Stupid Traveling Mistake

On 4 Nov, 17:40, Lone Haranguer wrote:
Brent Cross wrote:
On 4 Nov, 17:28, Marsha wrote:
Colin Dale wrote:
On 4 Nov, 16:44, javawizard wrote:
If you have made any amusing mistakes while traveling, or know of an
interesting traveling mistake, it might make a great addition towww.stupid-mistakes.com
Take care!
- Jeff
well..... some people over the Atlantic elected an Arsehole to run
they're country.
He and his friends thought it would be a good idea to invade Iraq on
the pretext of looking for WMD (although they really wanted the oil).
Then they're leader said that they had won the war, and everybody
cheered.
Years later they are still there getting there dumb brains blown out.
Thats pretty stooooooooooooooopid.
Speaking of stooooopid, do you know the difference
between they're, their, and there?

Marsha/Ohio

er....no, but I wood like two....

Just another Euro filled with envy.
LZ

envy or shrapnel u chooze.....

On Nov 4, 10:28 am, Marsha wrote:

Years later they are still there getting there dumb brains blown out.

Thats pretty stooooooooooooooopid.

Speaking of stooooopid, do you know the difference
between they're, their, and there?

Marsha/Ohio- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Very good comment! That is usually a good measurement of stupid. :-)
y

On 4 Nov, 20:31, Yukon wrote:
On Nov 4, 10:28 am, Marsha wrote:



Years later they are still there getting there dumb brains blown out.

Thats pretty stooooooooooooooopid.

Speaking of stooooopid, do you know the difference
between they're, their, and there?

Marsha/Ohio- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Very good comment! That is usually a good measurement of stupid. :-)
y

and not forgettin vietnam, that was also very stoooooopid....

Maida Vale wrote:
On 4 Nov, 20:31, Yukon wrote:
On Nov 4, 10:28 am, Marsha wrote:



Years later they are still there getting there dumb brains blown out.
Thats pretty stooooooooooooooopid.
Speaking of stooooopid, do you know the difference
between they're, their, and there?
Marsha/Ohio- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Very good comment! That is usually a good measurement of stupid. :-)
y

and not forgettin vietnam, that was also very stoooooopid....

Korea too, unless you happen to be a South Korean.
LZ

Brent Cross wrote:
On 4 Nov, 17:28, Marsha wrote:
Colin Dale wrote:
On 4 Nov, 16:44, javawizard wrote:
If you have made any amusing mistakes while traveling, or know of an
interesting traveling mistake, it might make a great addition towww.stupid-mistakes.com
Take care!
- Jeff
well..... some people over the Atlantic elected an Arsehole to run
they're country.
He and his friends thought it would be a good idea to invade Iraq on
the pretext of looking for WMD (although they really wanted the oil).
Then they're leader said that they had won the war, and everybody
cheered.
Years later they are still there getting there dumb brains blown out.
Thats pretty stooooooooooooooopid.
Speaking of stooooopid, do you know the difference
between they're, their, and there?

Marsha/Ohio

er....no, but I wood like two....

You're lucky you're not writing in German. Pretty soon you'll be
required to write in Arabic or Pakistani.

Magda wrote:
On Sun, 04 Nov 2007 14:59:36 -0700, in rec.travel.europe, not the moderator
arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:


... You're lucky you're not writing in German. Pretty soon you'll be
... required to write in Arabic or Pakistani.

You are an idiot. Always the same blah-blah...

Well, what has changed? The UK still owes us a living.

Lee wrote:
On Sun, 04 Nov 2007 07:44:38 -0800, javawizard
wrote:

If you have made any amusing mistakes while traveling, or know of an
interesting traveling mistake, it might make a great addition to

My wife and I recently returned from an Alaskan cruise that turned out
to be somewhat different from what we expected. I accept some of the
responsibility for not having opened my confirmation or ticketing
information that out travel agent sent. However, I still place a good
deal of weight for the mistake on the agent.

When we called the agent, we requested that he make reservations for the
MS CELEBRATION, out of Vancouver. When we got to the pier and began
filling out our forms, we discovered that he'd made reservations on the
MS Salivation- a 93' tuna boat. It was quite a shock when we had to
take yet another taxi from Canada Place and go to the fishing pier instead.

