Thursday 12th July 2018

I wake up at about six, having had six good hours sleep. Thanks to the poor result the night before, the partying stopped around midnight, all I heard was Football's not coming home, over and over again.

As the room faced west, it was cool, more than cool enough to lay abed some more and do nothing, but there was breakfast to have, case to pack and a ferry to catch.

I am down in the breakfast room at seven, but things are more organised than on Wednesday. What I really need is coffee. Lots of coffee. But I also have cereal with yogurt followed by toast and marmalade. I know how to live.

I feel the need to leave now for the half nine ferry, as the traffic in Newport I saw the day before, but when I mention this to the staff, they tell me to use the floating bridge, will get me to East Cowes in a few minutes. They even give me directions, from all car parks in town. I am confused, but then this is my natural state.

I check out and walk to the car, man, it already felt like 80 in the shade, and would get hotter of course. I drive out of the car park, take a left and another left, following the ain road to the riverside where there was a slipway, and waiting on it, just unloading, was the floating bridge, or more accurately, a chain ferry.

After a minute or so the schoolchildren who have just crossed are allowed off, and we are told to drive on.

£2.60 pays for the crossing, which takes about two minutes. After a wait, the engines fire up, the rump is lifted and the boat drags itself over the river, depositing us in East Cowes with me having a 100m drive to the ferry port. It is half eight, and I have just missed the earlier ferry, so wait in line to get on the next one, snapping scenes around the harbour then listening to the radio.

By nine, our ferry has arrived, and in ten minutes it is empty and we are allowed on and again, after parking up, I grab my camera and rish to the top deck so I can stand the way over, get some breeze and snap Cowes as we leave.

Below, the car deck is loaded, until there are few spaces left, lorries and buses go in the lower deck, until we're all on board. The barriers are loaded, the linkspan raised and the ferry's engines start. Down below, a Mercedes car alarm goes off, this will be our soundtrack for the next hour.

We pull out of the dock and turn down the river towards the open see, passing dock after dock of expensive looking yachts and boats. Cowes looks a picture, huddled beneath a hill, all a muddle of buildings and narrow lanes.

We go into the open water between the island and mainland, ferries pass in the opposite direction, whilst on either side there is barely a breath of wind to move the surface of the sea.

The mainland draws near, we turn round the headland and cruise towards Southampton, past the acres of the oil and gas refinery, and acres of parking lot for new cars either arriving or being exported. Six huge ships wait to either me emptied or filled. Their only job is to move cars around the globe.

In another dock, a huge cruise ship is being bunkered and taking on stores. It is like a skyscraper laying on its side, above the hull on both sides, sheer walls of glass show where the suits are, whilst on the sun deck, a huge digital screen plays ads for the very same cruise line that owns the ship, to no one.

We arrive and the ship is made ready, and again I am one of the first off, though we are held whilst the lorries are let off first.

From the port it is a straight run along the riverside, past strip malls to the start of the motorway, and I put my foot to the floor and the car just goes.

The motorway was quiet, the radio plays, and apart from stopping for some fuel, its an uneventful journey to London. Even the M25 isn't bad again, I just want to get back to Kent and home, though it was all going to well and I get stuck in a jam for an hour or so, then it magically just melts away and I continue on into Kent.

An hour later and I am back home, half past three and, as ever, pooped.

I was in back in time to give the cats their dinner, apparently, I don't argue so feed them. I unload the car, pack stuff away, do some work before leaving for the port at five so Jools can pick me up after dropping the car off. As I walk out of the terminal, she is waiting, and the plan now is to go to Deal for dinner; more fish and chips.

We go to the place we went to before, opposite the pier so I can order skate, which is a king among battered fish.

Outside it is another glorious evening, but instead of a walk after dinner, we go home to relax, and once brews were made, watch another episode of The Bridge. Outside the day turns to red, the birds stop going to the feeder, but a lone Goldfinch sings of joy at the end of another fine summer's day.