Of Jamie Cullum and broken down buses

Max has always wanted to see Jamie Cullum (www.jamiecullum.com) in concert so when we found out he was coming to Sing we pounced on the opportunity and bought a couple of tickets to see him at the Esplanade Concert Hall. We had an infallible plan. I bought the tickets with my card on the assumption I would then pick them up 1 hour before the concert as required, meet Max for a snack and enjoy the show. But even the best laid plans often just do not work out.

It started with a hazy and cloudy day but as the concert was at 7.30pm I assumed it would clear up by then, it usually does. However by 5pm the light grey clouds had turned to menacing dark blue and green ones and just as I got ready to leave the flat hell broke loose. I had my nice big umbrella but when it rains here there is really no point venturing out unless you really have to and I had to. So in the time it took to get from the flat to the bus stop I was, as usual, wet to the bone. I knew that n36 and n111 would take me directly in front of the theatre and I was really chuffed when the 111 showed up immediately. I found a place to sit and happily freeze my wet clothes under the air conditioning and settled in for the short journey to the theatre. I would arrive in plenty of time, collect the tickets and relax until I met Max. From the start however the conductor showed signs of distress and constantly stopped the bus making a lot of fuss. After 10 minute we had only moved a couple of yards and I started getting just a tad nervous. The rain was pounding down relentlessly and the doors of the bus would not close, so after what felt like an eternity the driver turned into a road and gestured we all get off and find a different bus. Water is pouring down in thick sheets, I cannot see beyond my nose and I am getting wetter by the minute so when the 36 bus appears in front of me I do not think and just hop on thanking my lucky stars. I have my street directory with me and I follow the route just to make sure. It all seems fine until, just as I am planning to get off, the bus does a left turn when it should actually do a right one. The next thing I know the bus has entered the highway and starts the 20 minute non-stop journey to the airport which is on the opposite side of where I need to go. Panic grips me and I frantically ask a girl to tell me what is happening. The horrible truth is that confused by the rain I had taken the bus in the wrong direction and was going back to the depot rather than in centre. 20 minutes later and in a state of utter shock I get off in the middle of nowhere and start looking for a taxi to take me back. The taxi queue is 1 hour long because of the rain which is still pouring down in what looks like a rehearsal for doom's day. Time is ticking and if I don't collect the tickets they will be sold to somebody else. I only have 10 minutes left , Max is at the ticket office but according to the conditions printed on the website only the credit card holder can collect the tickets. By now panic has a total hold on me and instead of joining the queue I decide to jump in the middle of the road, hold my hand up and stop a taxi on the highway. The gamble pays off though I lose 10 years life due to fright, I skip the queue and rush to the Esplanade. I get there on the nick of time only to find out that flirty Max had flashed his big smile and suave manner as usual and collected the tickets without a hitch, without a credit card or any form of ID. I am livid but relieved and we both decide we deserve a pre-concert ice cream.

The concert was really fun but I will tell the story another time.