I am totally running the risk of upsetting the travel karma gods. I have more faith in the travel karma gods than any other variety out there, but I’m sure to annoy those varieties also. But I shall run these risks and write about last night and this morning, because it was the single worst night I have yet had in a dorm room.
So take this post as my confessional. Judge. Condemn. Consider me a bad person. I care not — I will take my bad karma as it comes.
A couple days ago, I flew (damn it) back from Tobago to Cartegena, Colombia. Last time through here, I didn’t take a single picture and the colors in this town deserved a return visit where I’d get off my ass and take a few hundred photos. I had that opportunity this morning, under the good early morning light, because my frickin’ dorm mates woke me up last night at 3:30 a.m. and I never got back to sleep.
Last night, I was staying in a ten-bed dorm. I went to bed around midnight. There was one other person in the room at that time, a guy sleeping in a bed adjacent to mine. The air conditioning was on, the room was nice, cool and quiet and I went to sleep quickly on one of the better beds I had laid down on in weeks.
Until 3:30 in the morning. In barged the other eight denizens of our little haunt. On went the overhead lights. They were drunk, of course. Laughing. Talking. Hell, they were screaming to each other. They milled about, told jokes to each other in German (sounded like German, or at least some language in that guttural genre) and basically were rudest and most inconsiderate people you can imagine in a dorm room.
After about 15 minutes of it, I looked at my alarm clock and verified it was indeed the middle-of-the-fracking night, and politely said, “guys, its 3:30 in the morning, could you please turn the light off and let us sleep?”
They laugh. Literally. They laugh. One of the girls says — I’m sure she thought in her quiet voice, but loud enough for the people in the next room to hear, “we pay for this room also — light stays on.” I took a little German in high school and college and could have sworn that I recognized another guy, more quietly, swearing at me. The German F Bomb.
Over the next 45 minutes, I ask multiple times for the lights to go off. No luck. Finally, one of the German guys starts telling the others, after an hour of the teutonic sound and light show, to quiet down and turn off the lights. One of the girls told him she isn’t ready for bed yet, as she stood there putting on moisturizing cream or something on her face — a beauty product that didn’t appear to have done much good up to that point.
I gave up. It was 4:30 in the morning. I wanted to get up at 6 or so and get the early morning light for photographs anyway. I grabbed my computer, went to the front desk and told them I wanted to change rooms, brewed a pot of coffee and hopped online for a bit. Fuming. And quickly decided that I was going to have some revenge, which is where the confession comes in.
The two girls had left their shoes outside the dorm room. I went back and took them. Then this morning, I gave them to some homeless people in town. Was this a bad thing to do? Guess so. Do I feel bad about it? Not at all. Screw them. This wasn’t a mild breach of the hostel and dorm rules — this was a full-out front assault.
I strongly contemplated taking any cell phones they left out to charge overnight and place a few dozen international calls around the world before they woke up. Fortunately, or unfortunately, none of their phones were lying around when I went in to collect my stuff at 6 this morning.
best 6,000 pesos I have ever spent
And I don’t think I am done yet. I believe tonight is their last night in the hostel and they will be the only eight in that dorm room. I am going to go buy a loud alarm clock and a padlock this afternoon. When they leave the room to go eat dinner, I am going to set the alarm for 4:30 a.m. and lock it in one of the lockers in the room.
Generally, I consider myself a go-with-the-flow kinda guy. It takes a lot to get my fuse lit. But it is on fire now and I haven’t been this pissed in a long, long time.
Think of me what you like. I am certain that many, if not most, of the comments on this little diatribe of a post are going to be more than slightly negative. Yes, I took someone else’s property and yes, there were likely better ways of handing this situation.
I’m not sure I care — these people are dorm room scum.
‘O yea, and by the way, I did take a few hundred pictures, so there will be a photo album of Cartagena soon. Here is one of them.
this is me ranting and raving, with a nice priest asking for forgiveness on my behalf in the background
Wow. I don’t think you are running the risk of upsetting the travel karma gods, so much as filling in for them yourself. They definitely deserved some payback. It’s bad enough to be completely obnoxious at 330 AM. But this: “we pay for this room also — light stays on.” Yikes. Kudos to you for not flipping immediately.