The MS Salivation was tied up to the dock, taking on bait when we
arrived. The wife was first to board. Since the ship had no gangway,
they tied a rope under her arms and hoisted her aboard. It was windy
that day, and the breeze let everyone see her bloomers. It was
embarrassing for her, but she got to quickly know the crew, at least. I
rode on a bait box onto the deck and we were shown to our stateroom by
one of the engine crew. The Salivation only has one stateroom for
guests, and it's located between the fish hold and engine room. Since
the hold is iced down to reduce tuna spoilage, and the engine room is
approximately 185f degrees during operation, the stateroom's temperature
ranges from one wall being approximately 25f to the other being 185f. We
found this very convenient during the few times we were permitted to
sleep, since by choosing which hooks to place our hammocks on, we could
adjust our temperatures accordingly.

We were pleased to find that our travel agent had supplied us with a
complimentary bottle of his favorite wine- Thunderbird Red and a
delicious plate of Tuna and bread, with onion. He tells us that it's a
favorite appetizer in Pennsylvania. The choice of wine was enhanced by
its aluminum screw cap, since our traveling corkscrew had been
confiscated from our luggage by TSA out of concern we might hijack a
ship with it.

Departure from the pier was scheduled to be at 3:00p, but our captain
was still drunk from the previous evening and didn't arrive at the boat
until Noon. I found it necessary to help out the crew in loading in ice
and bait so we could depart before sunset, at least. This is a great
time to leave Vancouver, since the winds are traditionally out of the
West and pick up before sunset. This, coupled with the boat's speed and
direction helps to blow away the smell of the slightly spoiled squid,
used as tuna bait by the vessel during its week long excursion.

As previously mentioned, our stateroom was located directly below the
main deck, between the fish storage hold and the engine room. Access
was by a straight ladder, carefully placed in the storage hold and tied
off to a metal beam. The stateroom was decoratively painted in a dark
brown color, which we later discovered was called "rust" by the crew.
Besides a folding chair and card table, we had two generously sized
hammocks, one blanket and a bath robe bearing the Holiday Inn logo. I
inquired about towels and was told that since there were no shower or
bath facilities aboard the vessel, they were not needed.

The only complaint we had about the stateroom, was that lighting was
quite poor. There were no windows, so all we had was a 15 watt bulb
hanging from the ceiling. I brought this to the attention of our
steward (who also was the primary hook baiter when fishing) and he
replaced it with a more generous 60 watt bulb. He explained that the
stateroom we had was primarily used for squid bait storage, so a larger
bulb wasn't necessary. However, since our travel agent had booked it
for our Alaskan excursion, they were storing the squid on deck in 55
gallon barrels for this trip. That also explained the salty, nautical
"air" we had noticed in the stateroom upon arrival.

Dinner that evening was on deck, and quite festive. The crew had placed
a sheet of plywood over two squid barrels, covered it with a checkered
oilcloth and it became our table. . . table #1, in fact. Dinner
consisted of Tuna, Wonder Bread and catsup. Because of our political
beliefs, the crew removed the Heinz catsup at our request and replaced
it with Hunt's, which we now prefer. My wife had her tuna blackened,
while I had mine fried. Other choices were boiled, braised, breaded,
raw, grilled, baked and roast. The bread and catsup were excellent
accompaniments and the loaf of bread was sealed tightly between meals to
prevent salt spray from softening it.

Sleep the first night was a bit difficult, since the 93' boat
encountered 85' waves. The hammocks were both a godsend and problem.
The best part was that they permitted us to sway side-to-side as the
boat rolled, and they could be adjusted toward the hot or cold stateroom
walls for temperature control. The downside was that they were placed
9' above the cabin floor, up toward the ceiling and we were continually
pounded against the ceiling as the boat pitched and rolled in the 85'
waves. During the night, I climbed up out of the fish storage hold and
requested some additional rope to permit them to be lowered. The
captain had sobered up some, and told me that the only rope on a ship
was the rope for the ship's bell. Other than that, it was called a
LINE. I then requested about 30' of LINE and was handed an entire skein
of clothes line. That really helped to reduce the number of times we
were banged against the ceiling and made climbing into our hammocks much
easier, since they were closer to the stateroom's floor.

