[Mar. 2024] In mid-March, when the weather was not particularly good, we stayed in Torquay, a town in southwest England, for two nights.
“Domestic travel refers to travel within the country of residence,” says AI.
So, for us, who are leaving the UK after living there for many years, this was our last domestic trip in the UK.
After sending off our moving boxes the day before, a house clearing company came in the morning and took out the things that still usable, but we did not need.
Of course, we had to pay for this service.
It was a typical British rainy day, so we took an Uber to the nearest station, which we were familiar with.
I felt quite sad thinking that this would be the last time I would use this station.
We had some time at Paddington Station, so we relaxed at a cafe.
Then we were shocked when we looked at the electronic display board.
The train we were going to take had been cancelled.
When I asked the information desk, I was told, “This train leaves from Reading today, so go to Reading.”
So we ran to platform 9 where the next train to Reading was leaving, but the train had just left.
I was panicked and asked a station attendant and was told that the next train was on platform 3, so we ran there, got on the train that was already there, and took a breather.
During the journey, the conductor came round and when I explained the situation, he said, “You have plenty of time,” and I was finally relieved.
At Reading station, a train to Penzance was waiting and we tried to get on, but it turned out that it was not the one for us.
After waiting for a while at the station, we finally received an announcement and were able to get on the right train.
British railways were a nerve-wracking experience until the very end.
During the COVID period, when social distancing was important, contrary to the wording on the website, it was completely disorganized in reality, which was shocking, and at another time they even announced, “We cannot depart because the driver is not coming.”
Still, somehow each time they managed to reach their destination without any major problems, and that was no different this time.
Though we were later than planned, we made it to Torquay safely.
This is how the UK is run as a country.
It seems like they’re always on the brink of collapse, but somehow manage to escape.
