,
Bags packed. Check.
Checked out of hotel.
Check.
Double and triple checked departure times for upcoming trip
from Brussels to Amsterdam. Check.
Arrived at station way ahead of schedule. A first!
Scoped and scouted out shops for last minute trinkets and
souvenirs. Ka-Ching! Schlepped cumbersome luggage up and down
hundreds of stairs for what felt like hours on end. Hallelujah – didn’t break my back!
Purchased boarding pass. Check.
Boarded train fifteen minutes ahead of departure time. Double check!
Raced like a bat out of hell to score window seat. Victory!
Shoved and stowed trunks and baggage on the near-empty rack
above my seat. Check!
Could I have any better luck? Just wait.
All settled in. Nap
time.
Aaahhh… Breathe easy
moment.
And, can I order that vino?
Or two?
Whoa! Not so quick.
Yikes!! I’m on the
wrong train.
“Again? Like, seriously?”
Lined up and all ready to go!! |
Did we miss the train or are we early? |
All aboard!
And just like that, the carriage doors slammed shut.
Whoosh!
A near empty caboose barrelling towards destinations unknown
on the track to somewhere or perhaps nowhere and now we’re trapped!
Nothing like a dash of panic peppered with bucket-loads of
disbelief to kick-start one’s day.
After all, why experience a run of the mill, oh so boring mundane journey when you
could instead be an active participant in a comedy of errors of the slapstick
inspired kind.
Isn’t that what traversing the globe is all about?
“Press the
button! Press the button! We’re on the wrong train!”
Too late!
Should we pull the Emergency Stop?
Hurry!
Luggage tumbling, feet a stumbling, arms a flailing,
expletives a hurling - no need to further explain – you get the picture or not.
“We’re hopping off at
the next stop!”
Flashback a minute or two or three or four.
So, exactly, how does one board the wrong train?
After all, we’re on the right track!
Track number #05, to be exact!
And look, we’re fifteen minutes early!
And, we’re certainly not tardy.
What luck!
So on we scramble.
But consequently neglect to clue in that our train has not
yet pulled into station and is scheduled to arrive at designated track in the
next five minutes flat…at 11:45am to be exact.
Departure is at 11:50am sharp!
So that means…
Gulp!
So, which train did we board?
Looks like the caboose that was scheduled to depart at
11:40am instead.
There’s so much to be said about missing the boat - or was
that train?
Yikes!
Tunnelling towards destinations unknown.
The journey continues.
Checking off the check list. Or not! |
Disembark at what appears to be abandoned station.Now what? WHERE are we? |
Next blog post – In three weeks! Wednesday, May 25th!! Stay tuned!!
And while I’m at it, might as well confess that I
inadvertently jumped ahead a city or two and scribbled about our misadventures
leaving Brussels, as opposed to arriving in Bruxelles.
Yikes! So much for
that check list.
Come ride the rails with the clue-less Duo
– that of course would be cuckoo ol’ Auntie Nora and sidekick Oz – as we discover
the efficiencies of European rail travel.
A second too late and you’re out of luck as your train has already
barrelled ahead. But, if a few minutes
early, board at your own risk and always check those handy, dandy timetables
that detail exactly when your Choo Choo is about to depart. Too early and you’re on the wrong train, too
late and you’re on another caboose to destinations unknown. Either way, nothing short of a memorable
journey!
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