‘I Ended Up In Berlin With A Rectangular Scar In The Shape Of Hitler’s Moustache. Not Ideal.’

This month, we're giving away an amazing surf holiday for two, with thanks to surfholidays.com and Aer Lingus. To find out more, and to vote for this story to win, see below!

By Claire Dennehy

Last year I was starting a tour of Europe in Amsterdam, when a few days in I tripped on a tramline and completely battered my face.

I ended up in Berlin with a rectangular scar in the shape of Hitler’s moustache. Not appropriate at the Holocaust memorial or touring WW2 sites.

Due to the swelling I struggled to eat or drink, and after a long day’s walking in the heat I ended up having seizures at night time due to electrolyte imbalance, and ended up on a drip in Dubrovnik.

I've never been so happy to come home...

I was told to stay out of the sun and stay away from alcohol. I finished up my holiday in Italy where I got into the shower, then somehow hit off dial that set it to full heat, scalding most of my body.

I backed away to escape the water but the shower was so small there was nowhere to go, and I had to immerse myself fully to turn it off. I sat crying for ages in fear of getting shock due to the scald.

I’ve never been so happy to come home...

Want Claire to win?

We want this to be about the best story, and not just the best social media campaign for votes – so the winning entry will be decided by a combination of:

• Votes received at the form here
• The number of times each story is shared on Facebook and Twitter

So share this story on Facebook or Twitter, then click on the link to vote!

Check out the other stories

Story #1

'One Of The Cooks Came Out To Protect Us With A Meat Tenderiser In His Hand, Fresh From The Kitchen'

Story #2

'A Hoard Of Men With Guns Came Into The Bar, Screaming At The Guys We Were Sitting With'

Story #3

'Then I Remembered – In Ibiza, I’d Torn Off A Teeny Piece Of My Passport To Give My Number To Some Fella'

Story #4

'He Took Out A Gun And Casually Started Loading It, While Telling Us How Much We Owed Him'

Story #5

'It Was Only Afterwards That I Realised I'd Entered The Country With Rifles, Ammo And Forged Papers'

Story #6

'I Ended Up In Berlin With A Rectangular Scar In The Shape Of Hitler’s Moustache. Not Ideal.'

Story #7

'Jabbing, Whacking, Jabbing, Whacking, Yelling, Jabbing... That Was The Gist Of It For A Solid 15 Minutes'

Story #8

'Apparently Her Back Just Went When They Were 'Watching The Sun Come Up Together''

Story #9

'My Mother Pulls Out The Camera And Starts Showing Him Pictures Of Ashford Castle. His Face Says 'Shit'.'

Story #10

'The Italian Newspaper Published A Photo Captioned: Irish Canoeists Crash Into Local Pensioner'