Goa

Sun, 03 Aug 2025 15:20:00 +0530

Travelling with the big, fat, Indian family on a short getaway to Goa. I’ve been left with the job of getting all our Senior Humans (SH) booked, checked in, document checked, cabs booked, and shuttled to the airport. Day0 - 03Aug The objective is to get all SH in one place day before travel to make it easier. Background I live in the A block and the adjacent building lobby is B block. SH2 daughter booked her an uber. Cut to; Cousin calls me saying SH2 is downstairs and the cab has left with her suitcase in it - pls go and check I rush down - BRALESS (what a sight!) I call and find her wandering behind the building. Cousin meanwhile is calling the cab guy to figure out what happened. Then I met the security guard who told me that the cab stopped at B block; She got off the cab and walked into A block. The cab driver meanwhile took out her suitcase and having not seen where she went he left it in the B block lobby. Security asked him whose it is and he said that he just dropped a pax off - B block watchman said nobody came in and cab guy left. Then I came down and the B block watchman was talking to the A block watchman. In the mean while she had gone back out of A block and behind the building 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. She asked the exit security where the cab is and he said he left in which time cousin spoke to her and the cab guy and called me. She’s telling me how can he drive away when the bag is next to him in the front seat I told her he took out the bag but by that time you had already walked away - she said, “no what rubbish”. Then she said all because they were both nagging me from both sides (they = her children!!!) Day1 - 04Aug I’m collecting all the SH IDs to make the check in and bag drop smoother as I’ve got our boarding passes on my phone - SH1 is refusing to hand me his - says, “you’ll lose it or take it back to London with you” So now we will have to spend an extra 30 mins while he fumbles with his wallet, walking stick, etc at the check in desk. Meanwhile, SH2 is unpacking and repacking her suitcase, which looks like it has been packed for 30 days rather than 4. She is carrying hand and bath towels. I tell her to take them out as we are staying at a place that provides fresh linen. She grudgingly does so. Then says to her sister SH3, “look, I’m carrying my umbrella like those old ladies” and they both have a hearty laugh. SH2 is 76 and SH3 is 79. I remind them that they ARE those old ladies. They laugh some more. I hope when I’m 79 I have their sense of humour! SH1 comes back and asks for the eleventy billionth time what time the cab is due to arrive. So the list was checked twice and we set off on our merry way on schedule. Say what you will about SH, they are always so punctual. 5 mins into the journey as we settled back into our seats, SH1 realises he’s left his walking stick at home. I ask the driver to go back so that I can pick it up. He says, “no need I don’t really need it”. He does. I tell him I’m getting it anyway. He says, “god you’re so tiresome”. I think apple-tree …. I run as fast as my short little legs can carry me, retrieve the walking stick, and we are back on our way. So we reach the airport and I start to collect all the ID cards (having checked they all had them before leaving home). SH1 and SH3 go through smoothly. I scan SH2’s boarding card and tell her to show her ID. She searches and gets increasingly panicked as she can’t find it. I look through her bag and can’t find it. I tell her to look in her wallet. She says it’s not here. The wallet is not here. She thinks she took it out. Then i ask her son to send me a soft copy. He does immediately but it’s not accepted for travel. Then SH2 decides to open her check in bag and starts to search. I am meanwhile on the phone to her daughter who suggests using the app as that is accepted. It is not an app I’m familiar with. Daughter says she has the app but SH2 does not let me look on her phone and insists she doesn’t have the app. I say you do just open it. At this time we are getting too close to boarding so SH2 panic levels increase. We open the app and it asks to link the ID card. Daughter reads out the number and when I try to link it, the app says this is already linked. So I try to view it and it says “link card” F¥•#%<>$. When I try to link the card the second time it locks me out of the system for 24h. Navigating this using two phones and my husband starts calling me continuously from inside the terminal building while I’m trying to juggle all of this. By now I am at a loss as to what can be done. And like a magician, all of a sudden SH2 produces the ID card and says most nonchalantly, it was in a pocket. I didn’t ask which pocket. I confiscate her ID card until we have completed our holiday! We go inside, drop our bags and then go through security by which time our flight has started boarding. All the SH get through like a breeze. But one of the 8 of us gets stuck With a bag check. Yours truly. Amidst getting everyone ready for security check I forget to take the damned chargers out of my bag and my bag is stopped. Oh dear. And then they take the longest time to bring the bag to me for a physical check despite my repeated pleas informing them that my flight was boarding. Eventually I get through security and we are the last people through the gate! SH1 says, “why is mummy not coming” I tell him she is behind us. “He says, “no she says she is sitting and waiting, she’s not coming. I won’t go.” I show him that she is behind two others from our group and he is relieved. We get on board the flight and settle into our seats after some seat juggling. We even manage to swap a seat with a stranger to ensure that dear husband doesn’t miss out on all the fun and games with his in-laws en route. I am miffed that alcohol isn’t served on domestic routes. We disembark and at the bottom of the stairs, SH2 is