I have not written anything on this blog for ages. I shall try to correct that with a few posts from my trip to Thailand.
I shall start here and now, on the eve of departure.
It started inauspiciously with a train trip up from Deal to London. Nothing wrong with that. I sat with neighbour Peter who too was travelling to town. Together we set the world to rights, corrected immense wrongs, sentenced several people in public office to long terms and/or painful execution and salaciously tore into “friends” and neighbours not there to hear the treachery. We enjoy that. Well, he does. I can take it or leave it personally.
As I was having a night in London I thought a trip to my old, favourite noshery at E17 would be in order. Their hamburger is one of my favourite meals. I went by bus and overground as my car was left in Deal. I mused while gorging on the burger, I do that a lot these days, muse that is. I suppose it’s because I have the time to muse now. Anyway ,I digress. I do that a lot these days as well, digress I mean. Anyway, my musing took the form of how travelling by bus and train generally is pretty good theses days. At least for me. More convenient, certainly in London, and not too much hassle.
I spoke to soon.
On the way home for a good sleep before a dawn start for the airport next morning, the train slammed to a pretty abrupt halt between two stations. Annoyingly, as is always the case, not too far from my getting off stop. After some frustrating delay, the driver announced that she had been forced to stop by a man on the next bridge threatening to commit suicide. The train, fully crowded even at nine in the evening, was hot and humid and full of its usual throng of multi national homeward bound public. Standing room only.
Irrespective of all nationalities, the communal sigh that went out through puffed cheeks was easily translated as “oh bollocks” in any language. The driver, following her PR script, was “fully apologising for the delay ” and “very much appreciating our understanding and cooperation”, kept us appraised of the sequence of events she was viewing from her cab. The police arriving. Ambulance next. Special unit then Uncle Tom Cobbly and all. Each time she updated, a bit like hitting the refresh button on Google Chrome I guess, she followed with the ” fully apologising blah, appreciating our understanding blah blah” spiel.
At one point I thought the people in the front carriage were getting out to walk along the line. There were distinct signs of activity as people in our, the second carriage, pressed forward and into the first. In fact they weren’t preparing to disembark at all. The rumour had started from those at the very front with some limited view, that the cause of our delay looked about ready to jump. This required those behind to cram forward to watch.
For overground train read “Tumbril, next stop Tyburn Square. Please mind the gap.”
Eventually it cleared with no loss of life, not even a spot of blood for the proletariat. I guess some went home disappointed as, having missed an hours tv, they didn’t even get to see a large splat on the pavement.
I went to bed for a fitful sleep and was up before the alarm, as I always am for any airport run the next morning. I must learn to trust at least one of the fifteen alarms I always set when travelling!
I have watches , clocks, ipad, radio, computer etc all set. Even the bloody cooker timer dings away. They all go off, as set, over a period of a few minutes around my prearranged time in the morning I am already up, showered, dressed and repacked, sitting having a coffee looking at the world with what feels like sand filled eyes ‘cos I had no sleep worrying about getting up.
At least I wasn’t late.
Next stop Madrid, to start the main trek to Thailand.