20 Stories That Prove Even a Disastrous Visit Can Make for a Hilarious Memory

Visiting someone can sometimes feel like traveling to a parallel reality. The slippers don’t fit, the cat has a personality, and the dinner is something you’re afraid to look at, yet “everyone just loves it.” After visits like this, you realize: home may be chaotic, but at least it’s familiar and predictable.

• We visited my mother-in-law. She proudly showed off her newly-purchased beautiful carpet in the living room.
  Meanwhile, my husband placed the groceries we brought on the table and started putting them away in drawers and the fridge. Our daughter (2.5 years old) saw it and ran over to help. I snatched the carton of eggs from her hands and suggested she carry some grains instead.
  But my mother-in-law handed the eggs back to her, telling me, “Lisa, you should teach the child to be independent. Let her carry them, it’s no big deal.” And just as she said that, my little rascal fell, and all the eggs scattered on the carpet, spilling epically. It was the first time I saw someone almost choke with outrage. © Mamdarinka / VK
• My godmother had an incident about 5 years ago. They moved into a new apartment, and her daughter became friends with a classmate — they lived in the same building on different floors. The girls often visited each other and frequently had meals together. Both families weren’t poor.
  But one day, the neighbor came down to my godmother with a list: “Here’s everything your child ate at our place. You should pay for it.” She paid the list, but the girls never remained friends. As my godmother later recounted, that girl ended up with no friends at all. Apparently, her mom had made such lists before. © Worsinka / Pikabu

• Once, we went to a relative’s house, and she said to us, “Sit down, have some tea!” Then my mom see that the relative is wiping the table with a man’s sock. We glanced at that, then at each other — and politely declined the tea. © udalenie_pm_tattoo
• The other day, my girlfriend asked me to help her move some furniture at her grandmother’s place. The grandmother is elderly and needs assistance. Besides, this was the first time meeting my girlfriend’s family, sort of like an introduction.
  My girlfriend indicated the work (move the bed away from the window), then ran off to the supermarket, while the grandmother rustled around the kitchen, and I suddenly needed to use the bathroom. I went into the bathroom, and there was the cat’s litter box.
  The cat had tipped it over: the box lay on its side, almost all the filler on the floor, making it impossible to reach the toilet, and on top, this cat had left a pile. I stood there, looking, deciding what to do, since the grandmother could barely walk, and I didn’t want to bother and stress her out (like, clean up after the cat). Plus, I wanted to make a good impression.
  So, swallowing my pride, I picked up the scoop and gathered the filler back into the box, shoveling the rest toward the wall. So, I was doing it quietly, not bothering anyone. Then, the grandmother began knocking on the door and loudly exclaimed:
  — Young man! The box is only for the cat! Only for the cat!
  Then quietly, almost to herself, she added:
  — Who could have thought he was like that? © Margadon / Pikabu

• We visited my wife’s cousin and his wife near Baltimore. We are all about the same age, but they are in vastly different jobs than we are. He is an Astrophysicist, and she works for the federal government. They have no kids and had made a pile of money in the stock market, easily millionaires.
  We are having a nice visit and then sit down for dinner. On the table are a few small pieces of chicken and a small bowl of pine nuts... nothing else. I look at my wife like, “Is there anything else?” and she just shushes me. We each take a piece of chicken and a spoonful of pine nuts, and a glass of water. Dinner is over, and we go to sit in the living room.
  Yeah, I had to ask. So I say something along the lines, “It was a unique dinner, is that how you eat all the time?” She goes on to tell us that they are minimalists and try to take care of the Earth, which is why they don’t eat much. I’m thinking, “I’m not a minimalist”
  Anyway, we went to bed later on and ate all the snacks we had brought with us for the trip. I told my wife we were going to help them be minimalists by not coming back. That was 10 years ago, and we haven’t been back. © echo**** / Reddit
• One time, a coworker suggested we visit her at her country house (since it benefited her that we’d drive her there). We don’t have a country house of our own, so we were thrilled at the opportunity to spend the weekend in nature.
  On the way, she suggested we stop by a store. In the supermarket, my coworker immediately told me, “Buy what you and your husband will eat.” When we arrived at their place, she laid out her groceries on one half of the table and ours on the other, and everyone ate their own. It was very strange to me...
  Early in the morning, before dawn, she started waking me up to wash the windows all over the house, and my husband helped her husband dig something in the garden all day. After this trip, our relationship with the coworker became strained. © Natalya F / Dzen

