I was seated peacefully in Seat F just by the aisle. As I was settling for my flight to Bangkok from Singapore, I saw two young ladies spoke to an already-seated older female passenger in what I believed was Mandarin. The female passenger was apparently irked as she had removed already her shoes (high heeled ones) and placed both of her feet up on the plane's chair.
Before the two young ladies called the attention of the flight attendant (FA), the female passenger, perhaps in her late 40s, relented and she grudgingly transferred seat next to me! She apparently sat on a window seat which was not her assigned seat.
She talked gibberish, I could not understand Mandarin. When she settled in beside me, she removed her high heeled shoes once again, smoothened her flowery dress, and brought up both her feet in the chair, and reclined her seat.
I was already expecting a turbulent ride. I surveyed her from my peripheral vision. She wore golden rings, and golden bracelets, red lipstick, heavy makeup. Loud red nail polish could be seen on her fingernails and pudgy toes. The dress had a red, green, orange flower design down her knee. Interesting.
The attendant served with tongs hot towels. She got hers and wiped her arms, and both of her legs, then the portly feet. The garish face was exempted, the makeup should not be touched.
When the plane was about to fly, she was already snoring on a reclined seat with both her feet up. The flight attendants had to tap her seat to wake her up so she could straighten her seat. She complied with much disdain.
Half-way, she tried to talk to me. I replied, "no understand, Engrish onry." She rolled her eyes. Then she stood up on her seat to reach for her bag in the storage bin. I gasped. Just imagine seeing her toes and knees eye level. After realizing she could not open the latch, she jumped from her seat over me to the aisle like a ninja. I gasped again, this time with much annoyance.
She brought down her big backpack, a neon-colored one with black lining. This person had an interesting personality indeed. She took out a black blazer and threw it over me to her seat. I was shocked, I meant shookt! Then she smirked at me. Jesus! The two young ladies seated in the same row near the window were busy with their millennial concerns, taking selfies. She could not reach the storage bin door to close it, with impudence she left it open. OMG, what if there would turbulence during the flight, the bags in the bin might fall on sleeping passengers underneath. Luckily a flight attendant passed by and noticed the open bin, he closed it.
When the flight attendant (FA) came to serve meals, she again talked to me in Mandarin. Of course, I told her I could not understand. And I knew also that she could not understand English. So the FA asked me whether I wanted an egg omelet with bacon and rice or chicken with mashed potatoes. I told the FA I would have egg omelet. She interrupted me saying gibberish, perhaps, asking what I chose. Good that the FA replied and talked to her in Mandarin. But the look on her eyes told me she regretted that she could not communicate to me. I was tempted to use sign language. However, I decided not as it would complicate things. Pointing fingers might be offensive in other cultures.
She took photos of the food before she ate them with much gusto and slurping. Singapore Airlines served a delicious meal, of course. After the meal, she went to sleep, with the snoring and the feet up again. I drowned myself with my earphones in full volume.
Just before landing, the FA again woke her up to straighten her seat. When the FA was on their landing stations, she unbuckled her belt, moved to the aisle and opened the storage compartment. She removed her neon color backpack. More passengers looked at her with contempt. The FA came running down the aisle and told her to go to her seat. Since she could not close the bin, the FA closed it after her. The attendant told the lady to place the backpack under the seat. She smirked at the FA, went to her seat grudgingly like a pupil reprimanded by a teacher, placed her bag under the seat under the prying eyes of the senior flight attendant who appeared to be annoyed as he talked to her in Mandarin with a measured and commanding voice.
When the flight attendant left, she removed the bag under the seat and placed it on her lap until the plane landed. She wore her high heeled shoes, straightened her purple shoulder bag and waited impatiently. When the plane parked, and the PA system announced in an English I barely understood, I stood up to get my bags. She stood up hurriedly and inserted herself between people in the aisle to the plane’s door. She smiled as she rammed people along the way like a rhino on drugs. When she disappeared from my peripheral vision, I sighed in relief.
She was indeed an interesting plane passenger and seatmate. 😊😊
