Buchy - Calais - Folkestone

Had a great nights sleep alongside our fellow travellers (well, I hasten to add, they were in their mohos and we were in ours) 😂 - the morning was bright and crisp. Had a leisurely breakfast for once and took Tom for his walkies. We decide to head for Calais after breakfast even knowing we didn’t need to check in until 45 minutes before departure but we are part of a few Facebook ‘closed groups’ of motorhomers and these groups are a great source of knowledge and information when travelling for the first time overseas in the Moho. They can and we have given our fellow travellers lots of tips and advice and, in this current situation, is like gold dust to many. So, I’d seen a post that recommended getting to Calais really early. So, off we go, stopping in Buchy town for one last baguette and a couple of choc-au-pain for coffee time. The news we had woken up to was that from mid-day today France was in lock down so we felt it would be wise to get to Calais before 12. We made excellent time en route to Calais when we received an email from Eurotunnel asking people not to turn up early. Everything was on time, all was well, our slot would be honoured but please do not turn up hours in advance. So we found a parking Aire near a service station to while away about 5 hours! Ooopsy. We read a bit, walked the dog a bit, watched some comedy clips on YouTube - then I said to Al why don’t we clean out the van again - as it turned out there was plenty of sand under the carpets from dear Tom’s coat, so that passed a good hour. All the time we are checking the news, Facebook and then, someone called Helen who I had been communicating with earlier, had reached Calais as their slot was much earlier than ours and she has a pet - a cat - and she urged us to come on down. It was not pandemonium as we had been led to believe and she assured us all would be well. As you can imagine, we were like ‘rats up a drainpipe’ and off we went. Arrived at Calais around 4pm and parked up. Alan took Tom to Pet Passport control for me - I was feeling a bit strung up by this time and that can easily travel down the lead to Tom’s brain (I kid you not!). So he did it for me. The personnel check Tom’s passport, check his microchip is in place with a reader and the number on the reader must agree with the number on the passport - obviously. All well and we are back on board. We watched the electronic readout board in the Moho parking area and we knew we were group M - and around 5.45 Alan says “They’re calling M to go through!” Well, this was slightly premature as we were not due to leave til 6.50. We went through French Passport control, who just beckoned us through. Then British Passport Control who took our passports and logged them into their system - just like airports do. We then got to an unmanned barrier and the barrier itself would not go up. We had assumed it was registration recognition, but when people behind us started to toot, we realised we had done something wrong. I hopped out with the passports and my ticket barcode and found the control panel we had missed and did the necessary, hopped back on the van and the barrier lifted. Phew! Then we get to the next manned area and we had to show the guard our gas area in the garage of the Moho to check the gas was safe and turned off. I think this is a random check that is done, because it wasn’t done on the way into France, but, hey, the times they are a changing. On a personal level, I have to say here that, as much as we were incredibly relieved to have made it to get home, we did look at each other at one point and, after nigh on 40 years together, you know what the other is thinking - we were a bit

sad - sad that the trip of a lifetime had turned into the trip of a beep beep lifetime! and sad for the world right now.

One thing that happened as we drove into the Pet Passport area was we suddenly spotted the folks we stayed next to in both Roses Aire and stayed next to them in L’Estartit - (they’re the owners of Millie the lovely female collie) At that time, they, like us, had no intention of shortening their holiday and returning to the UK and there they were. It brought home again to us, how quickly things had changed. They hadn't acted quite as quickly though, so they were holed up in Calais until the next day.

Anyway, when the gas system in our Moho was finished being checked, we drove where directed and realised we were being fed into the shuttle and we were on the 6.20! Fabulous surprise. In next to no time, we were on our way. 35 minutes later we are driving off the shuttle and off to our little pub near Folkestone which I had booked as soon as we knew our travel arrangements. Literally a 5 minute drive from the shuttle. I checked in with a member of staff and asked if we could order a couple of fish and chip suppers for 7pm to eat in the van which they were delighted to do. We were able to have a quick shower and change and sat and ate our smashing supper at 7pm. We took Tommy boy out for a short walk and settled into bed around 9 UK time which of course, is 10 French time. Slept well until around 1 in the morning when I heard so much traffic on the M25. I read a bit and must have dropped off again but not til around 3. Never mind, we are one step away from reaching home today. So take care all, back at you tomorrow. The picture tonight is of the sunset that greeted us as we drove off the shuttle at Folkestone. Nice welcome!!!! Nighty night