🐰 Day 8: The Journey Home 💜

Leaving Benidorm behind, but bringing every memory with us 🌹

Day 8 of Buddy’s Journey is complete.

And today marked the beginning of something that feels very strange...

The journey home.

After reaching Benidorm and spending several days walking in Millie's footsteps, revisiting the places she loved and making new memories in a place that holds so many of our old ones, it was time to turn the car around.

Our adventure wasn't over.

But the direction had changed.

Instead of heading towards Spain, we were now heading back towards home. 🇪🇸➡️🇫🇷➡️🇬🇧

And, as excited as we were to eventually get home, leaving Benidorm behind was emotional.

🌴 Saying goodbye to Benidorm

Over the last few days, Benidorm has felt like much more than a holiday destination.

It has felt like a little piece of Millie.

We walked the streets she had walked.

We visited places she had visited.

We stood by the sea where she had once stood.

We ate the things she loved.

We remembered her laughter.

We talked about her constantly.

And we allowed ourselves to feel everything that came with being back there.

So leaving wasn't simply saying goodbye to a place.

It felt like saying goodbye to another little chapter of memories.

I knew we had to leave.

I knew home was waiting.

But part of me wanted to stay just a little longer.

Not because I didn't want to go home, but because being there had allowed me to feel close to my girl in a way I hadn't expected.

Now we had to pack everything back into the car, settle Buddy in for another long journey and start making our way north.

🚗 Back on the road

We set off from Benidorm and began the long drive towards Biarritz in France.

After all the miles we'd already travelled, the thought of another long driving day was certainly daunting!

But we'd done this before.

We knew what to expect.

Fuel stops.

Snacks.

Long stretches of road.

Lots of music.

Lots of conversations.

And plenty of staring out of the window watching the scenery change.

As we left Spain behind, we travelled around the side of the beautiful Pyrenees.

The mountains looked incredible from this side too.

After travelling through them earlier in the journey, it was strange seeing them again from a different direction.

It was another reminder of just how far we'd travelled.

Only a few days ago, we had been driving through those mountains on our way towards Spain.

Now we were travelling back the other way.

🏔️ Watching the scenery change

One of the things I've loved most about this journey is simply watching the world change outside the car window.

We've seen so many different landscapes.

French countryside.

Spanish villages.

Mountains.

Fields.

Coastal roads.

Busy towns.

Quiet roads.

And little places that we probably wouldn't have seen if we'd simply taken the quickest route.

We've deliberately avoided toll roads where possible, choosing the slower and more scenic routes.

It has meant longer days.

But it has also meant seeing so much more.

Today was no different.

There were moments where we simply sat quietly and watched the scenery pass by.

And those quiet moments have given me a lot of time to think.

💜 Quiet moments with Millie

For all the excitement and adventure of this journey, there have also been so many quiet moments.

Moments when nobody says much.

Moments when you're simply looking out of the window.

Moments when a song comes on.

Moments when you see something that reminds you of someone.

And for me, those moments almost always come back to Millie.

This entire journey has been about remembering her.

It has been about carrying her with us.

It has been about visiting the places she loved.

And it has been about making sure that, even though she isn't physically here, she remains part of everything we do.

Sometimes I look over and see Buddy sitting there and it hits me all over again.

She's really gone.

But then I remember that her memory hasn't gone anywhere.

It's still here.

It's travelling with us.

It's in Buddy.

It's in the photographs.

It's in the stories.

It's in our conversations.

And it's in every mile of this journey.

😴 Even adventurers need a nap!

Of course, after so many days of travelling, tiredness was starting to catch up with us.

There were fuel stops.

There were snack stops.

And there was even time for a little car nap! 😂😴

Sometimes you simply have to admit defeat and close your eyes for a while.

Road trips sound incredibly exciting until you're several days in and realise just how exhausting they actually are!

But those little breaks make such a difference.

We'd stop, stretch our legs, grab something to eat or drink, have a quick rest and then get ourselves moving again.

Slowly but surely, the miles were disappearing behind us.

🇫🇷 Hello again, France

Eventually, we reached Biarritz.

France again! 

After spending time in Spain, it felt strange crossing back into France.

Another border.

Another little reminder that we were now officially on our way home.

Once we'd arrived, we got ourselves settled and then went for a little walk.

After spending so many hours sitting in the car, it felt amazing to get out, stretch our legs and breathe some fresh air.

Biarritz was beautiful.

There was something really peaceful about wandering around after such a long day of driving.

We could slow down for a little while.

Take in our surroundings.

And just enjoy being somewhere new.

🐰 Buddy's journey home

And, of course, Buddy was still with us.

She's been such a huge part of this adventure.

From the moment we left home, she has travelled every mile.

She crossed the channel.

She travelled through France.

She went through the Pyrenees.

She arrived in Spain.

She returned to Benidorm.

She visited Millie's favourite places.

And now she's heading home.

Inside Buddy is Millie's mini urn.

So as we drive back towards the UK, a little part of my beautiful girl is making the journey home with us too.

In a strange way, it feels like we're bringing a piece of Benidorm and all those memories home with us.

🌹 Thinking about everything we've done

Tonight, sitting in Biarritz, I found myself thinking about just how much has happened over the last eight days.

When we left home, we knew this was going to be a big journey.

But I don't think we could have fully understood how emotional it would become.

We've travelled hundreds of miles.

We've crossed borders.

We've driven through mountains.

We've seen incredible scenery.

We've laughed.

We've cried.

We've been exhausted.

We've had moments where we've wondered what on earth we were doing!

And we've created memories that will stay with us forever.

But above everything else, we've carried Millie.

That has been the most important part of this entire journey.

💭 A little more to come

There are also some things surrounding the wider journey that we'll talk about properly once we're home.

There have been ups and downs.

There have been difficult moments.

There have been things that haven't gone exactly as planned.

And there are decisions we've had to make along the way.

For now, though, our priority is simple:

Get home safely.

Once we're home and have had time to process everything, I'll be able to talk more openly about what has happened, the good, the bad and everything in between.

But tonight isn't about that.

Tonight is about Day 8.

It's about Biarritz.

It's about the journey home.

And it's about another day of carrying Millie's memory with us.

💜 One mile at a time

As we look towards the next few days, the journey home is going to be another adventure in itself.

There are still more roads to travel.

More places to see.

More miles to put behind us.

And eventually, that moment when we pull back into our own driveway.

I know that moment will be emotional too.

Because we'll be coming home with a completely different perspective on the journey we have just taken.

We'll be bringing home photographs.

Memories.

Stories.

Little souvenirs.

And so many thoughts about our beautiful girl.

But we'll also be bringing home something much more important:

A reminder that Millie came with us.

She was part of this journey from beginning to end.

🐰 Day 8 — Complete

Benidorm
⬇️
🏔️ Pyrenees
⬇️
Biarritz

Another day complete.

Another destination reached.

Another chapter written.

Tomorrow, we continue north.

One step closer to home.

And although we're leaving Spain behind, the memories we've made there will be coming home with us.

One mile.

One memory.

One adventure at a time.

And always...

One beautiful little girl in our hearts. 🌹💜🐰