Otherwise known as travel mishaps.
And in the Rubin household you can be guaranteed at least one per trip. From bird poop, to rainy beaches, to getting stuck on a narrow street mid three-point-turn. If it’s belly laugh inducing (and at the time, anxiety provoking) chancing are it’s happened to us.
Little did I know that this particular Rubin trait would follow me across the pond on a Staggs family trip.
As always, after the fact, the mishaps are funny and – let’s face it – great fodder for the old blog. But, in the moment, it was terrible.
Another site we planned on visiting while in England was Stonehenge. My dad had been there back in the early 90’s and I was lucky enough to have seen the ruins only two years ago. My mom and sister were definitely in for a treat.
Being the wanna-be tour guide that I am, I took charge on booking the tour that would pick us up from Bath and deliver us to Stonehenge. My dad helpfully booked the train tickets that would get us from London to Bath. The two worlds of different booking systems would align and the day trip would pull off without a hitch.
You see where this is going right?
We get to the train station on time, locate our platform and have a smooth ride (complete with in-train entertainment!) all the way to Bath. Once there we grabbed some coffee and set off exploring the beautiful architecture and greenery that abounds here. A quick lunch by the river was enjoyed before sprinting off to our tour group meeting location.
(You SO know where this is going now…)
In line to climb onto our coach and the tour guide can’t find our names on the roster. I whip out the confirmation number and patiently wait while he calls his office…and informs me that…our tickets were for…the next day.
Womp. Womp.
Clearly I need more practice in the art of tour-guiding.
So here we were where Thursday didn’t mean Friday and Three available seats wouldn’t accommodate Four booties. My logic at this point was that the ruins had been there for thousands of years already, I’d just seen them two years ago and am pretty confident they would continue to stand until my next rendezvous with England.
Off they go to see the wonder that is Stonehenge, while I consoled myself with a manicure, leisurely walk and delicious lunch along the River Avon.
C’est la vie…or better yet, c’est la travel mishaps…that turn out alright in the end.
2 Comments
And as they say too “things happen for a reason” thou sometimes the reason doesn’t make an ounce of sense!
Except for that one glitch, it was a great day trip!!! And if you are going to be stuck in a small town somewhere, Bath is a good one to be stuck in.