Third time: not very lucky!

On 16th Greyrocks set off on its third dip into UK for a wedding-related event of 2018! (And fortunately the last!- not that we are not delighted at the tying of the knot with Jack - but  it has gone on a bit!)

The first was at the beginning of March for the Hen Party and the impact of "The Beast from the East" is well-documented! At the time this seemed as is things could not be worse! But we survived, albeit out of pocket, and the Real Deal May Day bureaucracy went well - with a decent weather day in a week that was bad! We were on our way to the September Closing party to which those family and friends who didn't make it to Crete, but could to Bristol, were invited!

Our route was initially the reverse of June's with three ferries and a traverse with overnight in Italy. On departure day we said some farewells- including to Olga on the beach as a result of which we met "Nick and Tree" from June, and newly arrived again; and we had a bit of a chat about Goa (and Brexit). We then drove up to Chania, parked in a secret location, and had a late lunch at Akrogiali. They weren't playing ball over an hour of free sunbed use (asked the wrong person) so had our last sea swims of summer 2018 in shifts from a bar. The sea was lovely and this heightened the sorrow at leaving Crete. But needs must!

There is little to note about the three ferry journeys. The first was the new Elyros and we slept for most of the voyage and were off without incident. We waited till near dawn, missed the Corinth turn-off again but self-corrected and made our second long stop at Akrata, which  Greyrocks has decided should be the place for such things. The sun was shining and you can have coffee for ages on the beach whilst still keeping an eye on the car! It is also very close to the National Road. With the new road up and running we were soon in Patras with a day to kill, but they loaded us much more speedily than last year, meaning that Yvette was an a semi-open deck surrounded by juggernauts. The ship was deserted until bedtime, but by breakfast more populated (one assumes with Igoumenitsa passengers but we had slept through that!) We moored at Bari soon after, be we were one of the last cars off owing to Yvette's location, and found ourselves in a very long queue of lorries exiting the port, until signalled round them and out onto the autostrada. We were stopping well outside Naples at Caserta and had chosen a hotel with good parking but less good access to the historic town. That worked well - just rather noisy from the Appian Way on which it sat -  but we relaxed and watched the rush hour traffic from a bar and then bizarrely had a Chinese meal! That being the only open option within walking distance. Next day we had to get round both Naples and Rome, and we had memories of June! This was worse - especially Rome, and we won't do it again!

Not as bright as this for us!

Close to Civitavecchia we stopped at a service station for lunch and to plan for the rest of the day. It was raining! What we needed was some sort of shopping mall, and with the help of Mr Google and the tablet we found one, and with only a few wrong turns we were in the dry and calming nerves. We picked up our email and discovered our ferry would be departing an hour and a half later than had been notified. This had bad implications in terms of getting to Girona when we landed in the dark, and it meant even more time-killing until boarding. Long queues and bad signage got us almost up to restaurant opening time, and we had a pleasant meal in a small friendly place. During loading a Grimaldi man standing ahead of us motioned us back so far that there was a bang against the ship's structure. This, too, had repercussions!! Still the voyage was smooth, there was plenty of space in public areas and the rowdy Italian students were only occasionally near us. As on the way over we had a wonderful, long lunch in the A La Carte, and best of all most of the time was made up and we disembarked in daylight, managing the northbound autopista pretty well until onto the A7. Then the nasty noise started and we had to pull up after the toll booths and investigate in near darkness. The prang has dislodged the bike rack at the top. It took brute force and some time to re-site it; but disaster averted and a curse on Grimaldi man!

The hotel at Girona airport supplied a sandwich and some wine, and we watched Saving Mr Banks;- possibly a fitting prelude to visiting UK! In the morning we took Yvette across the road to the usual parking facility, removed the luggage including the one hold bag of wedding party paraphernalia and checked in for a noon flight to Bristol. Too mean to pay Ryanair for reserved seats we were at opposite ends of the plane, but otherwise the two hour flight was fine!

It had been over 30 deg. when we left Girona. Ruth waited at the base of the front stairs and was cold, then before Bob arrived it started to rain, and that is how it went on for two whole days! It was expected, of course with Storm Bronagh. The Bristol Post cheered all with this forecast:

The city had other challenges on top of this! Traffic near the station is almost at a standstill everyday with grand projet- related road works, and Sunday would be the day of the Half Marathon! Our friends from Sussex had planned around this and disability and we met them early on in their accommodation and then with Jack and Chloë for a Friday evening meal in a French brasserie. It was as well we did this as circumstances conspired and they didn't make the Sunday events!

Saturday's weather was totally foul! We managed a little shopping and a pub lunch, then decided we would need a taxi to get to the party venue in time to be some help. The driver was full of stories of the congestion. This was the third address given to guests. The original pub plan was abandoned as numbers swelled, and Jack's sister and her partner offered their large garden.  A stretch tent and Portaloo were ordered, but with the weather predictions a last-minute switch to the parental home, where the garden - although fairly big - could not accommodate the hired items. was forced. The family rallied round and through the wind and rain put up tarpaulin, lit a fire-pit and rearranged the furniture. Greyrocks did its bit on the catering support front. Obviously a bright autumn evening in the garden would have better, but the seventy or so who came for some or all of the long duration seemed happy to have met other friends and family. On Greyrocks' side both of Ruth's sisters were there with partners, and all her nieces and the offspring; and Bob's Suffolk cousin came with three sons and a grandson. They were having a week in a cottage near Weston-super-Mare in order to be there. The food was just right, with the star items being Alice's Middle-Eastern lamb and tiers of cheeses resembling a wedding cake, which she had decorated appropriately. Ruth ran (several times) the video of the August party, and then fell asleep, so it was time to leave! We had an event to attend next day.

Half-Marathon Route

On Sunday morning we walked to the SS Great Britain and passed a couple of thousand runners. Buses and cabs were not really an option with all the road closures,We weren't sure whether we were seeing beginning. middle or end of the Half Marathon throng; but we didn't spot Ruth's niece and stepfather, nor George the photographer. Jack's job is as a guide and he had cleared free entry for our group. Both Chloë and Jack met us and the cousins even though they had only got to bed at 7 am. The sun came out for all of the long tour round and the substantial walk to the pub for lunch. 

Paul follows Captain Jack's orders and "Never Mind the Rain"

We went to The Spotted Cow, which has developed a great reputation for Sunday lunch, and Chloë had reserved a table for nine. Something had gone wrong with that, and we ended up with cramped space and a very long wait. The food was very fine and probably worth the wait, and the beer and wine selection impressive! The "away team" left several hours later than they had expected. and we four shared a cab, with Greyrocks going straight to the hotel for a rest!

Monday's weather was somewhat better - but nothing to write home about! We went in search of walking sandals (out of season) and found nothing other than at Sports Direct so held our noses and bought them, leaving the old pair near a bin. They had gone in ten minutes! There was more time-killing and a pub meal that took too long, then we took the airport bus and flew back to the sun on one of Bristol's last flights of the day. We declared the couple well and truly married, and we set off on the next stage, which can go in the next post!