Waiting for the ferry this morning

A good day in Oban, Johns eye test went well as did the shopping expedition.

W/L has a whole new meaning, as if it had a meaning before?.., it means waiting list. Hmnn. I booked the ferry last Monday for a car and two passengers return for today, this morning was fine, but the return was not. We arrived an hour early for the ferry home only to be told instead of a firm booking we are on standby. Apparently the temporary vessel, Isle of Arran, was to be replaced by the permanent ferry the Isle of Mull, however, the I of M wasn’t ready and the Arran, smaller, remained on duty and any cars booked over it’s designated number of car spaces fell into standby by, or the ‘chuck outs lane’. We should have been informed, that didn’t happen and we had an anxious hour waiting to hear if we stay in Oban or go home.

Well go home we did, the alternative would be a night in an Oban hotel or Premier Inn, not the end of the world except for hungry cats and two friends waiting for a delivery of their evening meal. And others for their food delivery. Obviously the worst didn’t happen and if it had our friends and cats would have managed but that’s not the point, how come we were NOT informed that we may not have a place on the ferry?

There is no answer, nobody will take responsibility, the local staff did their best by placating us, I don’t see the point in wasting my time complaining to HQ, they will be inundated with complaints from this weeks ferry disruptions already. And I have better things to do… I really Do.

Mackie is cuddling up to me as I write, we are pleased to be home. In the whole picture of life an unexpected night away from home is do-able, we think age makes us more anxious and less tolerable, obviously Calmac organisers haven’t realised that yet.