They arrived at the hall where Jim’s lecture was due to take place and were seated in the front row along with the other speakers. From the outset, the programme overran. Despite a restless audience, speakers persisted, and it soon became clear that they would not hear all speakers as night buses could not be trusted, so the audience would want to get the last metro or train home.
Eventually, the meeting was abandoned with Jim not having spoken. They went to the house where they had stayed with Jim’s sister years before, but she was not there and the current residents did not know who she was, so the trip turned out to be a waste of time.
