TSH and Diva have made it to their Heathrow hotel and are
surveying their complicated luggage strewn around the room which was originally
tidy. Here is the pile they need tonight and here is the pile they will need in
Florida. And here is the pile they need but must not go into the hand luggage
because it is liquid. And the pile which must be in the hand luggage because
they can’t manage without it. And the Camera. They are looking forward to unpacking properly
on the Silver Moon, Including the Fedex luggage, which is already in the port.
The hire car was supplied with half a tank of petrol and was
to be handed back at Heathrow in the same state. Calculations before departure
involved tank capacity, journey miles, fuel consumption, conversion from
gallons to litres, a senior accountant and a maths graduate. A satisfactory
answer was eventually found.
TSH coped admirably with the controls on the hire car,
despite it being 10 years newer than his own car, with a consequent increase in
complex technology. He kept insisting that the display panel was intrusive and
should be folded away (??) but Diva found it very useful for navigation. Finding
the ‘park brake’ (not mentioned in the physical manual or the manual obtainable
on the display screen) was a bit of a challenge. When Diva pressed a candidate
button, the car leapt forward, to the immense surprise of TSH, who was at that
point out of the car in a petrol station (see above). They guessed that it was
not the brake.
The full English breakfast was a great way to start the journey.
Wildlife sightings: Alpacas (no, not Peru yet – just near
their home in Cheshire). Red Kites along the M40, Pied wagtail at car return
office.
