26th March 2003

Well, this is strange! Richard and I are now in Scotland - without Florence and her trailer! British Airways didn't seem to think that she was acceptable excess baggage...

12th March 2003

A surprise visit from John Cummings, a friend from home who was out in Kuwait on a two day visit to conduct security briefings. He arrived bearing an aid parcel from my parents (including the all important Private Eye and Spectator for a balanced view of the coming war!). That evening we were hit by the most incredible sandstorm, turning the city a bizarre orange - a stark contrast to the clear, warm weather during the day. Gale force wind, visibility down to about 20 feet and later that night a violent thunderstorm and torrential rain, which washed the sand out of the sky. The following day Florence looked as though she had been buried in a sand dune.

15th March 2003

The march towards war continues and I am obsessed with watching Fox News, CNN and BBC World. Things seem to change minute by minute and it seems inevitable that by this time next week there will be a war.

Richard managed to crick his neck over the weekend - we're still not quite sure how, must have been all the exercise he hasn't been doing over the past weeks. I laughed hysterically at first - so sympathetic - but then realised he was in rather a lot of pain. Hilal, a surgeon, insisted that Richard had x-rays to see what the problem was. 'Ah' said Hilal looking at the x-rays, 'it is as I thought - you see, an old fracture...' WHAT! I know Richard has had a few (shall not say how many) car crashes, but a broken neck? Fortunately Hilal realised he had been handed the wrong x-rays... and in fact Richard's neck problem is nothing more than a tweeked muscle.

17th March 2003

Well, war seems to be 48 hours away. And it is decision time for us. While Richard and I are quite happy to remain in Kuwait, we do not want to an additional concern to the friends we are staying with. And so, it is time for us to get on a plane and go home... This presents something of a problem to me - I hate, loathe and detest flying. And, because I am a hysterical wreck when I go near a plane (I have, in the past, delayed flights and even got off one Bristol - Aberdeen flight when it made a scheduled stop in Newcastle - well, it was windy...) Richard hates, loathes and detests flying with me...

18th March 2003

The day has come.... we have the last tickets for the last BA flight out of Kuwait City. And now, packing - what to take and what to leave? In the end we had 90kg of luggage, mainly bits and pieces that we had picked up or been given during our travels - I am hoping that I have some clothes at home that still fit me. The weight of our luggage was not such a problem as the last tickets happened to be in Club - unfortunately, BA were not sympathetic enough to negotiate a better price - thank you, thank you, thank you to my parents for bailing us out! I spent the day veering between quiet calm and loud sobbing - but this was a flight I really could not get out of. Fortunately for Richard and the other passengers on the flight, Hilal gave me some magic pills to calm my nerves; consequently I can remember the first ten minutes of the flight and then no more - did we really stop in Cyprus for two hours?

19th March 2003

Hello London! My sister met us at Heathrow for coffee - as we were travelling on to Aberdeen our bags were checked straight through so we were the first ones out into the arrivals area. My sister said 'do you know you were on the last flight out of Kuwait' - and the woman next to us said 'ah ha! Kuwait! I'm from ITN - can I interview you?!' Georgina and Richard slunk away and I, with my eyes still doing cartwheels, said 'yes of course'. They must have wondered who this loony was - I had forgotten that I was holding Pamela (a small, pink toy pig that travels with us because the real Pamela, our Vietnamese Potbellied Pig who lives with my parents, cannot!) under my arm. I am so happy that they didn't use my interview.