I mentioned that the ship had no shower or bathing facilities. Our
stateroom DID come equipped for our personal needs, however. Over in
the corner was a 5 gallon drywall bucket, on which the ship's engineer
had placed a toilet seat. It was quite convenient and could be scooted
around to either the hot or cold wall for more comfort when in use. A
few nights into our cruise, we did request that it be emptied on a daily
basis, since it had a tendency to turn over during several of the storms
we encountered. There was also a slight learning curve to using it,
since the seat had a tendency to slide off- much to the distress of my
wife.

It was great being able to access both the engine compartment and bridge
during the cruise. The captain had a bit of a drinking problem and
after Happy Hour, which began about 1:00p, he would permit and even
encourage anyone to take the helm. The Chief Engineer was a large gent
named Mordo, who never seemed to leave the engine compartment. I asked
the captain about this and was told that Mordo had his own hammock and 5
gallon bucket down below, and preferred the warm temperature and scents
of his beloved engine compartment to the spray and breeze of above deck.
Mordo was also concerned about several arrest warrants, and feared
being spotted if he was on deck. It worked out well for the ship, since
the crew would merely toss down some Tuna for Mordo to eat and
occasionally haul his 5 gallon bucket out for dumping overboard in the
Alaskan waters. My wife and I were offered a tour of the engine room,
but respectfully declined.

Since this was a Tuna boat, the entire 7-day Alaskan cruise had no ports
of call. We were "at sea" the entire time. At first we had some
concern about why this was called an Alaskan cruise, but the captain
explained that we would be presented with a wooden train whistle that
said, "Skagway Alaska," a polyester tee shirt saying, "Juneau Alaska"
and a surprise Taiwan-made trinket bearing the Ketchikan moniker when we
completed the cruise. We considered this, and felt that it adequately
conveyed the Alaskan experience well enough that we were satisfied.

During our days at sea, the captain hosted a daily contest called "Who
can bait the most hooks?" We were placed on folding chairs on deck with
a 55 gallon drum of warm squid beside us. At the count of 3, we began
baiting hooks with the squid and after 8 hours, the person who had
baited the most hooks won a prize. During the first three days of the
cruise, I easily won. However, as the squid "softened" in the warm
barrels, my wife's greater dexterity prevailed and she began winning.
She also reported that the combination of "squid squeezings" and squid
water from the barrels did wonders for her hands. The MS Salivation had
no spa, so this was their substitute for Steiner's. It also saved us
quite a bit of money that would have ordinarily been spent at another
ship's spa.

Meals aboard the Salivation were generally informal, with only one
formal evening. Breakfast consisted of Tuna, bread and catsup (Hunt's).
Lunch was Tuna, bread and catsup (Hunt's). Dinner was at 5:00p sharp,
immediately following the hook baiting contest, and consisted of Tuna,
bread and catsup (Hunt's). There was one exception to this, however,
During the first breakfast of the cruise, we were offered the choice of
Tuna, bread and catsup (Hunt') or Calamari, bread and catsup (Hunt's),
Since the squid was not chilled, it would have not been a good idea to
have selected Calamari following the first day of the cruise.

As previously mentioned, meals were served on deck at our squid barrel
and plywood table. During formal night, the captain joined us on deck
and we found our tablecloth had changed magically to a barely soiled
furniture pad cleverly labeled, "North American Van Lines." This was
quite nice and when soaked with spray, prevented the paper plates from
scooting around as the ship pitched and rolled in the waves. The
captain had his own beverage, which he drank from a hip flask, but he
presented us with a second bottle of wine from his private stock.
Unlike the Thunderbird Red given us by our travel agent, this wine had a
genuine synthetic CORK. We asked that it be chilled, so the steward
placed it into the Tuna hold for a few minutes. Since the ship had no
corkscrew, we were forced to break the bottle's neck off. We filtered
the wine through our steward's a tee shirt, and it was delicious- having
a salty, fishy flavor.

Dinner that evening consisted of Tuna, bread and catsup (Hunt's), which
was served by our steward. For formal night, he washed both his good
hand and the one with only a thumb on it, and also changed into a fresh
tee shirt and boxer shorts.

