Wednesday 11/08/04

Booked a hotelroom in the Ibis Hotel in Glasgow and jumped on the train north. It was another hot day, and the 14.30 from Euston was boiling. The journey was fraught with difficulties. Due to flooding on the line, the train was diverted through Stone, Stoke-on-Trent to Crewe, which caused a 60 minute delay. Fed-up looking passengers joined us at intermediate station, until disaster struck again on the Beattock Summit, between Carlisle and Glasgow: a red light and a lengthy wait. The usual exchange of travel horror-stories (my fav one: how the train caught fire, or at least how there was smoke in the smoking carriage on the Newcastle to London train) preceded the announcement that we'd be going back to Carlisle. On arrival there at 9pm, coaches were being commandeered to take the passengers on 8 Intercity trains north. However, the clever ones jumped on the little local to Dumfries, Kilmarnock and Glasgow. Anticipated time of arrival: 23.30. Original TOA: 19.53. The battery on my mobile ran flat in the middle of a phone-call, but someone lent me a hand-recharger. Do it 2.5 times a second for 3 minutes and you have 3 minutes' worth of battery power. The noise of the winder wound a fellow passenger up, who couldn't stand it. Took a taxi from Glasgow Central to the hotel.