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It's Bank Holiday time again innit !

Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2015 5:14 am
by G#Gill
As usual (well almost) the Bank Holiday Monday n the UK is imminent, so the weather, true to form, is expected to be cooler and damper. All those poor sods caught in holiday traffic snarl-ups will have to probably suffer rain while they queue, then cooler temps on the beaches when they arrive, hours later than intended. Then have to struggle in more traffic snarl-ups on their return home. Deep joy ! There is no way that I will ever venture out on a holiday or a day trip on a Bank Holiday Monday !!! :-5 :rolleyes:

It's Bank Holiday time again innit !

Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2015 7:51 am
by Snowfire
Love Bank Holidays more than religious threads

It's Bank Holiday time again innit !

Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2015 7:54 am
by G#Gill
Snowfire;1485209 wrote: Love Bank Holidays more than religious threads


:yh_rotfl

It's Bank Holiday time again innit !

Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2015 3:10 pm
by G#Gill
I always feel a bit sorry for people who have booked to go abroad and there is a strike at one airport or another for some reason, usually to do with pay of course. It's such a shame seeing families in airport lounges trying to get some sleep while waiting for things to sort out. Quite often this doesn't happen till it is time for those poor families to return home ! Nice holiday !

It's Bank Holiday time again innit !

Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2015 10:15 pm
by gmc
Actually it's not a UK bank holiday it's only england and wales although in practice a lot of firms with an english head office take it as well but the next scottish bank hoiday is 30th November.

When I was in retailing we always had a prioblem with a head office that expected a peak in sales at bank holiday time and that couldn'tget their nheads round the notion that it wasn't a big holiday up here.

It's Bank Holiday time again innit !

Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2015 10:33 am
by LarsMac
G#Gill;1485290 wrote: I always feel a bit sorry for people who have booked to go abroad and there is a strike at one airport or another for some reason, usually to do with pay of course. It's such a shame seeing families in airport lounges trying to get some sleep while waiting for things to sort out. Quite often this doesn't happen till it is time for those poor families to return home ! Nice holiday !


I remember such an adventure. it was late 1999, or early 2000 I had flown in to London for a trip that had me traveling around to various nation support offices for one of our big partners. took the EuroStar Train to Paris, and then from there made trips to Frankfort, Milan, and Brussels. when I was finished, a had a ticket for the return to London on Eurostar and planned to fly home the next day.

I arrived at Gare de Nord at 10 AM, with a 1 PM train departure. at 12:30, they announced that there would be a delay until 4 PM. Some sort of strike had shut the local rail lines down.

We finally boarded at 6 PM. and got underway.

Somewhere about 45 minutes out of Paris the train came to a halt. There was talk of another blockage due to the strike. It turned out that the earlier EuroStar that has left Paris at 9 AM was still stalled outside of Calais.

It got dark. people got cranky. there were not enough seats, and not enough beer and wine, or kibble.

We finally got moving around 11 PM.

We were told that even though Waterloo closed at 1 AM, there would be people there to make sure that we got cabs or other transportation to where we needed to go.

We arrived at around 2 AM, and guess how many rail personnel were around to assist.

We all ended up queueing up for taxis, and there were very few of those. I think it was around 4:30, when I finally caught a cab with three other people. I was the furthest out, as I was going to a hotel near Heathrow. The cabbie complained about me only wishing to pay the set fare for Heathrow, since he had to drive to all the other locations with me in the car, even though he got full fares for each of the other three. The sun was coming up by the time I got to my hotel, and my flight was at 12:30 PM.

I ended up calling the airlines and pushing my departure to the next day. The high point was that the hotel manager gave me the second night at no charge, and paid for my breakfast.

Compared to the horror stories some of my friends have told of delayed travel, that was really just a lark. I have usually be fairly lucky in my travels.

It's Bank Holiday time again innit !

Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2015 1:05 pm
by G#Gill
Lars, that was some adventure !!!! It was interesting that you had a bit of sympathy from a Brit. hotel !