• My now ex-husband’s best friend invited us over to his house with him and his wife to hang out in their new hot tub. They lived about 45 minutes from us. We got there, and they had run an errand, and they weren’t even home. They told us to go in and wait. So we did.
  An hour later, they show up and his wife didn’t even acknowledge us. We then hear them fighting in another room. Ended up leaving shortly after, but I found out later she didn’t want her husband to see me in a bikini. © The_Changed_Cola / Reddit
• I was tutoring my friend. One day, her mom showed up with the police after our lesson and started pressing me, “Did you take the money?” You see, a lot of cash had disappeared from their apartment. But I didn’t take anything; I hadn’t even been in that room!
  However, during the “interrogation,” an interesting fact came to light: my friend’s mom mentioned that besides me, a cleaning lady had also come, but she couldn’t have taken the money — after all, they paid her! But as for me, that was entirely possible.
  In the end, it turned out that the cleaning lady did take the money and even managed to pay off her loans, spending almost half of the amount. I never tutored that girl again. And after the comment “Come over, we’ve hidden the money this time!” I didn’t really feel like communicating with them anymore. © BettyLy / Pikabu
• When I was at a friend’s place, they served me hot soup. I said, “Let it cool down a bit.” The hostess simply took my plate and poured tap water into it... © ereni.aa

• Broke up with my fiancé after meeting his family. We had been together for a year. He proposed to me, and then took me to meet his parents as his future wife. His mother set the table, we chatted pleasantly, and praised each other.
  The next day, my fiancé approached me with a complaint, saying his mom was very offended by my disrespect and doubted that I could be a good wife for her son with these “housekeeping skills.” The thing is, I didn’t offer to help his mother clear the table after the dinner. I was surprised.
  Firstly, I genuinely believe it’s inappropriate to burden guests: if you invite people to relax and have fun with you, you should take care of them. Secondly, besides me, his father and brother were also there, and they could have helped perfectly well together — so why should I suddenly be the one. Thirdly, my fiancé also didn’t offer his help, yet the “disrespect” was noted solely from my side.
  In general, we argued and broke up. Of course, it’s sad, but when I think about how his mom would have driven me nuts my whole life, and he would follow her lead, I feel relieved. © Mamdarinka / VK
• A year ago, friends who lived in a cottage village invited me over. I had been there once, but couldn’t remember which cottage was theirs. Eventually, I found the right house, confidently opened the gate and climbed the stairs.
  I saw someone sitting at the table, took off my shoes, and hung my jacket on the rack. I turned around, and there was a stranger sitting at the table and feeding a child. She said, “Excuse me, who are you?”
  I didn’t lose my composure: “Oh, it seems I’ve come to the wrong place!” I dressed, put on my shoes, and calmly left. © Dobrozhan / Pikabu
• When we visited my mother-in-law, she gave some pancakes for the grandchildren. At home, my son tried them, immediately spat them out, and asked, “Ew, who cooks so badly?” I said, “Your grandmother.”
  A few days later, we went to visit her again, and my son went into the kitchen, sat at the table, and told his grandma, “And mom said you don’t cook well!” It was very awkward. © saparova_aigerimm

