Why Our Baby Did Not Freeze...
Action:
10pm Board overnight train from Istanbul to Ankara with my husband and baby 2 moth old girl.
Thoughts:
Woohoo! We made it!
Speech:
"Chris, Iona, this is awesome!"
Blankets etc:
There are sheets and 2 enormous blankets on the bunks. The train compartment is toasty warm. Train conductor comes in, sees baby Iona and gives us another enormous blanket, I toss them all in the corner.
Action:
2.30am Train is stopped, Iona wakes up, chortles with delight as we're doing a diaper change.
Thoughts:
We've been stopped for rather a long time, Iona's fed, when we start up again it'll be easy for her to go back to sleep. There's no way Chris can sleep through Iona's happy squeals...
Speech (Chris, sleepily):
"Hey little Iona, are you wide awake?"
Speech (me):
"There's quite a kerfuffle outside, Chris, there's all these train personnel in the hallway messing with the electric board."
Blankets etc:
Train compartment is pretty warm but getting cooler. Electricity is out. Conductor comes in with a torch while I'm breastfeeding and gives us 2 more enormous blankets. Maybe I will need one after all...
Action:
4.30am I have moved all our blankets except the 2 for Chris onto the bunk I'm sharing with Iona. Iona's also swaddled with all her burping cloths, her snowsuit, her hat and is pressed against me.
Thoughts:
Fuck I'm cold and poor little Iona's face (the only part of her exposed) is getting cold.
Speech:
Groan, shiver.
Blankets etc:
If I make Chris come down to our bunk then maybe we can share body heat...and those 2 extra blankets? Could we even all fit?
Thoughts:
6am Argh! It's so cold! Iona's asleep but if she wakes up or needs a diaper change how in the world can we keep her warm?
Speech:
Chris! We have a problem!!! Iona's going to get really cold and our train won't get in for 2hrs...I don't know what else to do?
...Action:
Chris (dressed in running shorts, T-shirt and short white socks) awakes and gets a primitive look in his eyes. He leaps from the top bunk, races outside into the freezing train compartment and down the train screaming for a train conductor. A few compartments full of frozen Chinese tourists crack open and women swaddled in parkas and blankets watch Chris race about. Chris locates a train carriage which does have electricity and a few conductors. He explains we have to move into the other compartment right now.
Blankets etc:
A wagon full of people, who look more like plaid blankets than people, follow semi-clad Chris to the warm wagon.
Action:
8 am We leave our toasty compartment in the new warm wagon and head out to find a cab.
Thoughts:
Mmmmm, my husband, my hero...
Speech:
"Hey look Chris, all those Chinese tourists are smiling at you!"
Blankets etc:
It's good to be home...
*Tragos footnotes:
** Chris = Tragos; "I"/OKImago" = Mrs. Tragos; Iona = Baby Tragos
*** The Chinese tourists, according to me, were frightened to death to see an American berserker running full speed down the train corridor. They were in parkas and I was wearing shorts. And my hair was standing up since I basically jumped off my top bunk and ran straight out our compartment.
**** When they smiled at me, I strongly suspect it was in the hope to appease the berserker soul they had witnessed early that morning.
***** My demand to change us to the new train car was probably stated in terms people would not describe as "diplomatic"
