December | 2020 | Not Just a Granny

Archive for December, 2020

Succumbing to the Conqueror Challenges

Posted in Fun Stuff, Inspiration, It's my life, long distance walks - solo, project 101, Travel, walk 1000 miles 2020, tagged adventure, Camino de Santiago, Conqueror virtual challenges 2020, English Channel, for the love of walking, Hadrian's Wall, long distance walking, walk1000miles, walking the Conqueror virtual challenges on December 9, 2020| 7 Comments »

In April of this year, just one month after we went into lockdown, my daughter introduced me to the Conqueror virtual challenges. A friend of hers was participating in them, and knowing how much I love walking, she thought they would be a fun idea for me too. Initially I was like…hmmm that’s a bit expensive, but hey I like the Hadrian’s Wall medal, so yeah, why not sign up and do just the one (please note, at the time I said “just the one” 🤪🤪)

I signed up, downloaded the app and for the next week I swore and spluttered as I tried to get to grips with how it all worked…and I walked. But soon enough I figured it out and in no time at all I was adding on the miles and watching my progress.

The organisers are very clever… besides the fact that the app has (actually) been beautifully designed, the features keep you hooked as you progress along the route…click on the map and you can see ‘where you are on the route’ and until I figured how to turn it off, all the other virtual travellers who were either with you, or ahead or coming up behind. I found that a bit busy and switched to only me.

A little too busy for me, but wow, there were a lot of people on the same route

Besides that, you get award notifications (via the app)…Flying Start Award 5%, or Trail Blazer 20% and Halfway There Award 50%, a bit like a coach would do, keeping you motivated.

If you click through to the actual challenge they have 2 stats: Distance and Time which show you the distance you’ve covered and how long it’s taken you. You can set the length of your own challenges. I usually overstate mine and end up completing well before my expected date – then you get a message that says “well done Cindy, are you sure you’re not a pro? Or “you’re well ahead now” LOL Brilliant.

Besides that excitement, they intermittently send you virtual postcards telling you more about the route and the history of said route or the country you’re virtually walking through – and they have really put a lot of thought into it. I get a thrill each time a new postcard pops up in my email.

Conqueror virtual challenges – Hadrian’s Wall

They’ve recently introduced a new feature and for every 20% of the challenge you complete, they plant a tree in conjunction with their partners Eden Projects; their reforestation programs help the environment and reduces extreme poverty by employing local villagers. The trees are planted all over the world, from Madagascar and Indonesia to Central America and Haiti. Being eco-conscious and concerned about the destruction of our planet, this was an exciting feature and keeps me heading for the 20% markers. I’ve planted about 20 trees so far ☺☺👏👏👏

At the time I started the Hadrian’s Wall challenge I was working in a wee village in Somerset; Nether Stowey, miles from anywhere, out in the countryside and right slap bang on the Quantocks. Give me the name of a walk to do, and I’m there…🚶🏻‍♀️🚶🏻‍♀️🚶🏻‍♀️

Stepping out on Hadrian’s Wall virtual challenge

And so, during lockdown, I used most of my 1 hour allocated free time for exercise and I was out exploring and walking, the kms/miles soon added up. Using the calendar on the app I added a description of where I’d walked and added a photo for each day’s mileage and looking back its brilliant to see what I did each time I went out ‘boots on’ walking.

Suddenly hoorah!! To my excitement I completed Hadrian’s Wall challenge….I marked it as completed and waited in anticipation for my medal. Yes!!! You get a real life medal, and it is beautiful, a real solid medal on a lanyard. Clever clever organisers.

At that stage I was like okay, that was fun but I’m not going to spend anymore money on this….

Until I did 🤣🤣🤣 I ‘happened’ to look at the website and saw the Camino de Santiago challenge….my resolve dissolved. I loved the medal, and since I’m planning on actually walking the Camino in the next couple of years, I decided to sign up for ‘just one more’. So I signed up for the Camino de Santiago; at check out, they offered a 15% discount for doing 2 challenges….how could I resist!

