After three productive and friend/family-filled days in Liverpool, we took the train down to our friend Helene’s house in Surrey, just southwest of London. And there, up in the attic, were our suitcases we left before heading out on our 3-week bike trip which morphed into 2 1/2 months. This was the place that we left from! https://atravelyear.blog/2022/06/10/a-plane-a-truck-three-trains-two-bikes-and-a-boat/
And inside my suitcase were the unimaginable riches of TWO pairs of pants, a dress shirt, multiple pairs of underwear and even socks! Chris had her own treasure trove in her suitcase. After months of living with only one of anything, we now have much more than we need. (Which is probably 1/20th of what we have at home)
In Liverpool, we finalized some things to do with Chris’ mom’s estate, spread Chris’ dad’s ashes, visited with family, took friends out to dinner and attended a quiz night presented by Chris’ sister Helen at the local pub. Busy days and late nights! We are both tired. We stayed in good friend Jane’s lovely house while we were in Liverpool, which is an oasis of calm order that we thoroughly enjoyed.
Chris sorted through some old photographs to bring home, reminding her of her youth.
Chris’ fathers’ ashes had been sitting in Viv’s house for about a year, and so Andrew, Chris and I took them to Oglet shore, a place he enjoyed playing when he was a boy, and dispersed his ashes in the Mersey. We went to a pub in the cute village of Hale when we were done, where Chris and I shared a ceremonial whiskey in Austin’s memory.
After all the Liverpool responsibilities and festivities were done, we boarded a train through London to Guildford. We were lucky that the rail strike had abated on that day, so we could go. The trip was uneventful…which is as good as it gets in certain situations.
Arriving at Guildford train station, we surveyed the very ramp that we wheeled our bikes down to begin our bike adventure a few months ago, and both thought how nice it would be to be starting another bike adventure now. Soon enough, we hope and plan.
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