State of shock

Well it was one of these days were you don’t expect something bad to happen to you. In the morning I woke up, got dressed, had breakfast and left for Girona with Ines, my host grandmother. We spent an hour looking in some beautiful home and clothes shops. Then Ines dropped me off at the train station. Everything went well, I bought my ticket and looked up at the screen for my train – it was delayed by about five minutes. Not a huge deal. I then had a sudden urge to go to the toilet and while I was there I heard an announcement that my train was arriving on platform one. I rushed to the platform and forgot to zip up my bag while doing so.

Sometimes you are so focused on being somewhere that you don’t think anyone is watching you. A lot of people were getting on the same part of the train as me. I noticed that someone was brushing past me, but didn’t think anything of it. I got on the train and tried to find a seat, and then I checked my bag. But my purse was gone! I couldn’t believe it my purse had gone! My money and cards were in it, I had no money anywhere else – not in my pockets or anywhere!

Thinking quickly, I jumped off the train just before it departed. I had my phone in my jacket pocket and I whipped it out and phoned my friend explaining what had happened and told her I wouldn’t be able to meet her. Then I phoned my host family and explained the situation. My host mother immediately left the house and travelled to the station. I had explained to the station what had happened and they told me the best thing to do was to go and report it to the police.

I waited nervously for my host family to arrive. As soon as I saw Marta, her husband Alex and daughter Julia come in I jumped up, ran to her and started crying from shock. She calmed me down, we called the banks cancelled the cards and immediately went to the police to report it to a very kind female police officer.  The police officer shook my hand, told me everything was going to be alright and asked me if I was calm. After we left the police station, Marta took me to a café and we shared a white wine together. Julia, her daughter almost took my wine! But I laughed in spite of the bad situation.

I returned home with the family, the important things been done and the situation handled. Ines then took me out to a lovely seaside town called Platja d’Aró to help me take my mind of what happened.

In future I will be more careful and every time be extra vigilant to those around me. Take care and guard your possessions when out in a public place. Even though I never thought it would happen to me it did. I’m just thankful I was able to contact my host family and my real family are so relieved that I am okay. It’s not going to put me off travelling to other places though.  A lot worse could have happened….