And so my one challenge became 3 as I signed up for the English Channel challenge as well – of course the medal had NOTHING at ALL to do with my choice hahaha. Of course I had/have no plans to actually swim the English Channel, but I’ve walked along the beaches and waded in the sea often enough…so, I walked. The distance is only 34 miles and within 4 walks I was done! Whoo hoo…another challenge completed (30/09) and my medal was in the post! Some people actually swim laps in a pool while doing this challenge.

Now what? I really really didn’t want to spend any more money on this, but! I follow the Conqueror Conquest Challenges on instagram and one day to my cost, I noticed their new challenge : The Ring Road – Iceland! OMG Sold to the lady in the corner LOL Dammit it. The medal is absolutely stunning. I caved, and not only that but I bought the 5 challenge pack as mentioned in an earlier post, as well as the 2020 Challenge which lists all my walks from 01.01.2020 right through to 31.12.2020 – super awesome. Of course the amazing medal had nothing to do with that either. My goal for 2020 was to walk 1600kms (1000miles) again, since I didn’t in 2019.

….and so I bought The Inca Trail – Peru (since completed), The Ring of Kerry – Ireland (since completed), The Ring Road – Iceland (for 2021), The Cabot Trail – Canada (for 2021), and the 2020 challenge. And then for good measure I added the Great Ocean Road – AUS (currently walking) and Alps to Ocean – NZ (for 2021).

Conqueror virtual challenges I’ve completed

Congratulations on starting the Inca Trail Challenge. This is a 26.2 miles / 42.1 km journey from Ollantaytambo District, Peru to Ponte da reserva de Machu Picchu, Peru.

This trail is so beautiful and full of historical value and because of that, UNESCO declared it a “World Heritage” site.

Machu Picchu — A New Wonder of the World

Richard L. Burger (an American archaeologist and anthropologist) thinks that Machu Picchu was built in 1450 – 1460.

The reason it was built is unknown. But most archeologists agree that the city was built to be a “royal” estate.

They think that the Inca emperor Pachacutec ordered the construction for himself, most likely after a successful military campaign. However, it is interesting that although it is considered a “royal” estate, it has not been inherited.

How is the journey so far, Cindy? Don’t forget to drink plenty of water and rest from time to time.

But at the rate I’m going trying to complete each challenge asap to get the medal, I’ve already exceeded my 1600km target and am close to completing 2020kms, my current total is 1749kms including today 9th December LOL – an awesome challenge!! Its been good to push myself to achieve that target.

And so, I’ve gone from signing up for 1 challenge to 10…..I love it. It’s a bit crazy really, but I love walking, and these challenges really keep me motivated, and the medals…..well, they really are beautiful and had a lot to do with my decisions..

In fact you can join up and either walk indoors, run, swim, cycle either indoor or outdoors, you can do rowing and skiing, you can participate even if you’re in a wheelchair, and of course outdoor walking which is my preferred method of exercise. It’s just brilliant.

As for the future…well there’s the John O’Groats to Land’s End challenge …that’s quite far at 1733kms/1083 miles, so I’ve looked at that for 2022 and maybe I’ll plan to walk that in real time and follow the virtual trail at the same time…😉

Now, I wonder what other challenges they’re going to design? I have no doubt that I will in all likelihood sign up for those as well. This could keep me going until I fall over…kaputski!! LOL

and unbelievably (or not) just last week I signed up for their latest challenge: to climb Mount Fuji – Japan…virtually of course 😁😁😁 The medal is absolutely stunning, why would I resist

I mean, come on seriously…why would I not!!

And that brings me up to 11 challenges!! To say I’m addicted would be an understatement….

Why not join me and sign up to complete a couple before the end of 2020 and maybe set yourself a challenge for 2021. If you sign up via my link you get a 10% discount, as do I on my next challenge. https://www.theconqueror.events/r/CE1474

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Wonderful Wells

Posted in around the UK, cities and towns of the UK, Domesday Villages of England, Historical, It's my life, Palaces and castles in UK, Travel, walk 1000 miles 2020, tagged Bishop's Palace Wells, cathedral cities of England, city of Wells, domesday book town, english history, places to visit in england on December 8, 2020| 2 Comments »

Unexpectedly, I had the opportunity to visit Wells last week. What a delight. The weekly market was in full swing and people bustled about buying Christmas presents and savouring the delicious aromas that wafted through the air. I saw some amazing wreaths and was tempted to buy one, except I have nowhere to hang it, and a 6 hour journey to the Thanet coast on Saturday.

