I was orderly officer today, took the exercise at 6:30 this morning. The horses look very fit, and my little mare looks well. We are only allowed a gallon of water a day for everything, washing and drinking etc. so we shall have to be very careful. The rest of the artillery brigade of the division are fairly close round about, also the Gloucester Yeomanry and the Scottish Horse. We expect to go on from here to France in about a month or so.
After stables this morning we went and had a bathe. It was glorious and the water quite warm. While we were in the water, a flock of about 20 pelicans flew within gunshot over our heads, ungainly great birds they looked. The Major Alan Franklin and I swam over the canal (it is only about 150 yds) and stayed about on the other side for a bit and then swam back. It was the first bathe I’d had since we landed, though the others had had a good deal at Port Said.
There was nothing much doing this afternoon except the usual orderly officer job of seeing to waters and feeds and mounting guards and pickets.
The canal is full of fish and we mean to have some out for the mess if possible. Elliott had got a line in Port Said and tried tonight, but had no luck.