Awake and up at seven on a mild sunny day. Breakfast and then a final travel baggage check before taxi called just after eight to take us to the coach station for a nine o'clock trip to Bristol Airport. Two hours extra early for our flight to Barcelona at three, to avoid risk of delay on the road imposing pressure on us we don't need, and give Clare extra time to walk using stick and handling her flight bag.
Getting from the departure lounge to the aircraft, I carried both cabin bags, as there are too many sets of stairs to navigate. Cardiff Airport is just as bad for stairs and moving staircases are almost absent. Not good, but the physical workout was encouragingly good for me, and we boarded without incident for the two hour flight.
We landed at Terminal 2C, last visited on returning from Ibiza lockdown. Moderately busy today in contrast to that day in June 2022 when our London bound flight was one of the half dozen to leave that day. When we reached passport control we were ushered to the front of the queue much to my surprise thanks to Clare walking with a stick I think and me accompanying her wearing a clerical shirt! We both got smiles from the stewards as we passed!
John immediately recognisable from his photo was waiting for us at the arrivals gate. Veronica was waiting in the car outside, in a blue badge parking space, as she's registered disabled now. Meeting and greeting her with a big hug was amazing, as she looks just like my sister June, her birth mother. She drove up up the A7 to their house at L'Escala in the middle of the Costa Brava, a two hour trip. It was only when we were waiting to leave Bristol that I saw flights to Girona had already restarted, three quarters of an hour from home. I was under the mistaken assumption flights there restarted in summer. What a shame I didn't dig deeper when booking. Veronica took us the extra mile down to the town centre to give us a brief preview of the town she's called home for the past forty years before reaching the house and settling us in.
The land opposite their terrace is verdant agricultural pasture bounded by trees and bushes. The evening bird chorus had started, astonishingly rich, varied and different. After we'd eaten, talking non-stop of course, I went for a walk in the dark and listened to the chorus of tree frogs in the reed beds along water courses that descend to the sea. I managed three quarters of my daily step quota before calling it a day. Amazingly after a week of heavy rain a dry day to travel, but warnings issued of rain and thunder overnight.
Much in need of sleep after an early start with a busy day tomorrow
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