Autumn colours are perfectly suited for winter wreaths

Celebrating an Olympic Champion; Mary Bignall Rand, Gold medallist Long Jump 1964

Built around 1450. Here beggars used to ask for pennies

I had 2 hours to explore and made the most of the time…..and spent most of it in the Bishop’s Palace 😁😁 which left me with 10 minutes to visit the cathedral. Fortunately we’re going back later this week so I can have a proper visit.

Home to the Bishops of Bath and Wells, the palace, founded in 1206, has been the Bishop’s residence for more than 800 years. The great medieval bishops – Jocelyn, Burnell, Ralph of Shrewsbury, and Beckynton – developed their palace next to the city’s ancient wells. For centuries, water flowing from these wells has shaped the landscape; the buildings and the gardens of this site.

Wells, a cathedral city, located on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills, has had city status since medieval times, due to the presence of Wells Cathedral. Often described as England’s smallest city, it is actually second smallest to the City of London.

Wells takes its name from 3 wells dedicated to Saint Andrew, one in the market place and two within the grounds of the Bishop’s Palace and cathedral.

A small Roman settlement surrounded them, which grew in importance and size under the Anglo-Saxons when King Ine of Wessex founded a minster church there in 704. The community became a trading centre based on cloth making and Wells is notable for its 17th-century involvement in both the English Civil War and Monmouth Rebellion.

Wells was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Welle, from the Old English wiells, not as a town but as four manors with a population of 132, which implies a population of 500–600

William Penn stayed in Wells shortly before leaving for America (1682), spending a night at The Crown Inn.

I had a wonderful time exploring the Bishop’s Palace and am looking forward to seeing the Cathedral more fully on Thursday.

Inside the Bishop’s Palace

The Coronation Cope worn by Bishop Kennion at the coronation of King Edward VII in 1902

He assured me that I’m on the ‘good’ list 🙃🙃

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Frosty Friday

Posted in around the UK, Fun Stuff, gratitude, Inspiration, It's my life, photography, tagged frosty days in winter, Mendip Hills, origami, winter photography on December 8, 2020| Leave a Comment »

Okay so it’s not actually Friday but it sounds good 😁😁 Frosty Tuesday doesn’t quite sound the same.

But…..look at this!! I thought this leaf looked like an origami creation.

It’s a beautiful blue sky day in the Mendip Hills and I’m hoping that the fog doesn’t come in before I go on my break at 2.45pm….but I’m not holding my breath.

If you have a magnifying glass, you’ll be able to see the deer 🦌🦌

Yesterday also started off as a blue sky day but by the time I went on my break at 12.30pm….this is what I had to contend with.

Mind you I don’t mind foggy days, they have their own beauty, but I would love to see some more clear skies.

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2 years ago today

Posted in family and relationships, gratitude, me and Peanut, memories of days gone by, tagged being a granny, heritage clothes, knitting for babies, knitting for my grandson, knitting for newborns on December 7, 2020| 14 Comments »

I finished knitting this little matinee jacket for my soon to be born grandson 💙☺

6 weeks before he was born I completed the jacket. This little item was one of many little cardigans and jackets I knitted for his layette. I love knitting and it was such a joy to prepare these little items for him.

When my daughter was a baby, I knitted a full set of dress, jacket and bootees in green, using the same pattern. Continuity. I’ve still got the set in storage.

And continuing with the same pattern, I knitted a blanket for my daughter. It was meant to have been knitted while she was in labour, but as it turned out, the birth went very differently to what we anticipated and I participated in his birth right from the first contractions till he took his first breath.

