Theme Thursday: Trip

Once we went on a bus trip. It was London, 2005, New Year's Day. It was freezing. Someone thought it was a good idea.

"The old Routemaster Buses are being phased out," she said, " this may be our last chance to ride on one."

Routemasters are the iconic red London double decker buses with the entrance at the rear. They still have conductors who hang off the rear platform and ring the bell to signal the driver that it's safe to leave the stop. At the time, people still chased them down the street and leaped perilously from crowded footpath to moving platform, swinging off the handrail and risking life and limb in doing so. This of course is why they were being phased out! Mighty expensive for the London Dept of Transport public liability section.

Oh and there was the disabled access issue.

Anyway, bear in mind that it was New Year's Day. Several of the adult members of our group were feeling mighty fragile thank you very much. Oh well, alright it was just me and Drew who had stayed up til 3am watching movies and drinking champagne.......but I had jetlag!! I swear!

It was freezing cold. Everyone rugged up and we ventured out with 3 nine year olds, 5 adults and a hangover. We missed the first bus. It was 3.30pmish. Now I don't know if you have the same problem in areas of the US but in the UK in January it is dark by 4pm or thereabouts. Temperatures are plummeting. Children are unaffected and continue to run amok. Busy roads exude amazing appeal for over excited, sugar laden boys- in particular. Buses are always late in this situation. More than once we had to retrieve a child from the path of an oncoming vehicle as they cavorted around their frozen parents in the excitement of the moment.

Oh, may I just say at this moment that one of the children was our dear friend Sir Slice up my Gardenalot
(see Best Shot Monday) whose self control is well renowned, not.

By the time the next bus came we were in pain with the cold. Gratefully we piled on via the ubiquitous rear platform, reining in children as best we could. ("We're going up stairs...come on Baby A, come on T and S ...lets sit right at the FRONT" this spoken at 4000 decibels and at a pitch designed to test the ears of a greyhound)

It was not an empty bus. Our children were over excited. The conductor was less than patient. And have you ever been upstairs in a double decker bus? It is a very mobile ride!! (Remember the hangover).

By the time we disembarked (and dragged children from out of the path of the 'about to move off' bus) we were having to remind ourselves of the historic nature of our trip. We were having to remind ourselves a LOT!

Are we having fun yet??? (Check out parental faces)

A quick look at the Christmas lights and we were in the market for toilets, hot drinks and food.
This was the day I discovered Starbucks. We don't have them in Adelaide. After the thaw out we had to go back out and wait for another bus to take us home. Fabulous.

Suffice to say I take great pleasure in the fact that I made the effort and personal sacrifice to take a TRIP in one of the last of the famous Routemaster buses in London. That was until I found out that they were not retired until nearly 11 months later!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bad Trip >:-(

See what's Trippin over at Picture This