Trance-Elbows World: Remebering Bella BhukhanA Friend Lost on 11th September 2001

Thursday, 7 September 2006

Remebering Bella Bhukhan
A Friend Lost on 11th September 2001

In September 2000, my wife and I jetted off for a week of fun in the sun. We choice the white isle of Ibiza for our break. The holiday was similar in style to a Club 18-30 break. Sun, sea, clubbing and way too much alcohol were the order of the day. At the time I was feeling old and felt that I had to re-capture my youth.

Also on the trip were two life long friends who lived in New Jersey, Bella & Mital. They were really nice people and the four of us got on quite well. We got talking about this and that as you do and we found out that Bella worked for a company called Canter Fitzgerald, which was based in The World Trade Center. She worked in the Human Resources department and her career was on the up.

The picture above was taken by me, while the four of us were at the beach.

We exchanged e-mails addresses and kept in touch on an occasional basis.

Rolling forward one year to September 2001 and we were once again on holiday, this time with our good friends Paul & Julie on the Greek island on Corfu.

On September 11th, like most days we were lazing around the hotel pool became likely roasted. When I suddenly became aware of a commotion in a bar across the street. Being a nosey sort, I went to investigate.

I was in no way prepared for what I was about to see on the wide screen TV in the bar. I and everyone else there were in stunned. It was then that it hit me that Bella worked there, which sent me into a blind panic. Was she at work today?

I ran straight back to the pool and we went into our hotel to see if we could find out anymore information. In a corner on the restaurant was a small TV with all the hotel staff gather around it. Although the commentary was in Greek, I didn’t need words to understand the magnitude of what was happening in New York. All the time my thoughts were of Bella and if she was there. I prayed that she was on holiday or off work ill, anywhere but there.

For the rest of the week I worried, in the knowledge that I couldn’t e-mail Bella or Mital until I was back at home.

Back at home I e-mailed both Bella & Mital, still hoping that all was well. I only received one reply and that was from Mital. She confirmed my worse fears. Bella had been at work that fatefully morning and perished along with over 2000 other souls.

Her body was never found.