And so the blanket took a tad longer than expected….like 18 months longer. But eventually it was done

It’s now being used for when he goes out in his pram

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Goodbye JJ and Amy

Posted in around the UK, Fun Stuff, tagged JJ and Amy, Strictly Come Dancing on December 6, 2020| Leave a Comment »

Since I’m no longer active on Facebook or Twitter I guess I just have to post a comment here.

I’ve been watching Strictly Come Dancing from its inception in 2004. I haven’t always watched from the first week, mostly because of work, but I’ve usually picked it up and watched as many episodes as possible as the weeks have gone on.

I’ve had my favourites and I’ve voted, voted, voted and voted again, and been disappointed when my favourite couple have left the show, unless they’ve gone through to the final, in which case I’ve cheered loudly. 😃😃👏👏👏

But this is the first time in all these years that I’ve cried at the departure of a couple….JJ and Amy are out of the competition. 😪😪

Could you find a more lovely couple anywhere!? It would be difficult.

JJ is that rare breed; a true gentleman. And Amy is just the loveliest young lady.

He’s been a joy to watch as he’s grown and developed into a stunning dancer, with his crowning glory; dancing the Charleston to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Perfect and just fab.U.lous!!!!

Last night I voted more for them than I’ve ever voted for any other couple. But sadly it wasn’t enough. My heart dropped with dismay when the red light fell 😔

The only good thing about them being in the dance-off was that we could watch that joyful dance one more time. 💗💗🕺💃

But sadly they were not saved. I love Jamie and Karen too and its really difficult at this stage of the competition because the couples have all developed so much and are all fabulous….like thousands of other SCD fans, I’d like to see them all go through to the final.

And so we say goodbye to JJ and Amy, I shall miss your beautiful presence next week…..you were my favourites.

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A new way to benefit nature on farms and crofts

Posted in around the UK, Health, Interesting articles, other peoples blog, tagged farming, farming for the future, giving nature a chance on December 6, 2020| Leave a Comment »

Today’s blog, written by NatureScot agriculture officer, Kirsten Brewster, details a new trial in Scotland, which gives incentives to farmers and crofters to manage flower-rich meadows, help vulnerable populations of wading birds thrive, restore peatlands, and manage other nature-rich areas. Hawthorn hedge and ox-eye daisies growing on a field margin. ©Lorne Gill/NatureScot Piloting an Outcomes […]
A new way to benefit nature on farms and crofts

I enjoyed reading this article and thought I’d share it with you. I love the concept and applaud those farmers and crafters taking part. Hope it takes off across the UK

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Forever young

Posted in family and relationships, memories of days gone by, tagged even though you are gone, happy birthday wishes on December 6, 2020| 2 Comments »

My mother would have been 89 years old today. Except that she died when she was 52, about 3 years after this photo was taken.

I was 29 at the time and I remember thinking, as you do, that my Mother was quite old. Now that I’m 65 of course I realise that she wasn’t really.

I often wonder how our lives, my 3 sisters and mine, would have turned out if she hadn’t died so young. I’m almost certain that I would not have emigrated to the UK if she were still alive.

So even though she isn’t alive to celebrate her birthday, I still think about her every year and wish her a happy birthday wherever she may be.

You are still missed ❤❤

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The love of walking

Posted in around the UK, conqueror challenges, england coast path, Fun Stuff, Health, long distance walks - solo, memories of days gone by, Travel, walk 1000 miles 2020, walks around the UK, tagged for the love of walking, long distance walking, walk1000miles, walking solo, walking the English coast on December 5, 2020| 14 Comments »

I’ve had some amazing walks the last few years since moving to the east coast. The scenery along the Thanet coastline is really beautiful, especially at sunrise on a clear day, and then sunset. You can catch a gorgeous sunrise from Broadstairs or Ramsgate, and if it’s a good day, an equally gorgeous sunset from Pegwell Bay or Margate. I’ve been known to rush over to Margate to catch the sunset or a quick walk to the cliffs above Pegwell Bay.

