1st August 2007
Our return flight to the UK was via Bahrain, mercifully only a short stopover this time, just long enough to visit the loo and endure a long march from Gate 2 to Gate 32 (about a mile away). Why such a huge terminal for a small desert kingdom?

We landed just after midnight and caught the shuttle bus to the car park (the cheapest I could find, hence 15 minutes away). We located the car, set the SAT NAV, and drove home in a very quiet, sleepy car, arriving two hours later.

Thankfully, Market Harborough was still standing, and so was the house, undrowned by the recent appalling weather the country had endured, too. Jamie, Sarah and I climbed straight into bed. Sue said she wouldn’t be long. I woke at 7.30 am to find her already on her second load of washing (how does she do it!). Jamie was up and about, busy playing with his new phone and connecting it to his laptop. Sarah, sensibly, was still fast asleep. At least two members of the family know how to pace themselves.

Daylight revealed the following:

• Loft overflow still leaking – fixed with a new valve (£1.15).

• Telephones not working – fixed with a mobile call to BT. An engineer arrived within 30 minutes. (A disgruntled tree had taken down the line.)

• Lawns gone wild – fixed with a £5 donation to Jamie.

• Camera charger broken – not fixable, but I unearthed another from my box of bits and pieces. Success!

• Pool gone green – resolved with a vacuum hose, chemicals, and an hour spent trudging in circles.

• Jamie’s moped – broke down in Farndon. He pushed it all the way back. Not fixable (not for four weeks, at least).

• Guinea pigs alive and well – discovered by driving Sarah over to Roger’s (he’s been looking after them).

On our return, I noticed Sue limping. On closer inspection, she had a nasty infection in her big toe. Apparently, a small blister had “gone funny”. Today, she will be seeing the doctor for antibiotics. We will be flying again in three days to Thailand.