But generally delegates at this year's TUI congress were so laid back they could only have appeared more relaxed if they had arrived in their slippers and jammies, writes Alison Healy.
One had to admire the optimism of the man from the Turkish property company. His enterprise was among the stand-holders displaying their wares outside the TUI conference in Dublin's Burlington Hotel this week.
After listening to all the complaints about pay, it seemed that the hard-pressed teachers could hardly afford a bar of Turkish delight, let alone a Turkish villa. "Would you not be better off pitching your tent at the next brain surgeons' convention?" one was tempted to ask.
Just getting the correct wages at the right time from the VEC was the wishful hope of some vocational teachers.
Trying to get one VEC to change to the Paypath wage payment system was like trying to convert a cannibal to vegetarianism, one delegate said plaintively.
And don't get them started on benchmarking. Or prehistoric prefab schoolrooms.
But generally, delegates at this year's TUI congress were so laid back they were almost horizontal. They could only have appeared more relaxed if they had arrived into the conference hall in their slippers and jammies.
There was no big leadership battle, with Paddy Healy midway through his two-year term. Conditions for part-time teachers have improved and, with the next phase of benchmarking only warming up, even the arguments about pay agreements were lukewarm.
Perhaps it was this benign atmosphere that caused delegates to slip up at a crucial juncture.
One would think that a "Know Dublin" quiz should pose no problem to 400 teachers. But it was a case of "I must try harder" for the TUI delegates who failed in spectacular fashion.
Not one teacher got all the correct answers. Where were the geography teachers when this shocking drama unfolded? Still studying the map of Dublin Zoo after Wednesday's outing?