The Elusive Llandudno Railway

My poor father got on the wrong train on Friday---thought he was travelling to Llandudno via London—an important dinner where he was the guest speaker; the arrangement was a year in standing. His hotel was booked and as a ‘Train Expert’ he was very organized and precise about the arrangements. “I arrived in Warrington; followed the directions to Platform 2; stood under the board that indicated the next train was the one I needed; bang on time it was, and boarded quite regularly. I sat down next to a woman and asked if she was going all the way; “to London?” She replied. “No, to Llandudno,” he responded, surprised. “Llandudno?” She exclaimed. “This is the fast train to London—no stops. We’ll be there in four hours!” My poor father—aghast is the only word to describe his reaction. He spoke to the guard who confirmed the fact that he was indeed on the wrong train. “Funnily enough, another passenger in a different carriage has made the same mistake. I can offer you a free coffee, but to stop the train will cost you one hundred and fifty pounds/minute. Sorry!” My mother was contacted and had to make the tricky call; the Llandudno Historical Society would not be seeing their guest speaker that night. I telephoned my mother at six p.m—just to make sure she was okay on her own, only to find that my father answered the phone! “I thought you were in Llandudno?” I exclaimed. Oh dear.

Needless to say, in the three days since that episode ‘Llandudno’ has become a family joke and will continue to be so---for ever I reckon, although I don’t imagine the good folk of the Llandudno Historical Society are chuckling. My Pa’s next important speaker’s appointment is planned for the end of November—at the University of Alaska in Anchorage! Should we be concerned?