What went wrong? Our worst vacation memories
Lost.
TX. Staff
Summer vacations are all about making memories, but not all the memories are always warm and fuzzy.
Sometimes the funniest moments are the ones when things go wrong, from lost luggage to the dreaded stomach flu. In this spirit, some of our TX. writers share the worst moments from their travels.
Waterlogged in Colorado
My worst vacation experience happened when I was either 7 or 8 years old and we were going to Estes Park in Colorado. I think there was a little stream with rocks in the middle, and my older brother jumped onto one of them. Wanting to fit in with him, I followed him. He’s two years older, so he was a bit taller and more agile than I was, meaning he was able to make the small jumps between the rocks.
I was not. Long story short, I missed one of the jumps, and slipped and fell into the water below.
Right after my slip up, we had to go and take family pictures at a western shop. My little sister and I ended up trading pants because I was crying so much, and then my other little sister complained, too, and only wore a diaper for the picture.
We still have this picture hanging up in our house to remind us of the most embarrassing vacation ever.
– Taylor Jenkins, Weber High
Disappearing photos
I just recently went to Italy with a large group of people. A couple of friends of mine lost their camera while we were out and about, but didn’t realize it until 5 minutes before we were supposed to regroup with the others.
We raced around the area we walked, about a mile total, and couldn’t find it anywhere! We walked back and my friends were pretty bummed; their whole trip was on that camera.
Then, about half an hour later, they ended up finding the camera — in the bottom of their backpack.
– Reagan Housley, Fremont High
Spilled milk
When I was about 5, my family went to Disneyland. One of the nights we were there, we went to eat at an IHOP. My sister and I ordered chocolate milks, and everything was normal for awhile.
Then, my sister knocked over her nearly full glass of milk and it spilled everywhere. It was across our table, our laps and down onto the floor. Several waiters came to help us but the damage was done and my parents were not happy!
– Annie Roe, Ogden High
Washing woes
I remember one time I was staying in Oregon, and there was someone wrong with the water in our hotel. None of the toilets or showers worked and it was frustrating!
– Sara Tesch, Roy High
Sickness strikes
Usually Disneyland is a completely delightful experience. It’s not called “The Happiest Place on Earth” for nothing.
But one time, my family spent our trip there sick! I think stomach bugs are probably one of the worst illnesses (barring actually life-threatening ones) to get, and one after another we all caught it.
As I recall, we had driven to Disneyland, so that probably explains why the bug was able to infect us all so quickly. Fortunately, I’ve been able to return to the California theme park since then, and have many other memories that don’t involve my entire group getting sick. But you can’t say that trip wasn’t memorable!
– Sierra Clark, Venture High