You sound like me in this post! I have definitely done similar stuff in the past. Good job.
hey, sometimes you just have to do something. If they were that inconsiderate and rude they need a little wake up call. I usually think of excellent ways to revenge…but sadly(?) only after the moment has passed. The shoe thing is harsh but they aren’t in the middle of nowhere (relatively speaking) so they can get new shoes…unless (like me) their shoe sizes aren’t so easy to find in such countries.
To be honest, you were cool and got decent revenge and you helped out some locals. I’ve seen others react in the moment and end up in jail or in the hospital or limping for a few days.
People like that (and yes, they were probably just going through an immature phase…”it’s all about me me me!”) will never understand no matter how you try to explain, yell, pound it into them…they will only get it when they get it – not a minute sooner. Unfortunately they assume because they are traveling they are entitled to special rules.
Don’t lose any (more) sleep over this.. you placed the stress on the proper party – they had to take time out to look for their old shoes and go through the confusion knowing the last time they saw them they were drunk….
Don’t talk yourself out of the alarm clock idea. That is perfect revenge.
I suspect I am truly and utterly evil, because I delighted in all of this, and was surprised that that’s all you did. Please tell me, though, that you’ll have distanced yourself from these miserable people before the real onslaught on your revenge is felt. I don’t want them to have a chance to retaliate.
I’ll never understand why people can’t be more considerate in a shared environment. What a bunch of jerks.
However…
One of the girls told him she isn’t ready for bed yet, as she stood there putting on moisturizing cream or something on her face — a beauty product that didn’t appear to have done much good up to that point.
Really, out of all the things you can point out, like maybe how easy it is to apply lotion in the dark, you had to go & make a gendered comment about her looks.
“Gendered comment”? The same thing could be said about an ugly man.
But he didn’t point out say the ugly guys brushing their teeth to make themselves more attractive. No, it’s the ugly woman who’s vainly doing a beauty ritual.
Besides being attractive or unattractive physically (in one person’s opinion) has nothing to do with your qualifications as a pleasant roommate in a dorm. Being a drunken buffoon at 3:30 a.m. does.
erica, this seems to be an issue for you let me offer a perspective that i hope will help. men and women are equal but different and to think that we are equal and the same is, well, just wrong. the issue dealing with facial cream is a detail of the experience that was noticed by the story teller and included to more fully give us a sense of the scene and goes to furthering the idea that the woman was not only obnoxious at that point in time but probably (inferred) is this way at all times. (not that that can be proven but it’s the story tellers prerogative, also a boy teller – boy reader would get this idea but could get lost in the boy-girl translation were a girl would probably think that it’s all about looks) there are clear differences in how boys and girls see each other, react to each other and while both may read the same story they will give totally different takes on said story and as such i believe that while we are equal, political correctness has been taken too far by insisting that we are all the same, when clearly we are not at a very basic level. this is a good thing. how boring would it be if we were all the same?
on the issue of their shoes, he could have filled them with pan cake batter,(if it was handy) that way they could have kept their shoes and the grossness/revenge factor would have been significantly higher.
probably should have said something like “as ugly as her attitude was, her appearance matched it.” Good point.
LOL I don’t see it as much of a gendered comment as a ‘you fucking woke me up, kept me up, I’m cranky and I’ll say what I want about you’
Bahahaha! Can you please set up a hidden camera and film their reactions when the clock starts going on? That’s absolutely brilliant.
As I sit here at my desk, at a job I can’t wait to break away from, eating my lunch — I almost spit it out when I got to the part about you giving their shoes away to homeless people! I’ve been there (not homeless, but with rude dormmates) and I only wish I had been as clever as you!
Sadly, you are unlikely to teach them a lesson. But at least it made you feel better (and brightened up my day considerably!)
You’re a modern day, backpacking Robin Hood! Well deserved and well done. Who knows, maybe they’ll get the message and change their ways. The next person they pull that with might be vengeful AND cruel. Who knows what kind of misery you’ve saved them from… Just another perspective on the karma thing.
Wow, I am blessed with understanding friends. Or ya’ll are just as depraved as I am. 😉
Seriously, thanks for all the comments. Off to place the alarm clock now. Whooo hooo!
Haha! All things considered, it sounds like you were positively polite to these annoying people! I love that you stole their shoes… and please do plant the alarm clock. It’s not any sort of revenge that’s going to hurt them, after all.
It never ceases to amaze me how rude and selfish some people can be. Grow up, already, and realize that there are some people staying in hostels who don’t stay out partying all night, and who actually like to sleep!
