Saturday 24 December 2011

Home Sweet Home

I am home at last, and just in time for Christmas!

The horses are now legally in Ukraine, at least for the time being. As little Zorbee was having veterinary treatment for an oedema, we submitted an ancillary medical report to Chop customs which I delivered Friday a week ago on the way home. Natalya Radonov emailed me shortly after to say that some military gentlemen had been round to inspect them and all was OK. This should give them about a month's extension, but I still have to be told the the exact date. In the meantime they are having a series of blood tests in the hope that I may still be able to get them into the EU.

While I am away they are in the capable hands of Zhenya, shown below with Hua.

Hua and I set off for home as soon as we had submitted the report, but even our journey home was not without stress. It took us 15 hours to cross the border into Slovakia, where I was fined 700 euros as I had not realised that one needed to buy a prepaid box to drive on the toll roads, we were stopped by German police for driving too slow on the autobahn, and then Hua was detained in Calais and refused entry to the UK even though he has a Canadian passport. We had to find a hotel for the night (and a restaurant with a large carafe of wine) while we decided our next course of action. Hua has taken the train to Paris, where I hope he will be able to sort things out and come over to Wales after Christmas Day.

We also had to drive through snowstorms on the way home, but Natalya says that this is good luck so perhaps 2012 will be a better year!

3 comments:

  1. So glad to hear you are all ok. What a bloody nightmare trip home, hope it's the last run of bad luck you will have for the rest of your trip and I hope Hua manages to get a taste of Welsh hospitality.
    Have a happy (and restful) Christmas and may 2012 bring you all you wish for.

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  2. Great news!

    Unbelievable trip home. Ye really have been through it the last few weeks. Have a happy and safe New Year- well deserved.

    Good luck with the next phase,
    Best wishes.

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  3. glad to read you made it back, albeit it being a journey with what we dutch call "hindernissen". Driving too slow on the autobahn (sic!) , your friend not allowed in, this is fortress Europe, welcome back from the authorities is not that nice.... Hope the horses may enter too soon! Please keep us informed !

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