The Creeper on the Galway Train (And Other Scary Stories)

Last Thursday, I packed up my stuff for a weekend getaway in Galway. The first time I traveled by myself, I took the train to Galway, so it seemed fitting to go there again by myself. This time, I stayed in a different hostel - Kinlay Hostel. This hostel was amazing! I stayed in an 8 person mixed dorm right across from the bathrooms.

Let me start off with a story that happened to me when I was on the train to Galway.

I took a seat on the 2 pm train and pulled out my journal to write in. Everything was fine, until a Hispanic man about my age sat down across the aisle from me. When the train started moving, he moved seats to directly behind me. Okay, cool bro. I like playing musical chairs at parties, but whatever. To each his own. I kept writing. Then about an hour later, he moved to directly across the table from me, which creeped me out. The train was practically empty and he chose to sit across from me? I was annoyed, but more so because I like my personal space, and this guy was pushing it. Plus the fact that he just looked creepy wasn't helping either.

Do you ever just know when someone is looking at you? Either out of the corner of your eye, or you just have a feeling? Yeah, that was how the next half hour went for me. I could tell that this guy was eyeing me up, and as a lone traveler, I had enough.

I packed up my things and moved two cabs down. I'll show him I'm not messing around and that I know a creepy guy when I see one...

When the train terminated at Galway, I saw this guy again. I quickly walked past him to the hostel, which was a block away from the train station. I thought I got away from him!

Nope. He was going into the same hostel as I was. Fantastic.

 

I prayed that he wasn't staying in my room (thankfully, he wasn't), but I avoided him like the plague the rest of the night. I went out for a walk by Lough Alalia and stumbled upon these two beautiful swans, which made me feel better.

Later that night I was sitting in the common room, writing and minding my own business, when THIS GUY who I've been trying to avoid comes up to me and says, "You still writing?"

Well obviously, Sherlock!

I gave him a dirty look and kept writing.

So an hour goes by, and by now it's like 9 and getting pretty rowdy where I'm sitting, so I move over by where a guy about my age is playing the guitar. I strike up a conversation with him, and I learn that he's actually staying in my room. Long story short, he invites me to play drinking games with us and our roommates, who I barely met before I went out sightseeing. I'm never one to turn down drinking games (and making friends) so we head over to the kitchen area.

I sat down and got the NICEST welcome by my new Irish friends, Sarah, Tony, Darrah, Shauna and Aisling. The saying is true: Irish people are incredibly nice. We're all having a jolly good time... when all of a sudden I see the creepy Hispanic guy pull up a chair and sit next to me with a beer. My life is a joke, right? It gets better.

He tries to make conversation with me but I try my best to ignore him. A little while later, he pulls out his phone and shows me his baby cousins and baby nieces and baby nephews. Like out of nowhere! I'm ignoring him and all of a sudden he wants to show me his cousin's baby pictures?! What planet is he from??

I start talking to Sarah, and I find out that her and the rest of her friends just graduated from Trinity College and are spending the night in Galway! She invited me to go out with them, so after getting ready for a little bit, we all went out around midnight.

And who invites himself with, but Mr Hispanic Creep. Awesome.

Besides trying to avoid the awful Mexican, I had a blast! Everyone I was with was so nice! I'll post pictures of the night soon, but they're on Tony's camera. We went out to a pub first, then a club, which was really crazy. Of course the only time I ever go out in Ireland at night is my last week here! Figures.

I'd like to say that el hombre gordo left, but I caught him and one of the girls in my group kissing each other in the club later! I was like GIRL. WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

I shuddered. Thankfully he left shortly after and I didn't see him until he bothered me the next morning at breakfast. But seriously, I have had it with creepy guys at hostels. 

When Rose and I were in Krakow, this weird middle aged guy invited himself to dinner with us at the pizza place next door to the hostel. He seemed nice, so we were fine with it... but he ended up ordering NOTHING. Why go out to dinner if you aren't going to eat anything?! His friend sat with us a few minutes later, and Rose and I could see the meth scabs on his arms and face. They wanted us to go out with them later. 

HA. HAHAHA seriously? No thanks, you meth maggots.

We also experienced creepers in Berlin the week after. Rose and I just got back from sightseeing and shopping and were headed up to our room at our hostel, when a random guy wanted to get into the building to our rooms too. You needed a hotel-esque swipe card to get in, so it was locked to anyone who wasn't staying at the hostel. Rose let us in and we hopped in the elevator... where this guy (who was also Hispanic, I'll have you know) started talking to us, asking us where we were from, and calling me a sex pot. We could tell he was on something by how he was giggling uncontrollably and repeating himself. Rose and I tried best to avoid eye contact with him because we were so creeped out! 

When we got to our room, Rose swiped her card to get in, and this guy followed us in. We thought he was staying in our room, which would have been quite a coincidence, but we just ignored him. Rose and I locked up our purchases in the lockers and left as quickly as we could, because this guy was seriously giving us chills. About a half hour later, when Rose and I went back upstairs to grab our sweatshirts, she noticed that her metal locker was bent open and her wallet was out of her purse. This Hispanic prick stole 30 euro from her wallet. Nothing else, not even her credit cards or her camera, just the cash. She was infuriated. We notified the hostel desk workers and we had to deal with the German police and Rose filed a report to get her money back, as the hostel has theft insurance.

We later learned from the security cameras that this guy didn't even have a room at the hostel. He just sat in the common area, that was open to the public, and watched for easy targets. We could see him eyeing us up as we came through the door and follow us to the next door. Talk about creepy!!

Rose explains this more in her blog, which you can read here: http://thegrasshoppersmermaid.blogspot.ie/2012/05/hunted-american.html

All of these experiences have made me totally more aware of my surroundings and the people in it. It is definitely more intimidating to travel by yourself, and I was scared out of my mind the first time I did, but as long as you are especially aware of your environment, no creepers will ever bother you. If they do, just show them your cousin's baby pictures. That ought to scare them away.