Misadventures by Plane, Train, Campervan and Ferry

Waiting

Warning: If you’re reading this hoping for the usual random smattering of thoughts, experiences and photos from our travels to lovely locations you definitely want to check out another blog, instagram, or facebook "Bring Me." However, if you’d like to hear about some of the less rosy sides of traveling - read on. 

Our Aeroflot flight left Tokyo for London with a planned three hour layover in Moscow. After a long and very warm flight, we were grateful to reach Moscow Airport and stretch our legs but we had quite a few surprises in store for us. Used to just going from one terminal to another without having to pass thru security again? Nope, not here. We were directed to stand in a very long line to have a passport security check. The line grew preposterously long as we waited for the one passport checker. At first there was some semblance of order but that fell apart with people just arriving and slipping into line ahead and all around us. Polite people made little headway and thereafter became less so. We were directed into another line and eventually had two separate passport checks and passed through a metal detector and bag security check. Once through, we struggled to interpret signs but eventually found our terminal and some desperately needed water. As we waited, it became more and more crowded and there was a delay. The airport staff seemed to be either missing, completely overrun or unhelpful. One employee’s expression was “I stopped caring in 1995.” 

Are you used to walking down a covered passageway to your flight? Not here. Here you are sent outside to a very large conveyance with open doors so that you can stand and breathe in carbon-monoxide exhaust and frosty air while you wait for everyone on your plane to be checked in and board. Then you will be driven a great distance with the vehicle making bizarre noises past torn-up runways, rusting planes, and buildings that look like they were used for target practice in WW2 and you begin to think you are not heading for a plane at all. . . Eventually we did board a plane. It was from the 1990’s - no entertainment screens, phones, lights, or vents. The safety leaflet didn’t show you how to put on a life-vest, just various swimming strokes. My head ached for hours from the carbon-monoxide fumes. Japan seemed light years away.

In case of ditching, do not hold onto aircraft.

When we arrived in London on Wednesday, we had been traveling for over 28 hours and we were grateful for a relatively orderly customs routine and a comfy bed at the airport hotel. Our plan for the next few days was to take the train to Bristol, pick up our campervan, take care of necessities and hop on a ferry to sunny Spain. The first part went well but when we picked up the campervan, the “check engine” light was on. We’d had this problem at the end of our last trip but it had recently been in at the Fiat Service Centre for several days of testing and was pronounced “fixed.” 

Several misadventures ensued:

• We had no local phone or internet/wi-fi service until we could re-establish it with our Vodafone provider. This required multiple calls across several days and hamstrung our efforts in many ways. 
• The maps on our Garmin 770 that I had been updating regularly suddenly became corrupted and were useless. This caused problems with navigation since our phones also weren't working and required hours of time in coffee shops and libraries to remedy.
• We had no LPG and couldn’t find a place to fill up that day (see navigation/communication above). It was a very cold first night in the camper without heat. Also, no hot coffee the next morning. Horrors!
• The Fiat Service Centre couldn’t get us in until Monday. 

Fields in bloom.

Now glance up at the picture at the top of the post. This is the waiting room of the aforementioned Fiat Service Centre and we were there alot. Monday they thought they found the new problem but they needed parts. We returned the next day and after much waiting it was fixed (again)! Optimistic, we booked a ferry and went on a long test drive to seal it. Then that blasted check engine light reappeared and we lost acceleration again. There was a lot of cursing; cancellation of said ferry; then more waiting and another round of all of the above.

Sign in Welch

England can be a fine place to be, but not so great when you want to be elsewhere. We went to Wales on test drives just to be in another country.  

Click here for the photo album of misadventures.

11th Century Castle in Wales

I’ve sprinkled a few pictures around to lighten things up a bit but maybe its good to write about the troubles sometimes so we don’t give you unrealistic expectations about #vanlife. 

In all we spent 11 days in England and our ferry is scheduled to leave for Spain tomorrow. I sincerely hope to return to the previous format of hackneyed observations and unprofessional but sincere, un-retouched pictures of interesting places. If you read this far you must be a true friend. Thank you for joining us on this misadventure.