The Bank

After about 30 minutes worry and panick because they had forgotten our booking and given all their rooms to others, they found an AirBnB that belonged to the same owner, warmed it up and sent us there, 14 Farm Road, about 5 minutes walk away, where we had very good accommodation. They provided an absolutely excellent breakfast, that was really outstanding. in the hotel as planned. The substituted arrangement was significantly cheaper, but presumably booking.com did not get paid. Excellent beds, social spaces, cleanliness and facilities. The Bank staff were always very helpful even when we appeared to have appeared unplanned and out of the blue. They could not find any evidence of the two room bookings I had made. They had a host of helpful suggestions and were relieved when their boss said we could use his AirBnB.

To be greatly embarassed in front of frieds I had brought up from Cambrixge, Roger who eventually paid and whose new wife, Julia, who we were just getting to know. They had travelled all that way to help me celebrate my 80th, and we had just walked a lovely section of the Fife Coastal Path and were full of a warm glow of fresh air, exercise and success having had an exceptionally warm day for the time of year. We were planning another good day's walk the next day. Our spirits were dashed, as for a while it looked as if we would have to drive back to our home in East Lothian and abandon the next day's plans, because the first few places the staff suggested were fully booked. I of course, felt that somehow or other I had become incompetent at 80 and had failed to book, as The Bank asserted strongly; "they had never had a booking from me". I somehow failed to find the booking confirmation on the new iPhone Kathy had given me, partly because it was new and partly because I was flumoxed. I have no idea why, as I was able to show them the booking.com suggestions about other things to do while inn Anstruther that weekend. However, as soon as I reached my laptop there was the confirmation from booking.com plain to see, and with an explicit statement that we paid when we wre actually staying in The Bank, i.e., there was nothing more we needed to do to confirm the booking. I would not have given such a low overall score if The Bank had admitted their error and agreed that it wasn't my incompetence, with a hint of them being agist. But after an exchange of emails, where I was showing them my booking confirmation and asking whether it was a booking.com error or a The Bank error they just went silent. A lovely place and a delightful venue spoilt by I suspect trumping our booking to let friends in. I have booked through booking.