Preparing to Travel

The day began with a shower, a shave, washing up, tidying up, and a valiant attempt to pick a few things up in the living room. I’m not quite sure why I bothered, because the kitchen, lounge, and hallway in our house always looks like either an earthquake just happened, or our house was searched by gangsters while we were out. Suffice to say, it now looks the same as it did before I started.

After a shower, a shave, and a coffee, I set off to a nearby town with my eldest and youngest daughter in search of holiday clothes. This entailed standing in a department store for quite some time. I joined their wifi network while a security guard started to take notice of me, and grinned at idiotic videos on reddit to pass the time.

After leaving the department store we went off in search of something to eat. Given that my eldest daughter is coeliac (gluten free), our options are always tremendously limited while eating out – we looked at several menus outside cafes and eventually gave up – buying food from the food hall of a department store, and walking back through town to find a park to sit in.

This evening has been altogether quieter – apart from climbing into the loft to find luggage cases ready to travel. Our eldest daughter still isn’t sure she’s coming with us. Anxiety seems to be getting the better of her at the moment. She has flashes of bravery, but they are fleeting.

I’m looking forward to going away, but not looking forward to the journey. Five or six hours in the car is never fun. The last time I visited – back in the spring when my Dad was ill – I took the train and was there inside four hours. Unfortunately while the train is cheaper for one person travelling, when you multiply it by five it becomes unaffordably expensive.

So.

One more day here, then we head off for a week. Possibly one down in numbers. We’ll see. A week of beaches, rockpools, sunshine, walks, street food, wine, seaweed, sand, and sunburn. And a few tattered paperback books, if I remember to pack them.

Talking of packing, I should start putting clothes to one side, ready to go in the case.