Travel in hope

Cruise ship in Dublin port today. As I drove along the Clontarf road a helicopter landed beside the ship.You could almost hear them say. Well there's Ireland done, Scotland tomorrow.
Without hardly putting a foot on the place.

Looking at St Annes church from the Westbury hotel off Grafton St.
Large puppets on O Connell St. at the James Joyce festival a while ago.

Funny thing happened today,
A girl from Kenya said ."Could I use your phone the battery on mine is dead. Its very important. I will only be a minute and I will pay for the call.
The first 10 seconds might have been important.
Then she goes on and on and on. I was going to explode when she decided to stop.
Mobile phone charges vary a lot . For her 8 mins I charged her e3.
Could be more, a lot more. Could even be less.
There is no magic number to find out.
What I found offensive was the lack of respect for the use of my phone.
I would never talk on the phone for 2 minutes myself and I would surely not use up someone elses credit .
When I got home I looked up my account on the o2 website and there was the call only cost .85cent, I thought it would cost a lot more.

I told her that in the 2euro shops they sell a phone booster which has adapters to fit all phones.
It wouldn't fit mine its not a Nokia.
ALL phones, I repeated.
It will keep you going or even charge up your phone in the bush.( that might have hit a nerve as she was black)
Why people take advantage I will never know. Once a girl borrowed my phone and then she said I don't recognise this ring tone. She hands me the phone as soon as I hear the tone I stop the car so fast that she nearly goes through the front windscreen from the back seat.
I looked again at the dialed number.
YOU BORROWED MY PHONE AND RANG NEW YORK.
YOU ARE A STUPID SPOILED ROBBING BITCH.
NOW SIT UP, SHUT UP AND NEVER TRY TO PULL A STUNT LIKE THAT AGAIN.

She was shocked as no one had ever spoken to her like that before. She lived in Dalkey where there is plenty of money and people live a lifestyle well beyond their means.
Opertunists are everywhere.

I often listen to the radio while I travel around.
Many of my passengers think I just talk away all the time even when I am by myself. Like a long playing cd.

BBC radio4 had a piece the other day about the OZ BUS.
A bus from London to Sydney 20 countries in 12 weeks for 3750 stg.
Look it up
www.oz-bus.com
Loads of sightseeing tours all food and accomadation included.

It sounds a lot and it is expensive but you have a escorted tour of half the world !
The poor drivers must be whacked when they clock out in Sydney and London .
They must be able to do births deaths and marriages on the way.
I hope you would be able to do a hold back !
IE wait for the next bus if the people on the bus you are on were not compatible people.

The BBC have a great website. www.bbc.co.uk/radio
Radio 4, World service. News in many tongues.
It is an education. But remember there is a lot of propaganda there too.
and you can even pick up the regional services like radio Merseyside.
Liverpool the capital of Ireland abroad.
CIE international also arrange bus trips through Europe. up to 6 buses travel between here and Warsaw every day, It would make a great radio programe, speaking to the people as you travel. Radio is much better than TV

When driving a taxi.
One thing that I have learned is that you can refuse a fare.
"Driver YOU MUST get me to the airport in 20 minutes"

Boys and girls you don't
I will tell you a thing that took place a few summers ago.

I was waiting at the rank at College Green when an American couple approached.
Do you know where the cruise ship is docked?
Sure in the port. Unless it has no handbrake.
What do you mean?
The lady then wanted to go in a different car.
Sure he knows honey he is just kidding.

The gent wore a big white cowboy hat and looked like US presadent L B Johnston.
He asked my name and introduced himself. The usual banter followed.
When we arrived at the liner (she was a beauty) he asked me if I would collect him at 8 and bring him to Jurys Cabartet show ?
For you OK.
At 7.50 I was waiting and spoke to the guardian of the gangplank!
At 8.20 my guests arrived. I started the meter and as they got in I added 1.50 pick up charge plus .50 for each person.
This car is a 6 seater and 2 small elderly prune like women (Jewish) got in and started saying.
"Just look he, is robbing us,because he thinks we are stupid. he thinks we are millionares"
Look I snapped your pick up time was 8pm the meter was only started when you got in. You really owe 20 mins waiting time.They invited others on for transport from the port.
On the way I dropped off a few passengers and went over the East Link bridge, where I justly levied .50.(It was a while ago)
See what I mean ? the ladies quipped
Would you prefer to go the long way? or do you want me to pay the toll from my own pocket?
The Texan John Wayne lookalike seemed to be very embaressed about these 2 ladies.

When we arrived at Jurys he said. John I hope this will cover the fare, he handed me about 60 quid.
Woa I said. The fare is only 12.
Look what you have given me.

Take 20 he said these women don't know Jack Shit.
I hate the way they have insulted your integrity and honesty.
I knew your were honest, I just wanted to show these ladies, I would have bet my stetsun hat that you would not have taken more money than the fare.

It was a nice afternoon, there was time to kill before the show and he sat on the edge of the van to have a smoke.
He complained how he was restricted from what he wanted to do on the ship all the time,.
He was not happy.

I am going to jump ship and go back to Texas tomorrow.

Those two old ladies joined our trip after we had been cruising for a few days.
They joined our table and insulted all the staff. One girl from Korea that we all loved went away in tears, she won't come back to serve us.
Nothing is right for them.
Everyone is out to rob or poison them.
They emberass me on a daily basis and I am not even connected to them.

This trip out for example is at My expense, like all the others I have paid for.

I thought for a minute then I said.
I look at you and I see a guy who is not poor, you have worked hard for what you have and you deserve better than you are getting.
These women are professional carpetbaggers who look at you to see what they can get from you.
They are taking advantage to your good nature, taking money from your pocket.
Go back to the ship and ask to speak to the purser.
I am sure this has happened before and he will arrange to sort it out.
Remember you are the victim here.
Its your good nature they are preying on.

Thanks for that, he said.

Will you collect us when the show is over?

No I said I have had enough of those 2 ladies.
But there is no shortage of taxis in Dublin.
Can't say I blame you he said.

When I think of going on a trip I often think of him.

He probably has a ranch just outside of Austin Texas producing 200,000 barrels of crude per year.

A clever cowboy trapped by two vultures, I hope the trip worked out in the end.

Here is you bonus of taxi candid camera http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=woIWRyX4oAI