I’ve always loved walking. As a young girl, in my 20s’ when I lived in Hillbrow Johannesburg, I used to spend the whole of Sundays just walking around the suburbs for hours on end. I used to walk to work every day, up the hill and down the other side….right up until I was 8 months pregnant, and then my boss wouldn’t allow me to walk anymore and insisted one of the staff take me home by car and collect me the next day.

I lost my walking after my daughter was born and my husband bought me a car. By then it wasn’t that safe to walk alone anyway and I got lazy.

When I arrived in the UK, my love of walking was reignited. I lived in Dublin, Rep. Of Ireland for 6 months and my sister, brother-in-law and I used to walk everywhere, especially on weekends when we’d head out to Dún Laoghaire or Glendalough and the Wicklow mountains. In fact we travelled to so many places, I’ve quite forgotten all but the most memorable. I do remember though being able to walk home from Dublin to Monkstown late at night and never feel unsafe….and my love walking, freedom really, was reborn.

I remember one weekend when we walked across country from Waterford city to PassageEast in the County of Waterford, took the ferry across the River Barrow to Ballyhack Lower in County Wexford, then walked to Arthurstown and onto Duncannon…and in reverse the next day. One of the many fun excursions from my 6 months there.

A walk across country in Rep. Of Ireland

On most of my overseas trips since, I’ve invariably planned a 10 day stay and walked….everywhere, and included a day trip to another destination. When I visited Venice I literally walked around all the accessible islands and usually started at 8am and walked till late at night exploring every nook and cranny. Actually, after Ireland, Venice was my very first trip to Europe and albeit terrified, I loved every minute.

I’ve since walked 80%+ of the streets in the City of London….much of my free time was spent exploring every court, lane and street, and I walked a fair amount of the City of Westminster too. When we still lived in Richmond, I often walked along the Thames riverbank, either downstream to Kew Gardens or upstream to Kingston and even Hampton Court. Even in the snow 😉

When we moved to Broadstairs we used to walk along the beach to Ramsgate. I always thought it was quite far, but its actually only just over 3kms. Now that I frequently walk in excess of 20kms and occasionally as much as 35kms, it seems absurd that I thought 3kms was far 😁😁

During my last stay, I walked along the beach from Ramsgate to Stone Bay and back, and one morning I enjoyed a sunrise walk to Viking Bay…of course I stopped off at The Old Bake House and bought a take-away coffee and my favourite pastry; an almond croissant then sat on a bench on the promenade to enjoy my treat.

Breakfast from The Old Bake House in Broadstairs

Its such a stunning section of the coast and offers much of interest to see. Stretch your legs and walk to Margate… fantastic route, especially along the beach.

A few weeks ago I decided to walk to Sandwich (for the 3rd time) in order to increase my mileage for the Conqueror 2020 Challenge. Somewhere along the way I hatched the insane idea of walking the whole of the English coastline….I know…bring on the strait jacket. I blame it on the moon 🤭🤭🤭 I’ve walked as far as Dover so far. Of course Covid-19 has held back my horizons, but I’m hoping to get out more frequently in 2021.

I love walking and one of the benefits of my job is that I get to travel all over England, often times to places I’d never heard of…and then I walk…

But my walking got a real sense of seriousness when I started training for the Portuguese Camino in 2017, and started following the #walk1000miles challenge in 2016. That really got me going. I struggled at first to get into walking daily, bought my first pair of walking poles (still have them 😄), a decent pair of walking shoes (asics) and I’ve never looked back, now I find it difficult to not get out for a walk on a daily basis and get quite tetchy if my walking is interrupted ….😉

Stunning coastline between Deal and Walmer.

Show me a path and I’ll walk it….

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Sticks and stones may break my bones

Posted in family and relationships, tagged families and relationships, growing up in a tough world on December 5, 2020| 9 Comments »

But words will never harm me.

I was chatting to my daughter and grandson last night via WhatsApp video, always an absolute joy when I’m away. I miss them so much….

My daughter was telling me that she took him to the park in the afternoon which he loves.

There were some other children there, older than him by about a couple of years, playing with the bark and play pretending it was ice-cream.

