Did I tell you - the sun was shining, and the trees are just starting to get their leaves - look bare twigs at present. Trees are deciduous here, not bare due to bushfires.
By our Australian times, we took off Tuesday at half past midnight, and arrived in UK at about 11.30pm, were trying to find the bus about an hour later. At UK 5pm we were on the bus - 2am Weds for us, so there is no surprise we slept on the way to Glos, and by 8pm UK, our time 5am - we were asleep. Now it is 5am UK or 2pm for us, and we are having first breakfast. (Well, I have had 2 cups of coffee, and there is only enough milk left for both of us to have another cup. Shops, etc will open in about 3 hours time, so the 'breakfast' we will then get here will do us for lunch.)

Funny thing - the floor gives a lurch now and then - there was turbulence over Europe. Language too - we were told to follow the yellow signs, but heard it as follow the yellow lines. No wonder we got to the wrong place, and backtracked, later translated correctly and the Central BUS station was at the end of the yellow signs, as she had said.

Once we unpacked our electric plugs in the second case, the computer and shaver were in use. I had not thought that problem through - till we had woken today. This room has new fittings with the latest version power points, so now we are organised. Next is the hotel tea-bags - 'proper' ones with Tags, and the Twinnings brand name. Max is pleased, as we could not get that one in Red Cliffs.

Later comment - Liptons teabags with jiggler strings were elusive all our trip.

The bus came into Gloucester along Stroud Rd, which is where we lived in 1997, so we were trying to look both ways at once, so pleased were we to see houses we recognised.
We went for a walk, Gloucester Cathedral had an open door, and we found our way to the small chapel where 4 were starting the 7.30am Communion service. We added our accents to the responses, and praised the Lord for his goodness to us.

English cooked Breakfast over, we have stored our luggage at the hotel, and walked to the library. We had correctly remembered they open at 10am, and our Cards from 2000 were activated. They provide free Internet access, with only one other user for the 4 machines. To add to my surprise, The letter I had written and saved to disk, could be opened and then pasted into each Email, so I worked back through the recent correspondents till I got a message saying time was nearly up. Then I checked, and already there were two replies, one from Barrie who titled his note 'Finally - you're alive'. I had got his email address wrong for the earlier letters I had sent him.

I did not tell you about the masks. At Melbourne we saw quite a few arriving travellers wearing surgical masks, so were not too surprised when we boarded the plane and all of the Staff had their mouths covered. At KL many of the travellers at the airport were 'correctly attired', and when we boarded the second plane, so were many of our fellow passengers. Over the next 12 hours passengers gradually discarded the masks in the interests of comfort. Staff stayed 'correct'. At Heathrow very few were masked, and arrivees soon discarded their protection.

May God smile on you today,
Elizabeth