The Travels of Anadrasata Nearabhigan: Day 11
Anadrasata has reached Amnestri and left the Pearlish Star. It has been such a full and interesting day that this piece runs to 3,110 words. (so many pages written by hand, but not all at once.)
A couple of notes. Firstly, because in written English the vowels are indicators rather than definers of which sound is in the word, in the local names within this piece the vowel group 'eye' is said as the English word 'eye'. Secondly, 'lumescent' is not an English word - I think that it was originally a spelling mistake in the handwritten document but I am using it to convey both what it does and that it is, to us, an unfamiliar technology. Thank you for your forbearance.
Index Page.
Twirsday, 21 Ochd, 1893 C.E.
Dear Journal,
I was woken early by turbulence and a thumping sound, well I thought it was a thumping sound but then I realised that it was some type of alarm. It wasn't one of the alarms we've been warned about by the daily safety briefings, but as it was light out and only an hour before the beginning of breakfast service, I decided to get up and get dressed. When I opened the curtains covering my cabins windows I was startled to see another airship so close to us that I could see the faces of people on their promenade deck. It was a larger vessel than ours and it had a bright, shiny livery in scarlet and white with a gold commercial heraldry - I didn't recognise it but the shield shape and parentheses tell you that it's a commercial emblem and not a personal or family one.
I was dressed and finishing my letter to Mother when the stewardess arrived with the warm water for me to wash my face with. When I commented to her about the other ship, she got quite excited. Apparently the other ship had dropped out of the cloud layer above us at speed and almost rammed the Pearlish Star before both ships could take evasive manoeuvres. The thumping alarm I heard was the proximity alarm, and we really had come close to a collision. I added this to the letter, signed it and put it in an addressed envelope before going to breakfast.
At breakfast I was one of the first there, along with Mr dh'Venhair, Lord Elnaith, Half Colonel dh'Trai, and Major dh'Lhaigh. Upon enquiry, they too had woken to the proximity alarm. It turned out that I was the only one of our early breakfasting group who had actually seen the other vessel - their cabins were all on the other side of our vessel. When I described the ship's size, livery, and its heraldry, Mr dh'Venhair identified it as a Northern Stars Line vessel, probably the Empress Mhaihild or the Empress Surasenaila. Mr dh'Venhair also expressed concerned surprise that the incident had occurred at all - he said that the Northern Stars Line pushed their captains to be fast but not dangerous, and this incident was unusual. He added, while drinking coffee with salt in it (!!), that he was sure that paperwork was happening on both ships.
I asked whether that turbulence I felt this morning was common with evasive manoeuvres, and Mr dh'Venhair replied, very seriously, that it was. He went on, in a much more jocular tone, to tell us that he had been out of bed and half-dressed before he remembered that he didn't have a duty station to get to. The other gentlemen agreed that the alarm had stirred them to action, but they hadn't had any clear idea of what they should do. I mentioned being able to see people on the other ship well enough to see that they had faces when I looked outside after I got dressed, a detail I had previously omitted, and Mr dh'Venhair whistled and said something about "too scalding close" if they were still that close after I'd had time to dress.
I had finished my breakfast, so I excused myself to go to the Pursers' office and settle my ship's account. I did not owe much - just a little light laundry and I hadn't done anything like take a meal in my cabin. What I did do was pay for porterage to get my chest off the ship and into my inn. I also paid into the vails collection for the dining stewards. When I finished there, I took a final turn around the promenade deck before I returned to my cabin and finished my packing. There were more crew on the promenade deck than I am used to seeing on my morning walks, but they didn't appear to be doing anything in particular. (Probably ignorance on my part.)
I gave my cabin stewardess her vail when she came to check that I was preparing to disembark, then left my locked trunk in my cabin as I had been instructed to. I handed in my key to the Chief Purser and took a seat in the lounge to wait for disembarkation. (I much prefer the balcony parlor, but it is not so convenient for the gangway.)
I hadn't watched the docking process before, at least not on this ship, and there seemed to be a lot of business with flags on the docking platforms and ropes going on. I didn't see all of it because I stayed in my seat, but finally we were in position, the engines stopped, and the ship gave that final little drop that meant we were docked.
The mourning party and the coffin were the first to depart down the first class gangway. The coffin was a black wood with brass fittings - which is what you choose if you want the grave furnishings to last. The mourners were two men and two women, all heavily veiled and one of each in black and the other pair in white. They were met by more mourners at the foot of the gangway - three more pairs with the couples dressed in purple, mulberry red, and dark green. At least none of them will have to stand vigil on their own - I was the only one wearing purple after father died and the night period defaulted to my watch. I was fifteen, it wasn't a good idea, but at least I had never had the idea that my father would want to hurt me.
