ANGEL CALLED MILAN
An Indian
story
Sooner or
later, every traveler realizes it. Angels do exist. At least angels who protect
travelers. Usually they have no names, but sometimes they do. One is called
Milan.
I have a colleague who almost always
accompanies me on scientific trips. Once, on the way back to Bratislava from
annual conference in Prague by regular coach, we did not sit together. Good
opportunity to get a nap on the way. When I woke up, it was time for break for
refreshment at a motel on the highway. Surprisingly, I found my colleague
having a deep discussion over coffee with an interesting guy from Slovakia. He didn’t
look like an ordinary person, definitely not. At first sight, he was evidently
“touched by life”. And not an easy life. His long hair was gray, his face heavily wrinkled. When he said that he
had served as a colonel in the Rhodesian army, I was somehow not surprised. Of
course, it was unusual for a Slovakian, but every sentence he spoke convinced
me more and more that we had before us a genuine globetrotter. At that time, in
the early 1990s, this was quite an exotic meeting. Especially when our new
companion, who introduced himself as Milan, began to tell stories about Africa,
Sri Lanka, India, and Nepal. It was like meeting a Martian. And when he offered
us expert advice in case we visited these countries it sounded like a complete
joke. Therefore, I wasn’t terribly interested when he proffered his business
card, so he gave it to my colleague. My colleague is so disorganized that I was
sure he would lose it. And he did.
For some years we did not hear anything from
this strange man. Meanwhile one of our scientific articles had such a positive
response that we got an invitation to a science conference in India. And by
chance we actually had enough money for this exotic trip. Now it was time to
regret that we lost contact with an expert on Indian travel like Milan. And
this time a first miracle occurred. Just as if he heard our subconscious calls,
he called us himself. After several years of travelling in Asia, Milan was back
in Bratislava and wanted to meet us. We were obviously glad!
Milan had not changed much. Just his hair was
grayer, and his face was more wrinkled. But his stories were as unbelievable as
ever. Furthermore, he was willing to give us good advices about India at our
regular meetings every Friday afternoon for some weeks till our departure. Thanks
to these sessions, we seemed to be ready for our trip. The last Friday before
our flight I was late for our regular consultation. My colleague had already
received the last necessary pieces of information with Milan and departed.
There was not much to talk about. Milan and I just sat and sipped tea. He never
drank alcohol and I normally never drink tea in a bar. Thus it all was not too
exciting, and I was preparing to say goodbye.
Then Milan
said suddenly just by the way, “When is your flight to New Delhi?”
“Next
Wednesday.”
“What time
will you land?”
“We should
be in Delhi around lunch time.”
Milan got
silent, thinking about something, so I got up and waved goodbye to him. But
instead of hallo he said quietly, “Well, O.K. then. We will meet at the Hotel
Imperial next Wednesday at one p.m. Got it?”
I nodded eagerly and left. It was too good to
be true. But on Wednesday we went directly from the airport to the Hotel
Imperial. And Milan was there. From that moment, and for the next two weeks, he
was like our father figure, guiding us with generosity and patience we would
never have obtained from anyone else.
And how do I know that Milan was an angel?
Simply – because we were not able to return his help or even to thank him. He
just vanished. I have not heard from him ever since. Only angels act this way.
By the way, you could also become a part-time
angel. Keep your eyes open and use every opportunity to help people when they
travel. Just for goodwill. That’s all. Except don’t forget to vanish before
they can return any favor or even thank you. That’s the condition.
Available in E-books:
http://itunes.apple.com/sk/ book/svetje-maly-the-world-is-
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http://itunes.apple.com/sk/ book/le-monde-est-petit-world-
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http://itunes.apple.com/sk/ book/the-world-is-small-svet-
je-maly/id554101744?mt=11
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