A tip of the hat to you. Well played, Sir. Well played.
el oh el. I’d be pissed too. I’ve encountered plenty of people like that in my travels with no respect for other people in the same dorm room. They deserved it. Love the alarm clock locked in the locker. muwhahahah.
Bwahahaha! That is f’n classic! I love it. Drunken, inconsiderate dorm mates are THE worst, and this group sounded particularly horrible. I love your revenge with the shoes, and I love your alarm clock plan. Great ideas, both of them. The alarm clock is going to be awesome. I am with Candice in thinking how awesome it would be to somehow get this on film. Probably not doable, but it would be great if you could. I am just literally laughing out loud thinking of them trying to figure out what to do with an alarm clock going off at 4:30am. Great job. People may end up being negative about this, but they are really just jealous they don’t have the balls to do the same.
This awesome! I love it. I probably would have punched someone, but that isn’t nearly as clever and patient as your idea.
Stealing shoes was a wrong thing to do. You’re simply putting the hostel in trouble. First they’ll blame reception, then they might even post bad reviews of the hostel online ‘this hostel is not safe, our shoes were stolen!’.
Your little revenge action could cost the hostel a lot of money if many travellers decide to sleep somewhere else, and I don’t think that was your goal.
I planned on telling the hostel after they leave tomorrow. I’ve got a pretty good relationship with the hostel workers and owners here. But you make a good point on the hostel reviews — I’ll track those also and put up an answer there if I see anything.
Also, by padlocking one of the lockers, you’re putting the hostel in even more trouble. I suppose you won’t give them the key, so they will have to break the locker to open it. Another expense for the hostel, and it’s not that Colombians have too much money…
Whatever revenge you want, that’s all up to you, I don’t really care, but please don’t take down others that do not deserve it…
already decided against the padlock. Put the alarm clock back in its box and in a plastic bag and put it between the two most offensive of the group — the beds of the two girls.
See? Michael is considerate in his revenge. 🙂
You made me laugh, but I do feel for you. I have no problem with what you did; well deserved. Let us know how the alarm “pans” out tonight. Nice shot, and looking forward to your photo album.
Brilliant! This is revenge along the lines of “Amelie.” You weren’t too mean in your paybacks, just . . . mean enough.
OMG, I adore you !!!
They deserve it, full stop. Next time they’ll either shut up or not go to a 10 beds dorm. wtf.
And great shot 🙂
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA OMG this is amazing. A little mean that you gave their shoes away but the alarm clock is brilliant! They deserve that for sure, it’s amazing how rude some people can be, what did the other guy sleeping in your room think??
he was up and gone early also — I never had a chance to talk to him.
Good for you! I felt sorry for you and had a great laugh at the same time! Inconsiderate people annoy me and in those circumstances I would have lost my cool.. You handled it very well I think. I love the idea of giving the shoes to people who will appreciate them! And the alarm clock is genius! Cudos! I hope you were able to finally find a place to sleep!!!
I think you’re my new hero. We’ve been living in a block of flats with the most inconsiderate neighbours I have ever lived by. I wish I could think of such clever revenge!
Quite funny indeed! Bravo on the the alarm clock. What goes around comes around. Drunk or not, being that rude is no excuse.
And yesterday I had to tell off a few travelers for making out and groping each other in public. Just because you’re in another country doesn’t mean it’s an excuse to lose your sense!
Brilliant. Really. I feel bad for the hostel though like the other person pointed out. Perhaps in the bag w/ the clock you could leave a note stating in some witty terms that you took them.”No shoes for you!!” I don’t know, something witty. That way they would know it was not the hostel. However if you run the risk of seeing them again they may call the cops on you and that would be bad.
I don’t know but I think it is freaking hysterical and you know what – they deserve it. I can’t imagine being that rude and a whole group of them stacked together is horrible. I wouldn’t have been as creative I would’ve just been a total bi*ch and got up repeatedly to shut off the light. That however would not be as near as fun or as crafty as you and no one would’ve benefited from it (ie: the locals w/ new shoes.) Actually now that I think of it – if any sort of problem had started at the time between people, everyone would’ve probably written horrible reviews of that hostel anyway. At least they would have so now you don’t have to feel as bad.