The rest of the disembarkation order was organised by who had a connection to make, and possibly precedence. The Baron dh'Uhghitair and his family went first, followed by the Mrses Vahtraiti, and then Miss Dhaighan and party. Mr dh'Venhair sauntered down the gangway after that - I think he slipped the steward something to let him go when he wanted. Then the Haghaiphrans made their way down the gangway in a group, followed by the rest of us singularly.
This put Lord Elnaith, Half Colonel dh'Trai, Major dh'Lhaigh and myself in an elevated position to see the Haghaiphrans being greeted by the other half of their arranged wedding. Mr Haghaiphran was exchanging greetings with a prosperous looking man of the same age when a well and properly dressed man of about thirty stepped forward from the greeting party, opened a pair of muscular arms, (I don't think I've ever admired a barrel-chested man so much) and said, very loudly, "Ailain!" Miss Ailain dashed forward too fast for the grabbing hands of her mother and sister, threw her arms around the barrel-chested man and exclaimed, also loudly, "Gairghais, I've missed you so much!" If there was any kissing, I missed it, but I did hear enough as we made our way to the porters with our luggage, to learn that the barrel-chested man is both Miss Ailain's betrothed and the man that she was slipping out to see. It seems to me that the whole thing has worked out very well.
I am still hornswoggled. From the looks we exchanged, I believe the gentlemen are too. I suppose if you are going to have illicit meetings with someone, then the person your family has decide that you're going to marry is a good choice....
The gentlemen's valet and batmen had collected their luggage and were handling arrangements to get it to where they were going, but I had no servant to do that for me, so I excused myself, said goodbye and curtsied, and made my way over to the porters. I got the impression that they may have been surprised that I didn't have a maid hovering in the background, but I have been very clear that I have not much money. Also, my family apparently does not see a problem with sending me all around the Circle Sea on my own and, much as I like them, I do not expect to see any of these gentlemen again. A pity - I have found that I enjoy congenial male company, where we are just existing in the same space, not a thing that happens for me at home.
Everyone was reclaiming their baggage who had had it portered off the ship - apparently most of third class is expected to manage their own. Fortunately for me, first class luggage was in a separate section and my single chest was easily extracted. I was assigned a porter with a trolley, and he escorted me across the landing apron to the gateway that separated us from Amnestri. On our way, we passed a party of officials headed towards the Pearlish Queen. My porter, who told me to call him Saimos, remarked that they were probably there about the inquiry. He pointed over towards a maintenance area, where I could see a familiar scarlet and white ship, and said that officials had already been on the Mhaihild for hours. My inn was just outside the gate - barely beyond the booking office with which it shares a wall. Saimos carried my chest in on his trolley, and I made myself known to the landlord and produced his telegraph to my brother confirming my booking for two nights. The landlord confirmed the booking and, because I had no maid with me, insisted on payment for both nights up front. I obliged him, asked if he could have my chest taken upstairs immediately, and asked to be taken to my room. I pressed a few coins on Saimos and bid him farewell.
The landlord had one of the maids show me to my room. I am not sure if I would have gotten a better room if I had a maid with me, but I am happy with the room I have. The bed is large for a single person but would probably be cramped for two. There is a fireplace with a hearth large enough for a bathtub to be placed there, and I enquired about baths. The room is clean, the window opens and closes properly, and looks out over a courtyard affair. There is a writing desk with an upright chair, and also an armchair. I found the colour scheme attractive and soothing.
The maid told me that baths are extra, which seemed reasonable given that the water has to be heated downstairs and carted up by hand, but she showed me the shared, water-flushed necessity that is two doors down from my room, so that is a thing here. (I am glad that she showed me how it works and explained how you deal with your clothes while using it.) It also has a little lock on the door so that you can guarantee your privacy while using it. I also checked when would be the most convenient time for the staff to provide me with a bath and made arrangements for it to happen. Just before she finished showing me everything, my chest was brought upstairs so I was able to tell the young man where I wanted it put.
I then went downstairs to have lunch in a private parlor and to enquire how to get to the bank my letters of credit are drawn on. The best option for getting to the bank was a cab. Cabs in Amnestri are not horse drawn, they have issues with space and enough fresh water, but man propelled. The seat is wide enough for two people, or possibly three very neat ones, with a canopy overhead and leather or cloth side and back panels that can be let down and tied in place when it rains. There is another seat in front of the first where the driver sits, some of these are under an extension of the canopy and some are completely open to the weather, there is a steering bar in front of this second seat that the driver uses to control the direction of the vehicle, and there are pedals under the seat that the driver uses to propel the vehicle forward. The pedal mechanism is connected to a great deal of gearing that seems to amplify the driver's effort so that it is not so much effort to propel these vehicles as one might expect.
