We eventually get back to Gatwick, and about 6 inches of fresh snow, at about 5a.m., too early for the first hotel shuttle, so had to pay a taxi back to where our car was parked. At the hotel we retrieved the car keys. It took some time to locate the car under the snow - thank goodness for electronic locks - and longer to clear it sufficiently to drive. And now we encountered another problem. The windscreen wipers were not working. I assumed that the hotel staff might have burnt out the motor by trying to use them when moving the car around the car park in snowy and icy conditions, but it turned out only to be a blown fuse. But before we discovered that, I had to drive from Gatwick to Worcester, in sub-zero temperatures, on icy, salty roads, with no wipers. I do not recmmend this to anyone, but on fairly quiet motorways it was just about possible. By the time we got home it felt like bed-time, but after unloading the car I prudently took the car to the garage, who quickly sorted the wipers out.
Only 3 shopping days before Christmas. Pavements treacherous, many shops closed. But that has nothing to do with Egypt so I'll blog off now. Roll on February and the Cairo study-tour!