frantically looking in her bag. I ask her what she is looking for and she says, “my glassss, I think I left my glasses in the aircraft” while all the while she is wearing them to look for them! We land without incident and collect our bags; only for the husband to realise that he has left his iPad on the aircraft. Here we go again. Another 30 minutes later, nerves slightly frazzled, but all persons and devices accounted for we set off on the last leg of our journey to our holiday apartment! We cleverly decide to divide and conquer and separate the SHs between two cars and equal numbers of chaperones. I’m gasping for anything alcoholic to take the edge off. We reach our apartment without any further incident, assign them rooms, put their bags in the rooms, make them all some tea and toast with butter and get them to all take a breath. I was meant to go with my husband to pick up my nephew. We do not have our rental cars yet and Goa is notorious for not having cabs easily accessible. SH1 says, I’m coming to meet SH4. SH3 says me too. SH2 says I’ll come to pick the child up. WTF? I say there’s no place in the cab for so many of us. SH1 says, in a huff, we will take our own cab. So I let them all calm down and tell them that cousin doesn’t want him out so late as it’s a school day. I remind them that I am the family manager. SH1 and long suffering husband will go for a walk and buy some alcohol and snacks. They can also see about rental cars. The rest of us will chit chat at home. When they return we will all have a drink and then go out for dinner. It’s settled. Everyone goes about their assigned roles with no argument. Come dinner time we are all ready to leave and SH1 says, let’s not go for dinner. Someone says what nonsense we are eating. Then he says I won’t come. His wife (SH3) asks what he will do alone and I say we are all going for dinner. Grudgingly agrees and is not best pleased when his favourite son in law reminds him to take his walking stick. Dinner is great and we return, play some cards and end our day at 0135 am. Day2 - 05Aug Woke up to a bright day. Got the chance to drink my green tea in peace and quiet with a soothing view. I need all this and more to recharge my batteries for the day ahead! Let’s see what today has in store for the Family Manager. I spoke too soon! The previous evening we decided to leave at 11 am. We would go out and then for lunch after which we would go to Sangolda to visit Cousin and nephew. Come the morning the Family are overcomplicating the matter. They decide to go booze shopping to the “Liquor Vault” (yes, we are that family). We can then visit cousin and uncle on the way back as it is en route. Which is all well and good but then they consider taking both cars and leaving the children behind, and coming back for them before lunch which is in the opposite direction. I say if we are all ready, why don’t we all just go and save us an hour of trouble? Nobody seems to understand that. And then I see that the child is not yet ready around 1045 and I’m informed that “papa said I don’t have to come and he will pick us up later” That’s it for the family manager. I get into it with the husband I tell them I’m not getting involved today and they can manage themselves. So they huddle together and 2/3 of the sandwich generation take the SH booze shopping while I take a well deserved break at home. They return to pick us up having forgotten to visit cousin, uncle and nephew; which wasn’t very clever as they were prepared and expecting them. I zip it. Anyway we go for lunch. Without the walking stick as the Family Manager did not remind them to and left the house first. There was much shuffling and unsteadiness and high tension from SH1. A delicious lunch at Souza Lobo. The husband and me are safely at two opposite ends of the table. They make post lunch plans and announce them. The husband and long suffering sil would take the SH back to the hotel. Cousin 1 would take the girls shopping. Cousin 2 and I would follow. We leave the restaurant and niece and her mum stop to look at some wares. The rest of us walk to the head of the road and wait for our cars. The husband drives up, all the seniors jump in, and they drive away - having forgotten to take long suffering sister in law with them. I stay mum and get into the next car with Cousin 2. I receive a call from Cousin 3 who is with long suffering sister in law and am asked where the husband is. I say they left. Because no one shuffled the right people into the right cars. This meant long suffering sister in law had to suffer a bit more with us until the evening when we eventually returned home at tea time! During which time, we picked nephew up, entertained him (and ourselves). Pre dinner drinks, at home with some karaoke followed by a nice dinner at Britto’s. We the drop the SH home at around 2330 and go back out for some more drinks, much to their consternation. Since I was designated driver for the evening, I stayed off the sauce and drove gingerly over broken roads and facing full beam headlights. The arseholes. All in all a pretty uneventful Day 2. Save for the marital discord. I’m not complaining. Day 3 - 06Aug Today looks promising. Or am I jinxing it? The plan is to leave at 1130 to drive to south Goa for a meal. Everyone is up and ready and most importantly in good spirits. Husband provided the breakfast of champions, cut fresh fruit - which was not so politely declined by the SH. Then SH1 felt guilty watching his son in law eat so accepted a plate of mixed fruit. He also had a shot of whisky to wash it down. It is now 1045am. The plan is to drive to Cousins home and pick both cousins up; drop one off en route as she has other errands to run. Now the juggling of who to put in which car. 🙄. I have to see if they ask for my services.

True story

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A room with a view

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Goa