I am happy to report that there is also a braking mechanism. I haven't been able to pick it out of the rest of the machinery and gears of the vehicle, but it's there and it works.
The bank staff were extremely helpful, and I was ushered into the office of an assistant branch manager. I explained that the manager of our branch at home had recommended that I apply to this branch for advice as to where best I could cash a letter of credit from this bank in Akatoil or one of the stops in the Suleggassi Kerajaa. The assistant branch manager, a Mr Leyesava (that's how it's written on his card, but I would have spelt it Liesava), pointed out that if I cash a letter of credit in the Kerajaa, then I will have to pay an exchange fee, the money will come in the Kerajaa's currency, and I would have to pay another exchange fee in Akatoil to return my money to Imperial currency. I decided to redeem one of my smaller letters of credit there and then so that hopefully I would only need to change the money I needed while in the Kerajaa - their policy of making you stay ashore for two nights on both entering and leaving their territory meant that I would have expenses there. I also made sure to get the addresses of the appropriate banks in both cities there as well as Akatoil because there could be unexpected expenses. After cashing my letter of credit, and putting the others away safely again, I split the money between my reticule and both deep pockets in my skirt before making my farewells and getting a cab back to my inn.
When I was in the entrance vestibule, waiting to be attended to, I realised that they had advertising flyers for various activities in Amnestri that might be of interest to visitors. There were various tours, playbills, and a schedule of lectures to be given in various rooms of the Amnestri Mechanics' Institute. When the landlady attended to me, I confirmed my order of a bath for the late afternoon, requested dinner in a private parlor, and requested her advice about the various tours on offer, and the advisability of attending lectures at the Mechanic's Institute. She arranged the bath, apologised that she could not offer me a private parlor for dinner due to the number of other parties staying overnight but could provide a dinner in my room for no cost over the meal. I accepted that offer. She also suggested I might enjoy a tour that a cousin of her husband's offered which would involve cabs and walking, but also included interiors of the cathedral and portions of the Prince's Palace, as well as the Promenade Gardens. I also accepted her suggestion, and she sent a messenger boy to make contact with the cousin and set a time, if they were available. The lectures were, she advised, perfectly acceptable, and from what she knew, nothing on the current schedule was likely to draw a rowdy crowd. The Institute is also directly across the square from the inn. As tonight's lecture was on Amnestrian history, I decided to attend and negotiated a dinner time that would enable me to do so.
The bath was lovely. I am perfectly capable of washing and keeping myself clean with a basin of warm water but to just be able to get in the water and scrub....
Dinner was very good, enough food but not too much. A small table was brought into the room for service, and I used the upright chair from the writing desk to sit and eat.
The Mechanics' Institute is indeed right across the square from the inn, and it shares a wall with an area that appears to be an employee entrance and exit from the port. The sun was still above the horizon as I made my way across the square and entered the Institute to pay my fee for the lecture. I was in reasonable time, so I chose an empty seat in the middle of a row in the front third of the room to avoid making people push pass me to get to a seat. The lecturer was Professor Doctor Caitor Veueyelee who holds the Chair of Eyeleutian Studies at the University of Amnestri. The lecture covered Amnestri's history from its almost mythological founding at the end of the Age of Cataclysms to the present day. According to the Professor, the Eyeleutians' claim that their ancestors arrived in the Circle Sea in boats carried over the mountains by tidal waves may not be 'mere fanciful conjecture' because debris consistent with such an event has been found under many of the Eyeleutian founded towns and villages along the Northern Circle Sea. He also covered Prince Leeveu (of course), who married Princess Ghairda and became Prince Consort when she unexpectedly became Empress in her own right. The Professor, like myself, loves his retort to the nobles and burghers who objected to his clean water and sewers project that went, "Well, if you'd had this in place before, you wouldn't be dealing with me now." (The Imperial family, except for Princess Ghairda who was in Amnestri, had died in an epidemic of water borne disease in the then Imperial capital the previous year.)
I had intended to stay for tea and supper after the lecture, but I was suddenly tired when it was done, so I slipped a few coins in the donation box as I went out and made my way back to the inn. It was well and truly dark out as I made my way across the square. It was illuminated with lumescent globes hanging by chains from their pole tops and it was very pretty, but I thought it best not to linger.
The landlady saw me in when I came in, and arranged to send up some warm water so I could wash up before bed.
It has been a very full day today and I am looking forward to a good night's sleep. The straight back chair is propped under the handle of my locked door to ensure that I get one.
Anadrasata Nearabhigan