A Russian Barbeque

This evening we all were invited at a barbeque on the open deck by the Russians at 6 pm. At that time only they had laid food on the table and were serving wine to people who cared to drink. There were soft drinks too. The Russian crew is 30 in number; however, there were only ten of them. The officers including the Captains were missing. For vegetarians there was enough salad, boiled potatoes, bread etc. I liked the water melon best, fresh and sweet. Suddenly a bird of the size of crow came fluttering and entered a stair case going into the engine room. I think it got blinded by the strong sodium lights on the deck. Only some people showed interest to see it. I too went there and found it hiding in a corner. If it went further down, it would surely die due to the heat of the engine room. So I caught it and released it back into the air. By 7:15 pm the party was winding up. The hosts were not bringing more alcohol and were not filling up the food trays. I returned along with some others. In our dinning hall I helped myself with ice cream, my first since I left Delhi. Many of our people felt cheated. I tried to tell them that they had called us for barbeque and not for dinner or for a party lasting till midnight.