Most of us have experienced an awful journey. The one that might be funny now, but certainly wasn’t at the time.

Perhaps your flight was very turbulent, or there was a long delay, or you were stuck next to a crying baby for the duration of your journey, unable to escape.

My most memorable flight was from San Francisco to London.

It involved an extraordinary volume of vomit.

My wife and I had decided to move from Wisconsin to the UK, with our two small sons.

Our move coincided with a family wedding in California. So we flew from Wisconsin to San Francisco to attend the wedding, and then a week later, we packed our bags again and set off on the last leg of our journey, flying all the way to London.

That’s a ten and a half hour long flight. With a nearly-four-year-old, and a not-quite-eighteen-month-old.

Can you guess where the vomit is going to come from?

My wife, our eldest son and I had a seat each, and the youngest child was on our laps. At first everything was fine. Our youngest fell asleep and slept for about an hour.

Then the vomiting began.

And didn’t stop.

I spent the rest of the flight – that’s nine long hours – standing near the toilets, holding a crying and vomiting not-quite-eighteen-month-old unhappy little boy.

Of course, being prepared parents, we had packed spare clothes for him, but he quickly soiled those outfits. He also soiled my clothes. We both reeked of stale vomit.

At one point, we didn’t quite make it to the toilet in time, and he vomited on the floor of the aisle. Then the whole section of the plane reeked of vomit.

I felt sorry for the people sitting near by, but I couldn’t do anything about it.

Then, about halfway across the Atlantic, a kind flight attendant found a pair of airline pyjamas for me to wear. I have never been more thankful to be able to change clothes.

And so, that is how I came to arrive in London, walking through the airport wearing a pair of Virgin Atlantic pyjamas, while carrying an unhappy not-quite-eighteen-month-old child.

Upon reaching our new home I had the best shower of my life.

What was your most memorable journey? Any vomit horror stories? Feel free to share below!

My Most Memorable Journeys #2 is here.