BWAHAHAHAHA! This is fantastic! I would have flipped my sh!t. Seriously. This is going to be epic.
jajajajajajaJAJAJAJA too damn funny!!! I LOVE IT~ I would so do something like this. Oh how freaking awesome, way to get them back. I wanna hear about the following day…lol. I wanna know what the girls said about the shoes being gone and the alarm. You must do a follow up!
Brilliant! I’m not sure I would have dared steal their shoes, but the alarm clock is an ace idea! I am very very very tetchy when I haven’t had enough sleep so I would have probably ended up ranting and raving at them there and then! I hate it when others are so inconsiderate in a shared environment!
The shoe incident is very Robin Hood-esque. I approve.
GENIUS!!!!!!!! 😀 You are such a gentle genius. 🙂 They deserve much worse you know. I can sense that rudeness. I can’t stand that!!! Ughhh
That’s one of the reasons I like to travel in low season. Less people. Less chance to meet new friends but too much to hassle sometimes.
Two thumbs up! 😀
jajaja, this is awesome revenge, right or wrong! I agree taking the shoes is pretty dirty, next time try relocating them instead. Tie a string together and throw them over the nearest power line just outside the door of the building. They be forced to see it when walking out and they’ll get the point and not think someone just stole them. If they want them back that bad, they have to work for it and make the decision to miss their bus or not. In the end, if they leave them, they’ll eventually fall and still a homeless man gets to pick them up and use them!
Screw not putting the lock on the locker. If it’s just them in the room, do it! All hostels have blot cutters and if you fill the staff in on the joke, no harm no faul… it’s just brilliant! Hell the staff might actually get a hell of a kick out of it. Putting a note inside the locker on top of the alarm inside the box (like a gift) would be all the more clear on why it happened. They can’t hold the hostel to that on reviews and screw them if they do and leave… believe me, hostels don’t want to deal with groups of 8 that are pissing the rest of the 20+ guests off.
Also, food for thought: try spraying aerosol deodorant on their pillow when there sleeping. This won’t hurt them but it will kill their voice for the next couple days, which will for sure cut down on yelling when they come in at night. High risk factor if caught, but if their drunk, it’s easy to do. Old college trick for that guy yelling 24/7 at the party on Friday night, come Saturday he was just sipping beer and 10x more chilled out! jajaja
Deodorant on the pillow…. filed away for future use 😉
After chatting with that morning, I’m glad you got it out. Great story telling, as usual! But what I’m really waiting on, is the follow up. What happened next?
Stealing what might have been their only pair of shoes? In the light of day, that seems incredibly harsh. But after no sleep? I’ve done some crazy things myself… It’s their fault! The alarm clock is brilliant. Literally brilliant. I would’ve said that if you’d just bought it — locking it somewhere where they can’t turn it off?! OMG! And don’t feel bad for one second. Just as there was no one to tell them to pipe down, there’s no one to enforce anything… you’re on your own! Here’s hoping that there’s no innocent bystander trying to sleep in their room tonight — and everything went off without a hitch. Where’s the UPDATE??!
how many women you know travel with just one pair of tennis shoes/runners? 😉 If so, they had guys that could go buy them a pair of sandals. Screw ‘um.
I’m not so sure I would have stolen someone’s shoes but at least you used them for social good, right? I’m with Candice- I want to see their reaction on videotape when they can’t get in the locker to turn the alarm off!
I am a go with the flow kinda person too, but everyone has their breaking points. From the description of this group it sounds like this is a just revenge. Don’t know if I’d be able to pull this off, but kudos to you. My theory: karma can be a bitch, and I guess sometimes you need to deal that karma out yourself. I don’t know if this will fix anything, I find ignorant people usually remain ignorant and stupid no matter what you do, but this is pretty funny. And I like the fact you gave the shoes to some homeless people. If anything I think that’ll get you some good karma points.
Dude, The Alarm clock idea was utterly brilliant! I will do that sometime! lol
Yikes! This is exactly why I’ve never and will never stay in a hostel. Pobrecito!!! Love that pic though!
Nah, just invest in an eye-shade and earplugs.
Most hostels have double/single rooms! These are the ones to go for… then a hostel is a fantastic place to stay at! 😉
Yeah, but the single rooms are usually comparable in price to a regular hotel. At that point, you’d be better off just paying for a hotel room. The point of hostels is to keep costs down.
