I’ve always thought of a stowaway as something out of old adventure stories. So when I recently found myself illegally aboard a river faring vessel, I was a little unsure of what to do. Isn’t this when I’m supposed to go hide between the barrels of salt pork and dried biscuits?
In reality I’d just managed to follow my equally clueless teammates onto a ferry to Dhaka without buying tickets. By virtue of our whiteness we made it the whole way to first class seating without once being challenged for our lack of tickets. Tickets we all wrongly assumed someone else had already purchased on our way on board.
We figured out our mistake only as the boat was pulling away from the dock. No more seats in business, first, or second-class available. No cabins. There was some space on the deck available but, once again due to our skin tone, we scored an upgrade to the bridge, where we hung out with the captain and the crew while they steered the ship.
Moral of the story? Don’t assume someone else has the tickets. Also, I am often frustrated with the privileges that come from my skin color (and the corresponding disadvantages to those who don’t have my skin color) but I shouldn’t complain when it means I get a ride home instead of getting kicked off the ferry.
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2 comments:
I like the visual of you hiding among the barrels, but alas I think you are now too big to escape detection there!
I've often felt the same priviledge due simply to color. I can remember going into a "Club" for an event, and thinking that if my skin color were different I certainly would not be able to just walk in the way I did!
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