preparations for the big trek

When you've got no money - buy a tent, but not just any old tent, but top of the range, with 3 white cloth bedrooms that tie on and a kitchen extension tent. And then buy all the equipment you never knew you needed . So we have a 2 burner stove with a stand to put THINGS on! A set of 3 saucepans that fit inside one another with all the lids fitting inside too with the interchangeable handle inside the smallest one. Isn't that cute I thought. Lots more to buy and so little time - a washing up bowl on another stand with a draining board - (there's luxury), campbeds, sleeping bags, table, fold-up chairs, kettle with a foldup handle, frying pan, and lots more. Carried away by the possibilities, it never occurred to me that I could save money by taking equipment I already owned - did I think there were magic properties in items bought at the camping store?

The nice man in the tent store colour coded all the poles for us so that we novices couldn't start arguing the minute we got on a foreign campsite, and so that we would have a roof over us before it gets dark. When we got the kit home it took ages to unload, which didn't bode well for calm, efficient travel, especially if you take into account the amount of tackle you need for 2 toddlers. Perhaps that should have rung alarm bells but instead I decided on lists - list of camping stuff, list of kid stuff, list of our stuff, list of food and household stuff, list of Order of Packing, endless lists to make us Better Campers.

The day after the extravagant purchase was a fine Sunday, Granny was looking after the kids, so we decided on a dry run of erecting the tent and associated paraphanalia. It went very efficiently, thanks largely to the colour-cordinated poles (definitely less irritation factor), and within an hour, there we were with our own little bungalow that could go anywhere, anytime. . Having such a success, we now knew exactly what to do, how and in what sequence. Perfect - nothing simpler, there was a moment when i thought maybe we should just holiday in our back garden, but no, we're good to go. With a week to go I felt in control, potential problems eliminated.