Oh gosh, you did what I only envisioned to do – countless times – but never came up with a good idea or courage (me wuss). I do have a good connection to the travel gods and will defend you to the teeth 😉
In the end you have to be happy that they woke you up & that you could make some really cool pics. I’m just sorry to hear that they were Germans… Maybe they were Dutch, Belgium or from Austria? 😉
With the shoes was unfair, even if you did something good with giving them to someone else… so it wasn’t that bad… I guess. But I love your idea with the alarm clock! I will keep that in mind!
Dorm rooms sucks!
Wow! I love the fact that you gave their shoes to the homeless! Next time maybe they will think twice about being inconsiderate and rude to fellow travelers!
Anything goes. Anything.
That’s the thing about someone else breaking the rules. That’s the really great thing. It means you don’t have to play by them as well.
As long as the hostel owners know the full story, I’m with you on this one. Shoes, alarm clocks, tuna-fish-oil dripped over backpacks (the gift that just keeps giving, day after day)…it’s all fair game.
I’ve experienced something similar at a campsite – 50 foot away from my tent, a few cars arranged in an inward circle, headlights on full beam, them in the middle dancing away, music jackhammering into the otherwise peaceful night, 2am until 4.30am, me occasionally shouting “will you shut the FUCK UP”, each time met with drunken laughter…
Ah well. I’m older and wiser now. I know that it’s nothing that a calm head, a quiet word and a good laying into with a piece of 2-by-4 wouldn’t have solved.
older AND wiser? You so sure about that? 😉
HAHAHHAHA !!! Amazing! You are my hero!
I spend a lot of nights out on the town when I’m travelling, but I always put my PJ’s on my bed, thus I come home at 4am, slip them on and I’m off to sleep. No NO need for lights on at 4am. No NO need for talking.
I often experience this lights on and talking at 4am when I’m in bed by 12. Usually because I have to get up early, and if they are the only other ones in the room, I am FULL on noisy plastic bags and slamming doors when I get up. I can’t help it, if you f*** with my sleep I go into full on bitch mode. Kudos to you for attempting to be polite in the first place. When I’m woken up like that I have instant rage. AHH! I’m all boiled up now just thinking about it.
Bahahahaha! Awesome revenge – and much deserved!
Ooh god. Entirely justified and bloody funny. Can we have candid reaction shots to the alarm clock, faces blurred out, puhlease? I guess they were hoping, with eight of them, they could have a dorm to themselves. Maybe next time they’ll book an entire dorm for themselves…
I wish I had the morning-after photo or video. Arrgggggg. They left that next morning and didn’t say anything to anyone that I heard back from. O well.
Hahahaha…that was clever, and brilliant. Not too sure about the shoes at the beginning, but revenge is sweet and they might learn a lesson. Hopefully they left pissed and mad. Ha!
Hilarious! What a great revenge and clearly deserved. How rude were they? The best karma I’ve heard in a long time
This is awesome! Seriously, who says that? I mean you paid for the room too so shouldn’t you have some say? It’s one thing that they were loud and drunk, that happens, but to go on and on for hours and to be so blatantly rude to you, wow!
The shoe thing is absolutely perfect, and just think, you actually did a good deed!! Only because I have had so many expensive things stolen I would say it’s probably good that their cell phones weren’t out because if my sell phone got stolen I think I would banish dorm rooms; however, I would NEVER act the way they did, no matter how drunk I was.
Can’t wait to hear about the alarm clock. That’s just brilliant!! 🙂
unfortunately, they left the next morning without complaining — so no good feedback 🙁
I love it! Rude travelers do need a wake-up call 🙂
and wake up…. alarm clock they did get!
LOL! The perfect revenge! 🙂 I don’t know if I would call it bad karma, unless it happened more than once, but I would call it ‘the risk you take when sleeping in a dorm room…’
Don’t tell anyone, but that brilliant thing with the alarm clock – my husband is actually considering doing the same to our children when they are teenagers and want to sleep in 😉
BRILLIANT. What jerks. I cannot stand when people have attitudes like that. They are in a room with OTHER people, it calls for being polite. There were so many times when I traveled that I wanted to take something and throw it at people who were being loud and obnoxious at ungodly hours when everyone else was sleeping. Wish I would have thoughts of the alarm clock. Would have loved to do that to some of the more awful offenders.
I would have taken a dump in their shoes and left them there. I think the travel karma gods are in your favour for teaching some rude people a lesson.
