A traveller reserves a weekend trip before her leave is approved. When she cannot travel, she must check the booking terms and decide what to do.
01Read the Arabic story
عَرْبُونُ رِحْلَةٍ لَمْ أَسْتَطِعْ الْقِيَامَ بِهَا
رَأَيْتُ إِعْلَانًا عَنْ رِحْلَةٍ إِلَى الْجِبَالِ فِي نِهَايَةِ الْأُسْبُوعِ. كُنْتُ أُرِيدُ الْاِبْتِعَادَ عَنِ الْمَدِينَةِ، وَكَانَ عَدَدُ الْمَقَاعِدِ قَلِيلًا. دَفَعْتُ عَرْبُونًا قَدْرُهُ مِئَةٌ وَعِشْرُونَ رِيَالًا، قَبْلَ أَنْ أَطْلُبَ إِجَازَةً مِنْ عَمَلِي. قُلْتُ لِنَفْسِي إِنَّ زَمِيلَتِي سَتَعْمَلُ بَدَلًا مِنِّي. حَفِظْتُ إِيصَالَ الدَّفْعِ فِي هَاتِفِي، وَلَمْ أَقْرَأْ شُرُوطَ الْحَجْزِ بِعِنَايَةٍ.
فِي الْيَوْمِ التَّالِي، عَرَفْتُ أَنَّ زَمِيلَتِي تَحْتَاجُ إِلَى إِجَازَةٍ أَيْضًا. لَمْ يَكُنْ هُنَاكَ شَخْصٌ آخَرُ يَعْمَلُ بَدَلًا مِنِّي، فَرَفَضَتِ الْمُدِيرَةُ طَلَبِي. شَعَرْتُ بِالضِّيقِ؛ فَقَدْ دَفَعْتُ الْمَالَ وَأَخْبَرْتُ أَصْدِقَائِي بِالرِّحْلَةِ. فَكَّرْتُ فِي أَنْ أَقُولَ إِنَّنِي مَرِيضَةٌ، ثُمَّ تَرَاجَعْتُ. لَمْ أُرِدْ أَنْ أُضِيفَ كَذِبَةً إِلَى قَرَارِي الْمُتَسَرِّعِ.
فَتَحْتُ شُرُوطَ هَذِهِ الشَّرِكَةِ، وَقَرَأْتُهَا بِهُدُوءٍ. كَانَ الْعَرْبُونُ غَيْرَ قَابِلٍ لِلِاسْتِرْدَادِ بَعْدَ تَأْكِيدِ الْحَجْزِ، وَلَكِنَّ الشَّرِكَةَ تَسْمَحُ بِنَقْلِ الْحَجْزِ إِلَى شَخْصٍ آخَرَ مُقَابِلَ عِشْرِينَ رِيَالًا. اِتَّصَلْتُ بِالْمُوَظَّفِ لِأَتَأَكَّدَ مِنَ الْمَوْعِدِ الْأَخِيرِ لِلتَّغْيِيرِ. أَوْضَحَ أَنَّ عَلَيَّ إِرْسَالَ الاِسْمِ الْجَدِيدِ قَبْلَ ظُهْرِ الْخَمِيسِ، فَبَقِيَ لَدَيَّ يَوْمٌ كَامِلٌ.
تَذَكَّرْتُ صَدِيقَتِي هِنْدًا، فَهِيَ تُحِبُّ الْمَشْيَ فِي الْجِبَالِ. أَرْسَلْتُ لَهَا تَفَاصِيلَ الرِّحْلَةِ وَشُرُوطَ الشَّرِكَةِ، وَطَلَبْتُ مِنْهَا أَنْ تَتَأَكَّدَ مِنْ وَقْتِهَا أَوَّلًا. وَافَقَتْ بَعْدَ أَنْ رَاجَعَتْ مَوَاعِيدَهَا. أَعَادَتْ لِي قِيمَةَ الْعَرْبُونِ، وَدَفَعْتُ أَنَا رُسُومَ التَّغْيِيرِ. بَعَثْنَا الاِسْمَ الْجَدِيدَ، وَانْتَظَرْنَا حَتَّى وَصَلَ تَأْكِيدُ الشَّرِكَةِ الْمَكْتُوبُ فِي الْمَسَاءِ.
