the Rain in Spain Falls Mainly on the Plain

Thursday after work, I drove down to Inverness and after a haircut and Mac

Donald's hamburger - seriously mom, I got on the sleeper train.  Everything was exactly the same except the lounge was a little bit nicer.  I didn't sleep as well as last time, but I did sleep and the bed was perfectly comfortable; it was maybe a bit warm in my room.

I woke up at 5 and got dressed and fed and then went to sit in the lounge - it was then that I noticed we were not moving.  I know this might be strange, but the train does start and stop quite a bit and pull off onto other tracks to let trains pass, but I really hadn't noticed that we were not moving.  Turns out, there had been a fatality on the tracks ahead, and there was no indication when it would be cleared.

I had intentionally taken the train because it doesn't let pesky things like fog get in the way, and I was sure to make my connection - right!?!  The train porter was perhaps too helpful and was providing constant updates that got worse and worse.  Finally, we got going again and eventually arrived at Euston station in London, from there I took the tube to Victoria station to catch the Gatwick Express.  I just missed the next train because the people using the ticket machine treated the machine like they were programming a warhead. I found this frustrating.

Wait, wait, and finally another train comes, they are running 30 minutes behind schedule. I get to Gatwick, and it is a complete madhouse.  There are hundreds of people dragging around too much luggage and screaming children.  I join a queue of 300 to 400 people to drop my bags; EasyJet puts all their flights at one desk.  

Ages later, I dropped my bag and then performed the same act to get through security.  Once on the other side, I purchased some wine - as I would need contraband on this trip...more on that later.

Then I went and inhaled a piece of sausage pizza that was dripping with oil and cheese, and contained carbohydrates - the dreaded and delicious white flour...again will make sense later.

The plane was late arriving and this caused everyone's behaviour to drop a notch, which I really did not think was possible.  When I got to my seat, there was someone in it.  When I said, you are in my seat - they laughed and said oh yeah, there is a problem.  

A flight attendant asks me to take a different seat, which I do.  Then two girls come and say they have the inside seats, I move aside to let them in and they say that is our mother's seat, as I open my mouth to explain there has been a seating issue one of the girls says, sit down mother and do not look at her, and she does.  All of my stuff is now here while they reseat me twice more.  

The journey is uneventful and mortifying as the drunks get drunker and laugh and cackle at the inappropriate things coming out of their mouths.  But soon we land in Alcante.  

As I am collecting my bags, I see mother and 2 daughters from SeatGate.  I look at how they are dressed and think hmm.  I call my ride and let him know I am late and he says no problem, there are 4 of you on this flight and we'll wait.  I realize that these 3 ladies are off to the same place I am, and we'll be spending the next 7 days hiking, doing yoga and pilates and generally hearing about how to look and feel our best.  Too bad there isn't a session on how not to be a rude cow.

I was right as Nigel our driver collected us and the others that had been waiting and drove us an hour and a half to our beautiful resort.  We had several discussions with the staff and organizers on the rules and as I was getting frog marched around on my orientation, I saw this gorgeous giggling redhead and I realised all was right with the world because there was Gill.