• I remember how I often visited a classmate after school - we lived on neighboring streets. Their family was quite well-off: a big house, cars, 2 children, each with their own room. For me, it was really amazing. It's worth mentioning that Daria invited me herself - I didn't ask for it.
  And every time we came from school, this girl's mom would put a plate of food in front of her daughter saying, "Daria will eat now, and then you can keep playing." And I was never offered anything.
  The first time, I was shocked, because at my house, not offering a child's friend some food was unheard of, and all of my friends were the same. I still remember how hungry I was after school and how Daria gleefully devoured sausages with mashed potatoes in front of me. We were in elementary school. © CatRat / Pikabu
• My relative was very insistent in inviting me over to her house, including for an overnight stay so we'd have time to chat. We agreed that I would come with my granddaughter, whom she had never seen. We would stay the night, do some sightseeing with the child in the morning, return in the evening, spend another night, and then go home. As usual, I stocked up on groceries and bought a cake.
  We arrived, exchanged hugs, and before I had even taken off my shoes, she asked me, "When are you leaving?" I was just stunned! If it weren't for my granddaughter, I would have said I was just going to use the restroom, get a drink of water, and then leave. But traveling with a child on the train at night was not perfect.
  It rained heavily in the morning, so we had to wait for it to stop. My relative didn't offer us breakfast, and I whispered to my granddaughter that we would have breakfast somewhere in a café. When the rain stopped, and we were about to leave, the relative asked, "Maybe you'd like an egg?" I declined.
  In the evening, we stopped by to pick up our bag, and my relative was in the kitchen drinking tea with the cake I brought, but didn't even offer us any tea. We took our bag and left. We never got to try the cake. That's the kind of hospitable relative she was. © Elena Gornova / Dzen

• My brother and his wife invited us over for New Year celebration. They live near my parents, but we live in another city with our cats. So, the plan was that my brother would pick us up with the cats, we’d do the shopping, fuel his car, and head over to their place.
  We bought all the groceries ourselves. We arrived at my brother’s place around 5 p.m. His wife had just woken up, hadn’t done a thing. Well, we made a couple of salads together, fried some potatoes, and cooked the meat.
  On January 1st, I cooked — baked a pizza, while my brother’s wife walked around with a displeased look. On the morning of the 2nd, we left early to go to my parents, and my dad drove us back home because suddenly my brother had to meet some extremely urgent and important friends of his wife.
  Meanwhile, she posted on social media, like, hooray, the holiday has arrived, and she could finally celebrate! By the way, she used to stay at our place twice a year, and we definitely didn’t treat her like that. We hardly talk now. © Nushik / Pikabu
• A relative invited us over — there were 6 relatives altogether. We arrived and found the table practically bare: just tea, bread, and jam. Well, we sat down, chatted for a while. Her nieces washed the dishes.
  When we started to leave, the hostess was indignant: “What about the money? Why didn’t you all chip in? We just bought a car — that’s why I gathered you all!” I was genuinely shocked at such audacity. © Unknown author / Pikabu
• We visited friends with our cat, and they had a talking parrot. The cat saw the parrot, got scared, and hissed. The parrot spread its wings and approached the cat. Putting its massive beak right up to the cat’s nose, it uttered the most epic phrase of my life, “Would you like some tea?” © Not Everyone Understands / VK

• When I was 17, I went to visit my then-boyfriend for the first time. I met his mom, we sat and had tea, and everything seemed to go well. The next day, my boyfriend calls and asks, “Did you happen to take my mother’s wedding ring?”
  In my head, 2 big questions arose: why would I want his mother’s ring, and why would I admit it even if I did take it? In short, I thought I didn’t need a crazy family like this and broke up with him, while he kept wondering what happened, calling and asking...
  By the way, the ring was found the day after that. But I never set foot in that house again. © Tochichka / Pikabu
• I had a friend, Nataly, with whom we often visited each other’s houses. Her parents were kind and smart. When we hung out at my place, she didn’t help clean up the mess after our gatherings, but when we were at her place, I could wash the morning dishes for her parents, peel potatoes for dinner, and vacuum — I enjoyed helping, and I was praised there.
  This was all until a certain moment. Lightning struck me after one incident: my friend accidentally swore in front of her mother, who immediately said, “Nataly, what kind of words are those? Has your friend taught you again?” © zhenya1981 / Pikabu
• Probably when I started dating this guy in his mid-twenties, I was 18. He lived with his parents, but had the entire second floor to himself, so I thought it was basically like his own apartment, and he could have guests whenever he wanted, no questions asked. So when he said, I could spend the night, I trusted that his parents didn’t care, or at least approved.
  The next morning, his mother comes stomping up the stairs while I am still half asleep, screaming and yelling things like, “Doesn’t your little girlfriend need to catch the school bus.” So weird and uncomfortable, because after she got it all out of her system, she offered to make me pancakes.
  But then started screaming at him again and kicked both of us out of the house. Like, “Never show your faces here again.” © eli—12 / Reddit

What is the most awkward experience you’ve had as a guest? We’re waiting for your unusual stories in the comments below!