Day one

The day we travelled passed virtually without incident. Everyone was in plenty of time for the train, which was just as well when we realised Luke had forgotten his passport, despite the constant reminders I had given for fear of just such an eventuality. Having just left, his poor mum had to redo the whole trip, this time with his passport.

All the train journeys went smoothly and I even managed the steps at the Gare de l'Est with my huge case despite Heather telling everyone that I nearly fell down them last year and to watch out for a catastrophe as it is nearly as big as I am.

The highlight of the journey had to be when Billy foiled a crime. Having had no coins to use the toilets in the Gare de l'Est and with the train just announced, Billy hovered outside the toilet in the carriage, which was permanently locked. We thought maybe it was locked while we were still in the station but, when the guard came past and saw Billy's predicament, it was clear that he was unaware of any issues. Two of the guards broke the door to discover two men crammed into a tiny cubicle; Billy had prevented two fare dodgers from getting away with their plan and was the hero of the group!

As predicted,  with half an hour to go, there was lot of last minute practice of useful French phrases and  Luke questioned his sanity in having chosen to take part. They did all leave with their partner's families without too many tears when it came time to split up.