Sat navs? Maps are better

At about 5 pm on Wednesday March 28 residents of Vidler Square, Valley Park heard the sound of a very large vehicle coming up the west side of the square and were astounded to see an enormous articulated lorry about to attempt to turn the corner into the northern side. Fortunately it stopped just short of hitting the marker posts and/or removing the fence of the house on the corner.
The lorry belonged to the Hungarian company ‘Waberer’. Either the satnav was very faulty, or the driver entered the wrong co-ordinates, as Valley Park has no through road! The driver got out and began pulling out the marker posts – which fortunately were not cemented in – and tried to indicate that he wanted to get out. He had about 6 words of English compared with our one of Hungarian… Quite a few residents and the representative of Rye Garden Services tried to assist as best we could in the absence of any common language.
(German and French were tried but he understood neither). Having removed almost all the posts he then tried to drive the lorry forward down the grass but after a metre or so succeeded in getting firmly stuck deep in the mud!
He then had a long talk with his boss in Hungary and eventually produced some evidence that he could pay for the assistance of a heavy duty rescue vehicle. Rye Gardens services then summoned a firm based near Goudhurst. About 2 hours later – after dark – they arrived and winched the lorry back onto the road. It was then driven slowly and very carefully round the square and out into the night..
During the long wait the driver was given coffee, which he liked, but his lady companion declined because the only English she knew was ‘pacemaker’ which doesn’t preclude drinking coffee here – but perhaps in Budapest? Apart from that she managed to say ‘Elton John’ and made a thumbs up gesture. His only communication was to say ‘Merkel’ and ‘immigrants’ with a disapproving face.
Nothing much ever happens in this quiet part of Rye….

Photo: Margo Bennett