ذَهَبَتْ هِنْدٌ إِلَى الْجِبَالِ، وَذَهَبْتُ أَنَا إِلَى عَمَلِي. شَعَرْتُ بِبَعْضِ الْحُزْنِ عِنْدَمَا رَأَيْتُ صُوَرَهَا، وَلَكِنَّنِي لَمْ أَخْسَرْ الْعَرْبُونَ كُلَّهُ. كَتَبْتُ فِي دَفْتَرِي: «أَتَأَكَّدُ مِنْ إِجَازَتِي، ثُمَّ أَقْرَأُ الشُّرُوطَ، ثُمَّ أَدْفَعُ». لَمْ تَكُنِ الْمُشْكِلَةُ أَنَّ الرِّحْلَةَ سَيِّئَةٌ، بَلْ أَنَّنِي حَجَزْتُهَا قَبْلَ أَنْ أَعْرِفَ إِنْ كُنْتُ أَسْتَطِيعُ السَّفَرَ.
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I saw an advertisement for a weekend trip to the mountains. I wanted to get away from the city, and there were few seats available. I paid a deposit of one hundred and twenty riyals before asking for leave from work. I told myself that my colleague would work in my place. I saved the payment receipt on my phone and did not read the booking terms carefully.
The next day, I learned that my colleague also needed time off. There was nobody else to work in my place, so the manager refused my request. I felt upset: I had paid the money and told my friends about the trip. I considered saying that I was ill, then changed my mind. I did not want to add a lie to my hasty decision.
I opened this company’s terms and read them calmly. The deposit was non-refundable after the booking was confirmed, but the company allowed the booking to be transferred to another person for twenty riyals. I called the employee to check the deadline for the change. He explained that I had to send the new name before noon on Thursday, so I had a whole day left.
I remembered my friend Hind, who likes walking in the mountains. I sent her the trip details and the company’s terms and asked her to check her availability first. She agreed after reviewing her appointments. She reimbursed me for the deposit, and I paid the change fee. We sent the new name and waited until the company’s written confirmation arrived that evening.
Hind went to the mountains, and I went to work. I felt a little sad when I saw her photographs, but I had not lost the entire deposit. I wrote in my notebook: “I check my leave, then read the terms, then pay.” The problem was not that the trip was bad, but that I had booked it before knowing whether I could travel.
02Useful words from the story
| Arabic in the story | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| عَرْبُونًا | a deposit |
| إِيصَالَ الدَّفْعِ | the payment receipt |
| شُرُوطَ الْحَجْزِ | the booking terms |
| تَرَاجَعْتُ | I changed my mind |
| الْمُتَسَرِّعِ | hasty |
| غَيْرَ قَابِلٍ لِلِاسْتِرْدَادِ | non-refundable |
| نَقْلِ الْحَجْزِ | transferring the booking |
| الْمَوْعِدِ الْأَخِيرِ | the deadline |
| رُسُومَ التَّغْيِيرِ | the change fee |
| تَأْكِيدُ الشَّرِكَةِ الْمَكْتُوبُ | the company’s written confirmation |
03Check your understanding
Choose one answer for each question. Look back at the Arabic story when you need a clue. Open the English support if you need help understanding a question.
What to remember
- The narrator checks this fictional company’s specific terms and transfers her booking instead of inventing an excuse at work.
- Her new sequence is to confirm leave, read the booking terms and only then pay.
Explore the Arabic in this story
Related grammar and vocabularyOpen Araqick guides connected to this story.
What I Did Yesterday in Arabic: 6 Simple Past-Tense Sentences
حَفِظْتُ إِيصَالَ الدَّفْعِ فِي هَاتِفِي
Follow the narrator’s completed actions using first-person past-tense forms.
Arabic Time and Place Adverbs: Before, After, In Front and Behind
قَبْلَ ظُهْرِ الْخَمِيسِ
Notice the deadline expressed with “before” and a time of day.
