For those who have been reading this blog for a little while, you'll know that Croatia hosted Traveller's first hostel experience; can scarcely call herself a 'traveller' can she?
It must be said that Traveller was pretty darn nervous in the beginning.
She must have checked her passport, her wallet, her bag and her keys every few seconds for her entire first day in Croatia.
{she became a little lax after that!}
Her first night in the hostel bed, however, was actually the best night's sleep she'd had in ages. With the locker key nursed under her pillow along with her passport, she slept like a baby! And the hostel was clean, sunny and filled with like-minded, happy travellers. Nothing to be nervous about.
She does, however, have one story to share.
T stayed one more night in a hostel in Split at the end of her sailing trip.
She checked in, locked her bag in a locker and raced to hang out with friends from her sailing trip. They went out that night and Traveller didn't arrive back at the hostel till 2:30am.
The hostel was dark and everyone was asleep so T crept in and spilled out the contents of her bag in search of her locker key.
Inside were her camera, her cash, her lip gloss.... but nothing else.
The key was gone!
Traveller started to panic.
Inside the locker were her passport, her airplane ticket and all her clothes!
She had to leave at 7:30am to catch a flight back to London.
The hostel was officially shut until 8am!
Traveller's heart sank as she realised the enormity of the situation.
She then began to creep around the hostel in search of another key. She found one but, of course, it didn't fit.
{wouldn't be great security if it did, right?}
In her travels, she came across another lady who was also awake.
The traveller was Spanish and didn't speak much English.
Traveller commenced a game of charades with the woman wherein she attempted to communicate her woes. The Spaniard quickly understood and Traveller mimed asking her if she had a bobby pin.
Miraculously, she quickly went and found one.
She then took T on a tour of the kitchen where they found a knife.
Traveller began walking around the hostel with a knife in hand while the Spaniard carried the bobby pin. T's sure this would have been a scary sight for any unsuspecting, sleepy hostel sleepers.
T {having never cracked a lock in her life} had a quick try, with no avail.
The Spaniard quickly motioned for Traveller to step aside and, with a few swift movements, she ran the knife down the inside of the locker and tweaked the lock with the bobby pin and boom, the locker was open!
Traveller jumped up and hugged the Spaniard with all her might and then proceeded to skip around declaring her love for her!
The Spaniard looked Traveller right in the eye and motioned her index finger to her lips and said, 'Shhhh'.
Traveller slept with her knapsack around her arms that night.
