Train travel all over Europe is great. The trains go just about anywhere you want to go, they are usually on time, they are comfortable, and a great way to get around if you don't want to drive. However, things don't always go smoothly even on the train.
I remember traveling on the train with my daughter from Waterford to Dublin in Ireland. Just as we were nearing Dublin, a rock hit the window, right where my daughter's head was. It sounded like a gunshot, and Kim let out a scream, which scared me to death. A porter came and examined the window. He told us we were very lucky, that particular car had double pained windows. If we had been in a different car with the single pained windows, the rock would surely have come through the window, and it could have caused her serious head damage. He said they had been having problems with young kids throwing rocks from bridges at the train as it entered the city. The rest of our trip Kim was a bit nervous on the trains and tended to jump at every loud noise. I think she also took the inside seat as often as she could. Couldn't really blame her for being nervous.
Another incident that took place on the train, was in England, and also with my daughter. In fact it was the week following the Dublin incident. We were traveling up through England on our way up to Edinburgh, Scotland. I was reading a book when Kim got up and went to the toilet on the train. I was engrossed in the book and didn't notice that she had been gone a long time. Finally I realized that we were getting close to our destination and that she had been gone close to an hour. I got up and went out to where the toilets were and realized that someone was pounding on the inside of the bathroom door. I called to Kim and she yelled back that the handle had broken off the door and she couldn't open it. I went and got help. They were able to free her just before our arrival in Edinburgh.
| Tokyo, Japan & the Tokyo Tower |
The train pulled into the station, the doors opened, people were pushing their way onto the train. I had Kim get on and I started pushing our suitcases and packages onto the train. As I turned to grab the futon the doors started closing. I had visions of my young daughter going down the tracks without me. I managed to shove the futon into the closing doors, which caused it to pop open again, and allow me to get on. I don't know what would have happened if she had gone off without me. The funny part is, that now, years later, Kim recently told the story, and in her version, she did go off without me. She actually thinks she remembers getting off at the next station and waiting for me, which never happened. I can't even imagine how one little girl could have gotten all that stuff off the train on her own. She's still convinced that is what happened though.
So embarrassing.
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