Friday 24th June 2022

In hindsight, I could have paid my bill the evening before, leaft when I woke up at about half four, and been at Calais by nine in the morning, or something close to that.

But I didn't.

And maybe just as well, as the storms rumbled on for nearly twelve hours, only clearing away just before six in the morning, by which time I had been awake since four.

I decided to stay to have breakfast and travel in daylight. And as I had all day, there was no rush, and if I planned it right, I could drop the hire car off and Jools collect me on her way home from work.

So, at half six I went for breakfast, fruit and yogurt followed by a roll with sprinkles. Gonna miss those!

And three cups of coffee, I was going to need those as I was bleary-eyed after for early mornings.

Back in the room I pack, do one final check to make sure I had left nothing behind, then went to the front desk to pay.

That settled, I loaded the car and programmed the sat nav to the last place in Kent it had been driven to; somewhere in Ashford. I started the car, and the car told me I had nine hours to go, whch I thought was way too long.

Although the thunder had stopped, rain fell down pretty hard and the light, which was on the third day after the longest day, was pretty poor. On top of that, the roads were very wet, so I took my time, driving onto the motorway and then following the directions, heading south and west towards France.

I won't like, there was one time on the way to Eindhoven when I thought the car was taking me to to east Belgium and maybe even Germany, but after a series of junctions the road signs listen Antwerp. I knew I was on the right course.

The rain continued to fall, and I pressed on at or below the speed limit.

The car, a hybrid, didn't quite eat the miles, but was pleasant enough and comfortable to drive, and with the sat nav, I didn't get lost.

By Eindhoven, the rain had stopped just, but I knew there would be traffic here like nowhere else. And some 5 miles from the start of the ringroad, I was in stationary traffic, inching forward, though maybe not as bad as I make it sounds.

Onto the ringroad, and having always suffered traffic here, even in the middle of the night, I was sure it would take half an hour to get to the Kennedy Tunnel and the open road beyond. But in fact, the traffic cleared after the next junction, and soon we were up to 70kmh, and the junctions and interchanges just flew by.

I didn't complain.

Out onto the open road then, down to Brugge, and onto the main road to Calais, I would be at the Tunnel at about eleven, and maybe back in the UK an hour later, or at the same time due to the time difference.

I was cruising now, even as the rain began to fall again, but traffic was so light, and hardly any UK cars on the road. Maybe I passed two in the last hour.

The last hold up was entering France where all traffic is forced through the car park of the old customs post so two bored looking policemen could look at every vehicle as it passed at walking pace. I saw no cars stopped, and was soon roaring back to cruising speed.

A quick stop in Calais for some Belgian beer at Calais Vin, and onto the Tunnel complex, and I found many, many UK registed cars, and cars from all over Europe waiting to get to Folkestone.

I booked in at the first set of barriers, and should have gone straight on, but there was purple markings on the road, the colour of the Flexi plus lane, pointing to the right. I went right.

And joined the back of the queue for all the standard ticket holders waiting to get on a train, and no way out to correct my mistake.

No markings on the road either to say if there were one or two lanes, so we inched our way round the various car parks and up to the French customs post, I got to show my passport and was allowed through, where the six or more lanes from the French side went into three or four for the UK border, with no signage agan to tell people what to do.

It was a mess.

I got into a lane that had fewer cars, and as I got near the front, the Renault at the border had trouble with one of their passports.

Big trouble.

Ten, twenty minutes went by and nothing moved. They sat there and guards came to watch over what was happening. The car between me and the Renault was a brand new black Ferrari, and the gue drapped in gold was very impatient. His hand tapping on the roof of his car. And at one point he got out to complain and was told, in no uncertain terms, to shut up and get back in his car.

I looked in my rear view mirror and the van behind had given up and joined another lane, so I reversed back and did the same.

Mr Ferrari still sat there as the officials dealt with the Renault.

I got through, went to the lounge for a snadwich, crisps, and a couple of drinks, then got back in the car to go to the waiting area, just as the barrier lifted and we were allowed to go to the ramp, and after a short wait, allowed onto the train.

Phew.

I ate the sandwich and crisps, before the train pulled away. I would be back in Folkestone just after one, so I called Jools to pick me up at the car hire place.

All settled.

We arrived back and we are let off very quickly, I take the lane to the A20, while most are heading up the motorway to London and beyond.

I arrived back at the car hire place, unloaded the car so it could be checked over, and all that was done just as Jools pulled in.

It is the weekend.

I put the case and bags into the Audi and Jools took us home, where four hungry cats were waiting for us.

Jools made a brew and we sat on the patio drinking them, the birds were busy in the bushes, taking food from the feeders. And for me there was jobs to do; unpack the case, put the other stuff away.

And for dinner I had bought some stinky cheese from beside the wine shop, and three fresh baguettes from the bakery beside the cheese shop.

I had thought ahead.

We made one of the baguettes disappear and most of the cheese, meaning we would have to go out to buy some more in the morning.

But all jobs done, so we listened to the radio before going to bed at eight. I was back home and it was the weekend.