoped this was just airport protocol. She smiled as she envisaged customs training and how miserable that place must be. Beth walked down another escalator and into a large room with luggage claim carousels. She walked past them and saw an exit sign. Two uniformed guards flanked the exit while collecting customs forms. Beth gave her customs form to a young man who checked the hand written code. She walked through two sets of sliding doors and into the greeting area. Toronto’s greeting area was nothing like the chaos experienced in India. She walked out onto an elevated platform with exit ramps either side. There were about 30 people waiting to greet passengers as they c
ame through the door. Beth moved down the ramp to her left and walked towards another exit door. As she approached the door she saw an illuminated sign for Limo she headed left along another corridor towards the sign.

  “This place is a maze of corridors,” thought Beth.

  She saw a foreign exchange money counter and stopped. After changing her Indian money into Canadian dollars she continued towards the Limo sign. She reached a sliding door and exited from the terminal. It was dark but the artificial lights cast long shadows. She walked through the exit door and turned left where a long line of shiny black Limousines were parked. Drivers in uniforms were milling about. Beth approached the lineup and the trunk of the front car popped open as if to greet her. A driver moved out of the front seat and greeted Beth with a smile.

  * * * * *

  Chapter 11: The Prettiest Skyline in North America

  “Limousine Miss” he inquired? Beth nodded and he took her backpack and placed it into the trunk. The trunk closed with a thud and he held the rear door open. Beth noticed his black uniform and the smart brimmed hat that he wore. He was older than Beth, in his early 40’s. Beth slipped into the back seat and immediately noticed how wide they were after riding around in Sanjeev’s taxi. The seats were made from luxurious black leather and the inside of the Lincoln town car was classy.

  The driver got in and turned to look at Beth. “Where to Miss?” he asked.

  Beth had looked at her booking details just before landing. She had read the itinerary given to her at The Astor Hotel. “The InterContinental Hotel, Front Street, Toronto.”

  “Thank you Miss, I know it,” said the driver in a courteous tone. “May I ask where you’re flying in from?”

  “India,” said Beth in a dog-tired voice.

  “That’s a long flight, settle back and just enjoy the view, I should have you at your hotel in about thirty minutes,” said the driver sensing that Beth was tired and not very chatty.

  The drive into Toronto was swift, the seats were comfortable, and the car powerful and smooth. It was dark and the highways seemed busy to Beth she had not seen roads like these in real life. Near the airport the roads seemed to have about six or seven lanes each way. The driver expertly maneuvered the Limo in what seemed a due South direction. Beth confirmed this by looking at the compass indicator illuminated within the rear view mirror. Beth looked at the magazines tucked into the back of the front passenger seat. She did not feel like reading. She looked at the dashboard and except for a pair of folded reading glasses it was bare. No Lord Ganesha proudly removing obstacles. There was something odd about the drive into town.

  “Yes, it was deftly quiet,” thought Beth. Beth could not hear the powerful engine; the roads were smooth and no blaring horns. She had become accustomed to the horns she missed them now. Beth stared out of the window as they left a large highway called the 427 and joined another called the Gardiner Expressway.

  “This is the main artery into the city. On your right is Lake Ontario; we’ll drive along its shoreline until we enter the city. At this time of night you’ll get a beautiful view of the skyline and the CN Tower. Some say Toronto has one of the prettiest skylines in North America because of the lake and the shape of the buildings huddled around the Tower,” said the driver in a proud tone. Beth strained to see the city but all she could see was the black water of the lake and many lakeside condominium towers.

  “When we get past this tower complex, you’ll get a beautiful view of the city. I take it this is your first time to Toronto Miss?” he asked.

  “Yes,” answered Beth as the highway rounded the building affording a stunning view of the downtown city at night.

  The city appeared to jut out into the lake with skyscrapers that looked about 5 inches tall. The skyscrapers seemed to be grouped around the tower and a large green and white object. At the side of the road were steep angled grass banks but they were unusual. Corporations had paid to advertise on these roadside garden beds. The advertisements were made from natural hedges and shrubs forming a garden like appearance. Corporate logos were made from beautifully manicured plants. Bright white spotlights illuminated them. The centerpiece dominating the skyline was the majestic CN Tower. It seemed huge, at least a third taller than the tallest skyscraper. The driver was right, the city looked beautiful. It cast an image that reflected its many lights and colors into the lake, which looked like a mirror.

  “Why is it called the CN Tower?” Beth asked starting to come to life.

  “It was built by the Canadian National railway company. I don’t think they own it now but for many years it was the tallest building in the world. You have to go up there if you have time,” he said.

  “What’s up there?” asked Beth.

  “An observation deck, a restaurant, a night club, even a glass floor to stand on and an outside elevator ride, it’s really cool,” he said.

  “Sounds fun, I will,” said Beth.

  She noticed that the road had three lanes full of traffic snaking their way into the city. The city looked larger now, the skyscrapers were looking huge and the CN Tower was starting to disappear into the night sky. Beth saw a large modern windmill with three blades motionless. The Limo sped into the city passing billboards advertising cars, cell phones, new condominiums and banks. Some of the billboards had moving pictures illuminated through large flat screens. She suddenly noticed that the road was elevated. She was high in the sky passing condominiums at the third and fourth floor level. Below the road was another road streaming two layers of traffic into the city. It looked modern and Beth was starting to feel a twinge of excitement.

  “This was more like it, not at all like Haworth,” she thought.

  The Limo took an exit to the right and glided down an off ramp back to street level. People were walking around as she noticed a sight that she recognized; it was the Rogers Centre home of the Blue Jays. It was much larger than she had imagined and the white roof was illuminated with green lights. Next to the dome was the mighty CN Tower; she was practically underneath it looking straight up. It was indescribable, her heart raced. The Limo stopped at a traffic light and people crossed the street in an orderly manner. No one banged on the window and she could not see any beggars. This was not India. The Limo headed North for a couple of blocks and she passed the Air Canada center. The taxi turned left onto Front Street and the majestic Royal York hotel came into view. It looked a little odd proudly positioned within a modern city of steel and glass. The grey stone hotel rose high above the street as the Limo whisked by. It was once the tallest building in Toronto. The Limo pulled a U-turn.

  “This is your hotel Miss, we’re here.” The Limo pulled up alongside the curb and the driver turned to look at Beth. “Forty-five dollars please Miss.”

  Beth pulled out a fifty and a five passing it to the outstretched hand of the driver. “Keep the change,” she said.

  “Thank you Miss,” said the driver rushing to collect her backpack from the trunk.

  Beth stepped out onto the sidewalk, it was still warm but the wind was cool coming in off the lake. She thanked the driver and slung her backpack over her shoulder. The Limo started to pull away into traffic and onto the next fare.

  “Can I help you with your bag Miss?” said a friendly voice.

  Beth turned to see a doorman dressed in black shoes, black trousers, a black tunic with silver buttons and a pillbox hat. He stood dutifully under one of two glass awnings. They were shaped like a large glass umbrella or perhaps the petals of a flower. Spotlights were sunk into the ground and lit the canopies.

  “No thanks I’m fine,” said Beth.

  “Checking in Miss?” inquired the doorman.

  “Yes,” said Beth looking around.

  “Welcome to the InterContinental please follow me,” he said holding onto a large silver handle attached to a glass door.