RE: Tale of the ferry boat disartster

Thanks for these updates, we have been following your progress with much delight!  All in all it sounds as if the experience is great, disasters only make you enjoy the good bits more!  We think about you lots, please take good care of you both!  love you heaps, Nana.xx
 
> From: simon.barrett.mail@googlemail.com
> To: simon.barrett.mail.dontpanicsid@blogger.com; suechaddock@tiscali.co.uk; Jonathan.chaddock@homecall.co.uk; edith_barr@hotmail.co.uk
> Subject: Tale of the ferry boat disartster
> Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:46:55 +0300
>
> Day 14. 14th Oct 2009
> Location: Ferry boat
> Status: Less sick than some
> Lesson: if you tip the cart with wheels on its side it will stop moving.
>
> We left canakkale to Istanbul in the afternoon. There are two
> transport options, 5 hour bus or 2.5hour bus and 2 hour ferry.
> We picked the latter dispite it being a little more expensive, by
> expensive I mean £4 more.
>
> You could tell winter was moving in. The sun was hiding and the wind
> was giving it all it had. All this said the ferry ride was smooth
> enough untill we got to Istanbul!
>
> I have been thinking about health and safety recently. There is a lot
> I want to say on the subject, but this is for another time and what I
> want to say will contradict how I feel now about the Health and Safety
> policies Trukey has implimented in regards to ferry transportation.
>
> We are chatting away to this nice Turkish banker, there is an
> announcement asking drivers to return to their cars as we are about to
> dock. We stay where we are as there is no need to poke the bear that
> is Davina's well behaving motion sickness by getting up when the boat
> is still moving.
> We pass what looks like the dock
> We pass what looks like the dock, again.
> We seam to be going around in circles for about 20mins, almost like we
> are looking for a parking space. The manager explains to us that there
> is not a lot of space at the dock and the rough sea is making it very
> hard to dock. But it will only be 10mins.
> So around and around we go. And it starts to gett rough, very rough.
> People are getting thrown about and some very sick. Glasses are
> smashing.
> Then we hit somthing.
> Everyone comes up from below, many very scared. Some put their life
> jackets on.
> But the priority of the staff is not to reassure people, help those
> who are struggling, give out sick bags. No, it's more important that
> the coffee machine does not fall over! There were 4 members of the
> junior staff having to hold the coffee machine and three trollies in
> place. One of them was terrified and looking very unwell. Customers
> were approching them asking for sick bags or water and while they went
> to get these items they had to hold the trollies!
> I could not believe it.
> So I went up and unable to understand their protests, tipped one of
> the trollies over so it no longer moved allowing the poor scared girl
> to sit down.
>
> During this whole proccess, 1.5 hours of very rough sea, there was not
> one announcement or reassuring word to tell us what was happening or
> that it was all ok. And if you wanted water you still had to pay for it.
>
> Davina missed all this fun as she was doing her best not to feel sick.
>
> Finally we docked. It was raining of course. After a short taxi ride
> we got lost then to our hostel.
>
> I was looking foward to Istanbul. What we saw was stunning. But I was
> very ready to leave. Eveything is expensive and directed at the tourist.
>
> We have escaped istanbul with our lives.
>
> Sent from my iPhone

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