Mable And Her Magic Ways - Chapter 6

 Mable And Her Magic Ways

A Novel

By Paul McCann

Chapter 6 

Mable And The Tower Of Babel

Mable was surprised when Mr Locke the wine merchant arrived with a bunch of flowers and some of his sparkling wine as a gift for all the help Mable had recently given to help label all the expensive wine , He also had another surprise for her .

He had booked a holiday for Mable in Switzerland . Two weeks in an expensive resort with all meals provided and a tour guide as well to show her the sight while she was there .

Mable had never been on a holiday in her life and was looking forward to seeing another country and meeting new people . She looked through the travel brochure Mr Locke had given her and was eager for the holiday to start . When the day arrived, she double checked to make sure she had everything she needed .

Passport , tickets , the spending money Mr Locke gave her , her hotel booking and travel itinerary and flight details . She was brought to the airport for her flight and managed to navigate her way to the departure lounge where her baggage was checked and put on board the plane . For her first time at an airport Mable looked as you would imagine like a goldfish on a skateboard however she pretended that she was a seasoned traveller and so far , no one had suspected any different .

The flight was on time and it was not that crowded which made Mable a little uneasy as she looked at every face wondering if they were feeling the way she was . For the first time on a plane her nerves were jumping and leaping from her belly to her knees then accelerating in a rush of confusion bouncing  around on a trampoline inside her  head that was spinning around until they fell in a free fall of swooping dives to the tips of her toes . Her stomach had these unseen butterflies that were fluttering and flipping over and over as they tripped head over heels in search of a relaxing moment away from all the mixed-up emotions of her being a first-time traveller on holiday . .

Finally, she was on her seat and the plane sped along the runway before lifting high into the sky .Mable kept her eyes shut until the plane made it’s descent at Zurich . After passing through customs, she was met by a man who was holding up a written sign with the words Mable Sniggers on it . He spoke with a soft gentle voice.

“Welcome to Switzerland . I am your Dave your tour guide during your visit . I will bring you to your hotel room . You are staying at the Zurich Tower . It had a beautiful view of the city . My room is next to yours. If you need anything , I’ll be there as your service . “

It was late in the evening when Mable checked in to the hotel and she was exhausted from the experience of her flight . Dave brought Mable to her room and explained  that there would be a buffet breakfast that started at seven in the morning Deep down Mable wondered what a buffet breakfast was but she pretended she was aware of all that . She started thinking maybe buffet was some kind of Switz bread . Then she thought it was some kind of welcome treat for her being her first time in the tower hotel in Switzerland . Before going to sleep she looked out the window of her hotel room at the lights of the city that sparkled and scattered themselves like jewels all across the city streets far below her room .

Mable fell straight to sleep and woke up early eager to taste the buffet breakfast .She left her room and walked into the lift that was over crowded with people who seemed to be speaking different languages . No one was talking in English . So, Mable confidently introduced herself and said .

“Good morning good people , isn’t it a beautiful day today and it sure is good to be alive and here on holiday and staying in this hotel that Tower’s over the city “

They all stopped talking and looked at Mable . They seemed to be in shock . Mable spoke again .

“My name is Mable . How do you do ?“

Again no one spoke . It looked like nobody understood and they were lost at what to say . Mable thought to herself ,maybe they’re drunk, then she another thought , oh no maybe they’re all mad or something .

A few of them coughed and one or two giggled  before opening up in conversation again . Mable had never heard any language other than English in her life so she was wondering what in earth was wrong with all these people . She wondered what on earth they were talking about . Their languages were strange , the words that were spoken were incomprehensible . The more she tried to listen the less she understood . It was an interpretation of some mystery . Like a lot of jibber jabber that made no sense at all . As the lift opened at the ground floor there was a queue waited for a table at the breakfast lounge . Mable stood in the queue and listened to even more people talking in different languages . There was no one at all who spoke in English . The chatter began to sound like rubble falling down from a mountain into a mixing pot of boiling trouble that was bubbling over . The noise of all the clatter defied logic . It had no expression . Their tongues were twisted .

Mable was relieved when Dave her tour guide came over and tapped her on her shoulder before speaking in a calm reassuring tone .

“Good morning, Mable , the hotel had a large number of people who are part of an  expo of cultures . “

Mable replied

“Almighty God I was beginning to think I was losing my mind. “

Dave laughed and brought her to a table for the buffet breakfast explaining that she could choose for herself any of the food that was on display ..

Mable loved bread and when she saw all the bread on display she grabbed as much as she could carry ,  Bread rolls were her favourite and she picked some long one’s and short ones , some round and some flat until her arms were overloaded with bread rolls ., Then she made her way back to the table with people looking at her and sniggering . As she sat down at the table with Dave he mentioned to her that she didn’t need to carry all that bread at once because the catering staff  would refill the bread again as soon as it was gone , In fact they would frequently refill the bacon and eggs , the sausages and baked beans , the fruits and the juices .

Mable nodded her head and pretended like she knew all about that but deep inside she was feeling a little embarrassed at her naivety .  The chatter of people talking and the clatter of plates sounded like some crazy kind of music for a clutter buck dance in a barnyard filled with locals and yokels on vacation from the asylum .

Dave spoke softly and his voice cut through that noisy background . He told Mable all about  some of the sights they were going to visit on her first day in Zurich .

End Of Chapter 6

 Link to chapter 7

https://www.abctales.com/story/mcscraic/mable-and-her-magic-ways-chapter-7

 Mable And Her Magic Ways

A Novel

By Paul McCann