The journey begins

 

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.