21 ON NET ( Quoted from Takako's Great Adventure )

音声

　　　　　　　　　　　★ 01 〜 ★ 56

"Ladies and gentlemen We will be landing at Vancouver International Airport in 5 minutes. Please ensure that your seatbelts are fastened and your seat is in its upright position."
Takako obediently checked her belt and then looked out the window.
Below, she could see Vancouver Island and some smaller islands dotting the clear water. She was excited, as this was her first trip overseas, and of course she was a little bit nervous.
Would Christine be there to meet her? Would her English abilities be enough to get by? Was she doing the right thing by coming to Canada?
Actually, Christine had a lot to do with her decision to make this trip. Her pen-pal of three years was the one who sent her the application for the scholarship, and her parents, as always, wanted the best for her.
So, like the obedient girl that she was, she agreed to leave her family and friends in Hamamatsu and go to Canada.
Japan Airlines flight number 013 arrived at the terminal, and Takako followed the other passengers through to the baggage area and Canada Customs.　　/ 01

There was a long wait, but Takako was patient. It had been such a long flight, so what were a few extra minutes?
The customs agent asked her several questions, looked at her papers, and waved her through.
"Welcome to Canada ", he had said, then it was on to the next passenger.
So simple, she thought. Here she was, in Canada at last!

Takako wheeled her luggage out the doors into the waiting area. She was very tired from the non-stop flight, but she had to find her Canadian friend among the large crowd around the baggage carousel.
She grabbed her luggage and began searching for Christine.
The problem was that she'd never seen her friend before, she only had one photo to go by.
Takako stretched her neck and gazed over the crowd. Where was Christine, she wondered? They had agreed to meet at the airport.　　/ 02

Just then, a large man dressed in an overcoat approached her.
“Excuse me, are you Takako Akiyama?”
“Yes, I am. How did you know?”
“Christine gave me your picture and asked me to meet you here. She regrets not being able to come herself, but something came up. Would you mind letting me take your bags? They look heavy.”
“Thank you very much. Oh, but where are we going?”
“We’re off to meet Christine. You’ll see. Follow me.”
Takako picked up her violin case and held it close to her body. She thought it was too valuable to have a stranger carry it, and it made her feel more secure, like an old friend.

She obediently followed the man out into the parking lot in front of the airport.
There was a light drizzle falling, but not enough for her to need an umbrella. The stranger in front of her didn’t seem to mind the rain either. He appeared to have a slight limp, but his walk appeared to be efficient enough in spite of his problem.

Takako was enjoying the cool rain against her face when she realized suddenly. She didn't really know who this man was!
“Excuse me sir, but I don’t know your name!”
The man stopped and turned around.
“I’m sorry. I should have told you earlier. I’m Christine’s uncle. Just call me Jim. Jim Smith.”
Takako felt a great sense of relief. Christine’s uncle! A member of her pen-pal’s family. That was good. She had been quite concerned, but now everything was going to be just fine!　　/ 03

They eventually arrived at Jim’s car, after trudging for many minutes and dodging what seemed to be a million parked cars. It was a long hike for a tired girl.
Jim threw Takako’s bags in the trunk, opened the passenger door, and helped her in. She placed the violin carefully on the floor in front of her, and then buckled up her seatbelt.
　Takako pretended to be interested in Uncle Jim’s light banter as they waited to pay the parking fee, but she was too tired for conversation. She was feeling like she had jet lag, or so she thought. That was what she had been told by all her friends back in Hamamatsu, anyway.
“Be ready for the great ’tiredness’”, they had warned. Now she knew.

Jim soon had his large American car roaring down the highway at about 100km/hr. He offered her a cigarette, but she declined. She wondered if smoking was as common in Canada as in Japan.
After about half an hour, Takako started to wonder where Vancouver was. They didn’t seem to be getting any nearer Christine’s. Christine had mentioned in one of her letters that she lived in a high-rise about a kilometer from downtown.
Where were all the bright lights of the city? The only lights she could see were those of the oncoming cars. Takako began to worry.　　/ 04

She looked out the window into the dark, wet night. In the distance, just off to the right, she could see a large green sign that they were approaching. As they got nearer, she could just make it out through the rain. It said: US Border 13 kilometers.
What? They were going south, not to Christine’s, but to the United States!
Takako knew her Canadian geography well enough from her high school students, and she was sure this was not the way to Vancouver. She began to protest.
“This is NOT the road to Vancouver! Where are we going? Please stop!”
The driver turned to her and laughed. “Clever little girl! You’re right! Vancouver is far behind us. Now you sit back and shut up, or you’ll be in more trouble than you already are!”
Takako sat back in her seat, hugging the door handle. What in a world was happening? Whatever it was, she knew she was in serious trouble.　　/ 05



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