I’ sure karma will forgive you. Honestly, there were times in my life when I wished I had done something like that. They trully deserved it.
As too older and wiser, actually for me it means to speak up your mind and confront these uneducated people if only to make them realise that not everybody would take silently al their rudeness.
Good for you!
Yet, the eye mask and the ear-plugs are not a bad idea – I don’t need a mask myself but the ear-plugs saved me many times.
thanks for the approval — I was nervous about exacting revenge… and writing about it.
hahahaha really wish I had thought to do that on the very rare occasions that I have run into such obnoxious &*&&*& on my travels. As revenge I normally settle for getting up early (to them) and making a heck of a lot of noise.
The dorm-sharing issue is something I’ve been thinking a lot about recently – some people just don’t understand the dorm-sharing code and just think it is a way of getting cheap accomodation.
I have actually not had any problems with German dorm-mates as they tend not to travel in packs. I think the top offenders are groups of French, Israeli and Brazilian travellers. And of course us British too…
The only thing I’d be cautious of after doing something like this is that you tend to bump into people again on the Gringo Trail and that could get uncomfortable.
love, Love, LOVE IT!!!! I would have done the same…I mean, seriously “we paid for this room?”…apparently manners fly out the window, or should I say drown in alcohol…well played, I bow before you :D….serves them right! and I don’t think this will affect your karma – think of it as righting a wrong, not to mention you made some people happy with some good shoes 😉
I am surprised I have been getting so much support on this. Thanks!
Hey Michael – have just stumbled upon your blog in the last couple of weeks, and am slowly catching up on content. As far as this post goes, I really have nothing else to add which hasn’t already been said. This is a legendary tale. Well played my friend!
Why didn’t you take any pics of you giving the shoes to the homeless people? cause I bet you really didn’t do it … just saying my boy! Also, how old are you? and how old are you acting?
Heck Scott, pics of me giving them away would have been great. Perhaps I should have planned ahead and taken my camera with me that a.m. LOL. Good thought, if there is a next time.
ha, I tried to tell her you may not be a fan of her post!
Reading this is a guilty pleasure. Thanks for all the gleefully evil thoughts! >:D
thanks Katrina! I hope I wasn’t too evil… not up for the bad travel karma, if so.
I must admit…I really got a kick out of this. he, he, he I hate when people are rude and disturb my sleep.
I wish you could hear my applause. I do not condemn you, good sir, I commend you. The shoe thing is a little rough but they were beyond rude. It would be bad if you were only passive aggressive, but you asked politely and they were dicks. The alarm clock idea is absolutely priceless. I am with everyone else, I wish we could see a video!
I really appreciate the nice comments. Was so damn worried about posting this particular post. Thanks!
I think stealing someone’s shoes, no matter how bad their behaviour was, is the wrong thing to do… It’s still their property, something they have paid for. You’re only being as big of an asshole as they are if you steal something.
In the alarm clock prank I don’t see anything wrong, but stealing…
You needn’t have worried – anyone who ever had a similar experience wanted to do what you did.
Lol! This is why I don’t stay in hostel dorm rooms…
Haha. I love this, and I love how everyone else loves it too! We’ve all been there.. hostel jerks are the worst!
LOL! good job! and very creative too! you are avenging the many of us who can’t pull a whiplash like that. Ü
I have only just found this post and it’s absolutely hilarious! I actually don’t think you’ll have bad karma because you gave their shoes to people who were more deserving of them. But I admire your confession on here. And the acidic way in which you describe the girl with the face cream…
Very clever. Love revenge stories. The worst thing I ever did to a bad roommate also involved shoes….and peach syrup!
I missed a helluva a lot during my volunteer work. Whoah. Tha’ts the only word I can produce. Michael, I’ve never said this on the Internet before, but I think I want to kiss you for standing up to hostel a-holes, of which there are generally many!
Rudeness is practiced too easily these days. High-five, a huge high-five! That was brilliant and probably felt even though they left without complaining. 🙂
LOVE IT! Especially that you have an awesome photo of a statue that represents the whole situation.
I’m cracking up thinking about the alarm clock scenario … hope it gave them the same headache they gave you.
-Rachelle
Did you end up doing the alarm clock plan? How did that go? I’m glad we’ve never encountered dorm mates as bad as that so far.
