A hand injury I sustained in Istanbul required stitching shortly before my Turkish Airlines flight on March 18 and pain took over some hours into the flight.
The cabin attendant arranged for a doctor on board to be sought via the plane's public address system (to confirm the supply of pain killers), to no avail, so I had to tough it out.
Imagine my surprise when I had a personal visit from the captain during the stop in Johannesburg to enquire how I was doing. I compliment both the captain and Turkish Airlines for this kind show of interest and sympathy. - Cedric Harris
St Helena saved
I must congratulate Tymon Smith on his article ("A Home on the Ocean Wave", March 17). My wife Jill and I were on the same cruise and thought his was an accurate portrayal (despite the minor mistake of naming the Teatro San Carlo "San Remo".)
As for the cruise experience, I would particularly like to applaud the generosity of the captain and MSC in deciding to placate those passengers who were disappointed when the ship could not land on St Helena on the Sunday. They agreed to overnight and get us onto the island the following morning, which we heard cost the company $100000 in extra fuel to catch up the lost 17 hours and stay on schedule for their next cruise.
Thomas Falkiner's take on cruising in the same issue was also instructive, but I must disagree with him on the matter of packages for drinks and ice creams, as he gives the impression that passengers had to buy the packages.
This is not the case as you can sign for individual requirements with your card on the pool deck or in the open-air Caffe del Mare (and indeed for drinks in the restaurants and other parts of the ship). - Richard Tomlinson, Port Elizabeth
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