A Quick Trip Back To The UK

Before we get to the UK trip a quick recap of last week.

My 60th birthday was on the 18th of Feb but our friends down the pub didn't know when we would be back from the UK so, to be on the safe side, they had organised a surprise party for me on Monday 22nd Feb.  Elaine had been in on it and suggested that we go down the pub as she fancied a beer!!!  No questions from me I am always up for a drink!

When we walked in the door this was the big surprise.....what a shock!  The crowd of them jumped out from around the corner with a 'surprise' ... which it was!  It was amazing.  The pub had been decorated, the girls had made an amazing buffet and they had even organised a famous local singer to play for an hour!!!

What can I say, a truly amazing community ...

But.......as I had already had a birthday dinner a few days earlier I suggested to the main organiser that it would be nice to share the do with Elaine, as her birthday had been when we were in the UK and she wasn't up for very much of celebration a the time!  They quickly went to the shops and a much earlier number appeared on the cake ...

What a lovely, generous bunch ...

The Trip To The UK

So why did I head back to the UK so soon? 

Well, we have the motorhome here, which is great, but what isn't great is using it for everyday transport!  It is just too big to drive up and down the winding track to the villa ... every now and again is OK but a few times a day isn't on.

I did look at buying a local Spanish car but to buy anything half decent you are looking at about 5000-6000 euros.  Back in the UK sat our little Citroen, which owes us nothing, and  is virtually worthless in the UK but I know it is a great reliable little car. I got a year's MOT on it a couple of weeks ago plus got it insured with 365 days in European cover.  I reckoned it was going to cost me about £400-£450 to bring it back so to me it was a no-brainer.

So, last Wednesday I left our lovely villa and set off on yet another adventure ...

I caught the airport shuttle on Wednesday morning and jumped on a Monarch flight to Manchester.

It was a nice clear day flying over the Pyrenees ...

From Manchester I caught a train to Macclesfield.

I picked up the car from Elaine's brothers house and went out and bought some bits and pieces for Elaine and the dogs (as requested!).

I went out with some friends on Wednesday night and spent the night at Elaine's dad's house.

On Thursday morning I drove to my mum's place in Milton Keynes and loaded the car up with more of our stuff ...

At night time I went out with some of my family.

On Friday I drove down to Portsmouth and caught the ferry to St Malo in France.  I couldn't get on the Spanish ferry, they were all full!

I even had my own VIP parking spot! 

It's a 12 hour crossing so I had a nice little cabin and after dinner and a bottle of red slept like a baby ...

The ferry docked at 08.15 and it took about half an hour to disembark, then we were off for the drive home.

People often say they don't fancy driving on the continent ... all I can say is it's a piece of cake and with roads  like this and virtually no traffic apart from around major towns what is there not to like? 

Last night I made it to Biarritz, which is very close to the Spanish border.  There are heaps of hotels along the route so I don't bother to book as I would rather drive until I have had enough then stop.

Last night it was room service of a pizza and a bottle of Bordeaux!

I managed to watch the England v Ireland rugby match then it was bed time for me.

I made an early start this morning (before 08.00).  The weather was a bit crappy at first but with so little traffic it didn't slow me down.  I went on a different route this time skirting around Madrid.

There was a fair amount of snow just before Madrid ...

I kept myself awake by stopping every two hours and blasting good music from the ipod ...

I arrived home at 20.00 after a really good day's drive.  The little car performed faultlessly and my co pilot Major Tom Tom did a sterling job.

There is even room in the garage to park the little car and the motorbike ...

1560 miles (2510ks) at an average of 40 mpg!