Chapter 17 - Crossing the Channel?

Having escaped prison, Gammelnok now needs transport to get to his favoured retirement place by the pond in the United Kingdom.

----------

How to get there? By boat, train or lorry? Let's see what the options are.

As Gammelnok stays hidden amongst a diminishing amount of tulips, the barge works its way towards the flower wholesale market and auction hall for reloading for the following day.

The barge owner ties up at the canal quayside and jumps ashore leaving the boat unattended.

Gammelnok seized his moment and quickly scrambles from the boat, using the ladder steps built into the canal wharf side.

Trucks and lorries are everywhere, and he is able to cross the large forecourt without being spotted.

He sneaks inside through an unguarded side door left partially ajar. It is nice and warm there and he looks around.

A really weird setup meets his eyes. Humans are sitting on a huge staircase looking at TV screens, an enormous clock is moving backwards, stopping and resetting itself over an over while long trains of different coloured flowers move in one door and out another.

It is eerily quiet and the smell of freshly cut flowers is overpowering.

Gammelnok considers hiding on one of the automatic flower floats, but without knowing where they are going, it seems a risky option and not one designed to get him any closer to his longed for garden pond in England.

Having travelled on the canal he decides that water travel is too slow, so not an option. Without a few reindeers and a sleigh, taking to the air is also out of the question. 

As he has no idea how rail travel works, he decides to have another look outside in the forecourt to see if there is transport available.

Vehicles are everywhere. Small, large, old, new, fast. slow. It looks very dangerous for a small creature like himself to move among them.

Finally he spots a large lorry with tulips painted on its side. It looks promising, friendly and inviting, but how to get on board?