Horrible Saturday evening journey from Seaford to Brighton

I went to visit friends in Seaford last night. At around 9.30, I looked up the times of buses or trains home. Then my host told me that the bus had been mobbed at Newhaven by a gang of teenagers and the driver had only just managed to keep them off by closing the doors promptly. So I decided to take the train instead, only there weren't any between Seaford and Lewes due to engineering works.

The rail replacement bus duly arrived, and a group of passengers got on and said that there hadn't been any buses for a long time. Presumably the drivers had walked off the job in protest against the previous week's troubles. The bus got to Lewes in good time and there was a train waiting at the platform. It was filled by a rowdy assortment of people, including a very fat woman and her children, one, of whom aged about six, was stretched out across two seats, shoes on the cushions. As the train approached Brighton I noticed a strange smell and looked up. The child had deposited a large puddle of sick on the carpet, even though the toilet was just a few steps away. The train arrived in Brighton and the crowd that got on must have got a nasty shock. By now, it was about 11.30 and the station was stiff with police.

At least I didn't have to pay for the journey as my bus pass was accepted as valid.

What a great country Britain has become.