Our Alaskan Cruise's success was naturally measured in part by the
number of Tuna caught. In the 7 days we were aboard the MS Salivation,
over 1500 tuna were hooked, brought aboard and gutted. We were offered
a choice of whether we wished to participate in the Hook Baiting contest
or its Tuna Gutting alternative, but both chose the Hook Baiting for its
simplicity. It was a vacation, you understand. I have to admit that by
the time we finished our cruise that we would have become quite handy
with the gutting knife. However, the prize for winning a gutting contest
was that we could keep the knife, and we realized that despite its
sentimental value, TSA would confiscate it at the airport.

Our ship returned to the fish dock in Vancouver at 1:00a, but we could
not disembark until the Tuna had been off loaded. This was accomplished
by 5:00a and we were permitted to go ashore. I rode ashore in one of
the empty squid barrels from the deck. The captain and crew were all on
deck to wish us well and possibly to see a rerun of my wife's bloomers,
as she was hoisted ashore. She has a great sense of humor and since she
realized that they were all standing there to see her bloomers, she
played a trick on them and didn't wear any that morning.

In all, our Alaskan Cruise was somewhat different from what we had
expected aboard a Carnival ship. As mentioned earlier, I blame myself
as much as the travel agent, since I never opened the cruise ticket
package until we were at the docks. However, we salvaged what we could
of our vacation and made the most of what we were handed. The MS
Salivation is a bit small for cruising Alaskan waters with 85' waves,
and being the only paying passengers aboard the ship has both benefit
and drawback. On one hand, we had the full attention of our steward
when he wasn't placing squid on hooks, but we missed having other
passengers to visit with while competing in the daily squid baiting
contest. With the whistle, tee shirt and trinkets given us at the end
of the cruise, we felt we really didn't miss much of the Alaskan
experience, but it would have been fun to at least go ashore once to see
a Totem Pole or visit the Red Dog or Red Onion saloons.


--
---Nonnymus---
No matter how large your boat,
the person you are talking with will
have a close friend with a larger one.
---Observation by my son

Magda wrote:
On Sun, 04 Nov 2007 17:13:45 -0700, in rec.travel.europe, not the moderator
arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:

... Magda wrote:
... On Sun, 04 Nov 2007 14:59:36 -0700, in rec.travel.europe, not the moderator
... arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:
...
...
... ... You're lucky you're not writing in German. Pretty soon you'll be
... ... required to write in Arabic or Pakistani.
...
... You are an idiot. Always the same blah-blah...
...
... Well, what has changed? The UK still owes us a living.

Your song is boooooooooooooooooooriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiing...

Magda is a nice German name.

Colin Dale wrote:
On 4 Nov, 16:44, javawizard wrote:
If you have made any amusing mistakes while traveling, or know of an
interesting traveling mistake, it might make a great addition
towww.stupid-mistakes.com Take care!
- Jeff

well..... some people over the Atlantic elected an Arsehole to run
they're country.
He and his friends thought it would be a good idea to invade Iraq on
the pretext of looking for WMD (although they really wanted the oil).
Then they're leader said that they had won the war, and everybody
cheered.
Years later they are still there getting there dumb brains blown out.

Thats pretty stooooooooooooooopid.

All CREDIBLE leaders in Europe have SUPPORTED Coalition efforts in Iraq, by the way. Amazing how a bunch
of left-wing LIARS in Europe, who couldn't even win WWII by themselves, fancy themselves SO knowledgeable
about OTHER nation's affairs.

Lone Haranguer wrote:
Brent Cross wrote:
On 4 Nov, 17:28, Marsha wrote:
Colin Dale wrote:
On 4 Nov, 16:44, javawizard wrote:
If you have made any amusing mistakes while traveling, or know of
an interesting traveling mistake, it might make a great addition
towww.stupid-mistakes.com Take care!
- Jeff
well..... some people over the Atlantic elected an Arsehole to run
they're country.
He and his friends thought it would be a good idea to invade Iraq
on the pretext of looking for WMD (although they really wanted the
oil). Then they're leader said that they had won the war, and
everybody cheered.
Years later they are still there getting there dumb brains blown
out. Thats pretty stooooooooooooooopid.
Speaking of stooooopid, do you know the difference
between they're, their, and there?

Marsha/Ohio

er....no, but I wood like two....

Just another Euro filled with envy.
LZ

Precisely. Thanks to the brainwashing of their educational system, the time that used to be spend on
grammar and spelling is now spent on how faggotry is not just acceptable but is actually a *preferred*
sexual option.