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Arriving by plane at night it was tough to tell if it was mountain peaks or clouds that were obstructing my view of the lights far below. Quito is the capital of Ecuador and finds itself nestled in a valley high in the Andes mountains. Surrounded by volcanic peaks on seemingly all sides, it became apparent to me how high I was as I was touching down at the Mariscal Sucre International Airport.
The flight from Panama City was less than two hours long. We had hardly cleared the clouds when our wheels made contact with the tarmac. It was one of the harshest landings I’ve experienced. Maybe the pilot was a little taken aback as well at how quickly the ground appeared.
Another person caught off guard on the flight was the gentleman opposite me. I was sat in 36F, a window seat. He was in 36A, the other window seat in the row. He had snuck a few beers onto the flight and was cracking them throughout the journey. Eventually one of the stewards noticed what was going on and politely took the man’s beer away from him.
Sneaking alcohol onto a flight is a pretty big offence. It’s not like sneaking your own snacks into a movie theatre. There are steep fines that can be handed down for slipping a couple of cold ones past security. So, I think most people would’ve silently complied. I’m caught, let’s go into damage control and hope to avoid any serious penalties.
This man though, he wasn’t one to sit silently when he perceived an injustice had been committed. No, this is the man that fights for what he believes in. Someone had taken his beer and he was taking a stand. He marched to the back of the plane and engaged in ruthless debate with his oppressors over “mi cerveza” (my beer).
After his protests yielded no results, he returned to his seat. He started pleading with his fellow row-mates in disbelief that someone had taken mi cerveza. Us other passengers, less interested in the politics of the situation, exchanged smiles and head shakes at our own disbelief of the situation.
Having been threatened with a $1,200 USD fine, you might think the man would accept his loss and live to fight another day. But money does not make this man. Each time one of the stewards walked past our row, he made futile pleas for, you guessed it, mi cerveza.
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His antics in the back of the plane had stirred a bit of interest amongst some of the passengers up front. After his continued harassment of the stewards, the entire fuselage was aware that someone had taken….mi cerveza.
As we prepared for arrival the chatter subdued and only the occasional murmurs of disgust could be heard from across the aisle. We landed in Quito and taxied to the gate. The man’s efforts at having his beer returned were to no avail. People sprung up to grab their luggage from the overhead compartments and stretch their legs. The captain’s voice came across the speaker a number of times reminding people to remain seated while the seatbelt light was still on. It appeared this saga was not yet complete.
After a few minutes delay sitting at the gate wondering what was going on, the door finally opened and four police officers emerged. They strode down the aisle, confirming with the flight crew who the unruly passenger was, until they reached row 36.
“Sir, grab your bags and please come with us,” one of the officers said in Spanish.
Realizing the jig was up the man slowly rose to his feet, and like a child who had been caught in the act, all he could manage was a defeated final plea for his case.
“But they took…mi cerveza.”
The officers smiled and said let’s go. The rest of the plane sat in silence as he was escorted away. As soon as he was off the aircraft the murmurs and laughter began. There had to have been twelve different people that did imitations of the man pleading for mi cerveza.
I’m usually nervous stepping off of a plane into a new country. Not this time though. Whatever tension I might have felt had been cut into a hundred pieces by my dear friend in seat 36A. I’m not sure whatever happened to this man, but if I ever bump into him in the streets of Ecuador, I’ll buy him a cerveza.
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