So after weeks of preparation we were ready to go…..we thought.

When you travel by plane, train, or suchlike, the baggage restrictions are such that one controls, at least to some extent, the amount of luggage one tries to take. It is all carefully selected and weighed so that one does not get too much of a shock on lifting the bag, or at the airport when it ends up on the scales.

A motorhome (or caravan perhaps) is different. So we can take the kitchen sink! As I carried assorted bags down the drive, I began to ponder this factor but continued anyway. I now have an electronic book reader so I took fewer books. However, one just does have to have that one, and how can I leave behind that book. So where does it all go…. in the Motorhome….somewhere. It just seems that the cupboards are full and once again, we set off with the floor littered with bags and other stuff that has yet to find a home. Oh well, later when we stop we can pack it all away…..maybe.

Driving down the road was a bit of an anticlimax and so the journey to Maidstone seemed to take longer than I hoped. In fact, it was an easy drive with no holdups except for a quick lunch and a brief walk: must follow doctor's instructions and not sit still for more than two hours. Also the rear began to emanate some noises which were unwelcome, like mice squeaking. Must check that out later!!

Therefore, by 4 pm we had completed the first 200 miles of this trip and can now have a rest for 5 days, until Sunday when we flee the shores of the UK for a few weeks. I guess that it will be an escape from the insane noise from some of the chattering classes and we can escape from the reading of it in the papers.