My grandson (not yet 2 years old) trotted over and tried to make friends. He picked up some bark too and offered it to the little boy, who rejected it and dismissed him with a snarky comment 😔😔

His little face crumpled with disappointment and hurt. He wanted to join in and be friends. He’s such a sweet little soul and so generous.

My daughter related how her heart contracted with the pain of his rejection, the expression on his face.

And I knew exactly how she was feeling. My heart contracted with imagining how he felt and remembering how I used to feel when she was rejected at school and at any other time in her life. It pains me greatly to know that he’s going to go through these times as he grows up.

It reminded me of the little ditty my Mother taught me when I used to get bullied at school : ‘sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me’.

I recall chanting that ditty many times over the years, until my daughter some years ago said that actually it’s not true. Wounds from sticks and stones do heal in time and you tend to forget about them. But the words remain stuck in your head to go endlessly round and round, sometimes interminably as you grapple to make sense of why someone has said such hurtful things.

My heart ached for this little boy, just starting out on his journey through life and it brings tears to my eyes thinking about the painful times he is going to have to contend with.

I wish I could teach him how to not take the nasty things people say to heart, but I’m useless at that coz I’m still struggling with something my sister said to me at my daughter’s wedding nearly 3 years ago….

My daughter said she’s going to teach him to “not give a shit what people say”, but ultimately some barbs hit hard and go deep and the pain never goes away.

My grandson truly is a sweet, gentle, caring, generous little boy, and it pains me greatly to know that along his journey in life he too is going to feel the pain of nasty words. I do hope his Mummy can teach him how to not let them affect him too much.

To learn that “sticks and stones may break my bones, but I won’t let your words harm me”. To learn that words deliberately or carelessly directed at you are more about the person saying them than about you.

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Saxon Shore Way – Kent

Posted in around the UK, england coast path, Fun Stuff, Historical, It's my life, long distance walks - solo, seaside towns of Britain, tagged long distance walking, long distance walks in england, saxon shore way, st Augustine's way on December 4, 2020| 5 Comments »

Oh my goddess I’ve found a new long distance walk to do!! 😃😃😃 I was doing some research on distances between towns for my ongoing quest to walk the whole England coast over the next 5 years (I blame it on the moon) and found the whole route for the Saxon Shore Way.

I’ve touched on the route during some of my previous excursions, but I didn’t realise just how long it was and how far it extended. Sigh..you just know I’m going to have to walk it 😂😂😂

The 160 mile / 257 km route starts in Gravesend on the banks of the River Thames in North Kent and ends in the colourful seaside town of Hastings in East Sussex. The route goes inland somewhere near Reculver and bypasses Margate, Broadstairs and Ramsgate and again from Folkestone to Rye/Camber but the rest of the route offers some of the finest coastal walking in England.

The reason the route bypasses Margate, Broadstairs and Ramsgate is due to the fact that they’re all on what was, and is still referred to as the Isle of Thanet, which used to be separated from the mainland by the Wantsum Channel up until 1550, by which time the river had silted up and was no longer navigable. And of course the Saxons were here from mid 5th century, so the route they created would have followed the then mainland coast.

According to wikipedia: The River Wantsum is a tributary of the River Stour, in Kent, England. Formerly, the River Wantsum and the River Stour together formed the Wantsum Channel, which separated the Isle of Thanet from the mainland of Kent. Now the River Wantsum is little more than a drainage ditch starting at Reculver, and ending where it joins the Stour.

I’ve walked small sections of the Saxon Shore Way when I followed Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales route to Canterbury via Sittingbourne and Faversham, again when I followed St Augustine’s Way from Ramsgate to Canterbury and again more recently when I walked from Sandwich to Dover.

I’m gonna have to stop working so I can do all these walks 🚶🏻‍♀️🚶🏻‍♀️🚶🏻‍♀️🤭🤭

The header image is of Gravesend on the Thames from when I walked Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales from Southwark Cathedral to Canterbury Cathedral…my very first long-distance walks, along which I learned some really good lessons – like to never walk in wet socks 🤪🤪👣🧦👣🧦

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