What on earth are we doing?

---

Suzanne here...

So, it's time to go. Said our goodbyes to family and friends. I found it really hard to say goodbye to our niece, Natalie. Of course I'll miss everyone, but everyone else will be pretty much the same when we get back. Nat is only six, and changes all the time. We had one last cuddle and she gleefully waved us off without a care in the world, I sat in the car, bottom lip trembling and unable to speak for the journey home.

Our last evening at home, once we'd done a bit more cleaning and packing, was nice. We watched a film, had a bottle of wine and just enjoyed our home. The final morning was a bit hectic though. Packing our remaining stuff in the loft took long enough, but the final cleaning seemed to take forever. I suppose one of the advantages of doing a trip like this at 18 is that you don't have a whole bloody house to clean and get ready for your tenants. We then had one last look around our home, which really upset me. Despite our love of travelling, we're basically homebodies and like nothing more than spending time in our lovely house. As I looked around I was struck by the enormity of not seeing any of it for a year, and it was all I could do not to sob.

Still, little time to wallow. We were still cleaning as we backed out of the door. Then it was time to head off into town to meet my mum. We had a coffee together and she walked us to the station. We'd both thought we'd be fine, but saying goodbye was harder than I imagined. As I sat on the train once again I could barely speak. Why are we putting ourselves through this?!

The journey to London was fine, and we even managed to get an early dinner in at Wahacca, somewhere we've wanted to go for ages. The tube journey was naturally a squashed nightmare of a trip, but we got to Heathrow in plenty of time.

I miss everyone already. I do hope we're doing the right thing....

---