Wow…. can’t believe people out there can be this inconsiderate. As a German, I sure hope they weren’t German. So stupid! Anyways, I wouldn’t put the alarm at 4.30am as they’ll just be heading to bed anyways. Try 6am 🙂 That way, they are asleep for sure 🙂
Way behind on reading stumble shares and just now read this one. I’m glad you shared this and a great story it is. They deserved it.
I am sooooo far behind on stumble shares also. Having really poor internet in Lebanon wasn’t good for that. Catching up now. Glad you liked the piece!
So you’re the bastard who stole my shoes!
I’m kidding of course. But I’m just reading this now, April 2011, and marveling at all the recent comments and retweets. It’s only a matter of time before one of the 8 yahoos stumbles on it, no?
HOSTEL DORM REVENGE PART II, Michael, is what I’m saying. (And just so it’s clear, you can put me down in the Approve column.)
LOL, karma is a bitch, ain’t it? Never thought of this, but would be so funny if one of them did read this. That happened long ago in one of my first posts on a place called San Juan del Sur (you can search for that term over there on the right) and used the people’s real names I was trashing…. and they found it and commented. LOL.
I am sooooo far behind on stumble shares also. Having really poor internet in Lebanon wasn’t good for that. Catching up now. Glad you liked the piece!
Lots of tourists in Colombia (especially the tourist destiinations like Cartagena) get high on coke as it so cheap. So better think twice before checking into a dorm. it’s that simple, really. Or else take ear plugs and a face mask.
Sorry but this is reality, in spite of your wishful thinking.
Cartagena is beautiful and people are wonderful, I have a fantastic time (day and night) every time I visit – drug-free I might add – but you’d better stay home if you are a prude about other people’s behaviour. Sharing dorms with badly behaving travellers is not a good idea. I doubt Tobago is any better really in that aspect.
Happy travels.
HAHA!! I think the karma gods would have been okay with this one. Love that you went out and bought an alarm clock!
Moment of genius! Had a Canadian open the window in a 12 bed dorm in Prague in December -8c.. and refuse to close it.. needless to say he was huge and 11 of us froze.. if only we had grabbed his shoes.. sigh..hindsight…
keep up the good work.. the travel karma gods will smile kindly on you.. and we will just applaud!
Wish I’d have read this before my experience last night! Oh well… I’m sure there will be lots of other annoying hostel roomies to exact revenge upon in the future =)
You can tell this post is pure gold when even after 7 months, people are still commenting! The comments are also a riot! This made my night! Good stuff….they more than deserved it. (Taking notes on how useful alarm clocks can be!)
Wow! I do NOT want to get on your bad side.
Word. 😉
Nice work, I love that you gave their shoes to some homeless folks. All things considered you handled it politely at first and then needed to employ the Teddy Roosevelt “walk quietly and carry a loud alarm clock” strategy. Sometimes people get what that deserve, thanks for doing what some of us have dreamed of doing to inconsiderate dorm mates.
I would have done the same. Some people can be so rude!
HAHA, I laughed my ass off. Subscribed immediately, great job.
Karma is really a ‘right back at ya’. So keeping a dorm awake plus ‘paid for room’ comment should have equal payback.
Sorry to say I do not think you made it even.
Far too mild!
Break it down:
Everyone knows that to travel well you have to sleep well – that is a given rule of the road. So that deserves a big payback
‘We paid for the room’ is totally in the entitlement generation mode. Huge payback always required so they will learn a life lesson to take with them when they grow up.
So, quite a nice start but could do more.
For example: excellent choice on the shoes. New ones are a bitch when having to break them in on the road. But something inside the shoes could take it futher eg: carefully smear vaseline inside. Putting your feet onto this has a longer-lasting revenge – 1. ruins shoes – new one needed. But wait, now there’s more:2. As foot comes out, can’t walk properly,tends to slide, causes falling over, leaves marks which have to be cleaned. 3. Because waterproof, hard to clean off feet which remain slippery for days, stays between toes. ruins news shoes too.The beauty of this is that vaseline is always around in travel packs or hostel bathrooms!
For the remark: a simple filming on your iPhone vid, placed on YouTube, and hostel sites everywhere, goes viral,would have insured “you may have paid for that room, but you’re not paying for one here, you self entitled face cream person… and friends.” Being banned from hostels causes longlasting karma revenge
I think you still own the karma gods a few more paybacks… so don’t feel guilty by deploying to other guilty parties along your way.