Close calls Good luck spared us from other medical emergencies. Picturesque icebergs dotted our route as we cruised along Greenland’s western coast. Thinking about the Titanic, we asked the captain about the safety of cruising amid so many chunks of ice. “Don’t worry,” he said. “Today’s ships have more precise equipment to detect icebergs than the Titanic did, more than a century ago.” After we disembarked in Greenland, the ship continued to Antarctica, where it hit an iceberg and sank. Fortunately, passengers and crew avoided drowning and hypothermia after they abandoned ship and were rescued from lifeboats by another vessel. On other trips, we were in the wrong place at the wrong time. During a Turkish cave tour, we photographed beautifully illuminated stalactites reflected in deep pools on both sides of our path. Suddenly, the lights went out. We couldn’t see our hands in front of our faces. Electrical blackouts in the region could last for hours or days. No one had a flashlight. (This happened before cell phones existed.) Luckily, our guide had a book of matches in his pocket. Clinging to each other, we followed him along the path until eachmatch burned to his fingertips. Just as the flame from his last match vanished, we reached the entrance. After observing the sweat dripping from our guide’s face and his trembling hands, we realized that our escape could’ve had disastrous consequences. We also narrowly avoided harm in more popular tourist destinations. As we photographed Honolulu, Hawaii on a helicopter tour, the door popped open. Our pilot worried that the open door would break off and hit the tail rotor. We grabbed the handle and pulled the door close to the helicopter, while the pilot made a quick retreat to the airport to secure the door. On Hawaii’s Big Island, a pair of runaway horses nearly resulted in broken bones. After skirting a rain forest and fording a river during a horseback tour, our wrangler Smitty warned us: “Horses love to scratch their backs in the sand. Don’t let them roll over when you reach the beach, because you could be injured.” Icebergs surround ship on Greenland coast Illuminated cave before extended power blackout Wrangler Smitty adjusts saddle prior to horse ride on Hawaii’s Big Island Aerial view of Honolulu & Waikiki from helicopter before door flew open 20 | www.snowbirds.org Travel
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