It was overcast and damp by the time we left the hotel to walk up to Albion Street to join the others for a ten thirty breakfast finishing the last of the croissants and pain chocolat bought for the Christmas feast. It started to rain and continued at varying levels of intensity until mid-evening flooding highway drains and making it a misery to walk or drive anywhere.
After lunch Kath drove Owain to Coventry railway station to catch one of the trains still remaining in the aftermath of yesterday's rail strike to take him to Birmingham so he could take the three o'clock coach he'd booked to get him back to Bristol. We returned to the hotel packed our cases, loaded the car, then drove back to Albion Street to say thank you and goodbye to Kath and Anto for hosting another delightful family Christmas celebration, full of fine traditional food, good wines and coffee, spiced with much laughter. To my amazement the entire four kilo turkey and three kilo salmon were accounted for by the seven of us in three days. No waste, perfect planning.
At four thirty we parted company and ventured out into the downpour. With only a ten minute break rain pelted down for the entire journey home in the dark. I intended to use the M42 to reach the M5/M50, but couldn't identify the relevant junction with the A46, so I had to use the A46 route via the Stratford bypass which we normally take instead, mostly unlit, and quite busy, as was the entire road home. I was grateful that my mind was clear and vision clear enough to drive with confidence. It took all the concentration I could muster. Our non-stop journey of two and three quarter hours was incident free, followed by a warm winter bowl of split pea soup quickly made by Clare from pre-Christmas leftovers. Then, an episode of 'Vienna Blood' before turning in for the night.
So glad we decided to return tonight rather than rising very early and driving to a ten o'clock deadline to be in church to celebrate the Holy Innocents' Day Eucharist tomorrow.
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