Last night, sitting in the tiny little room I currently call ‘home’ (no, not really a home; I hate this room but it has a bed and electricity) getting more and more claustrophobic, so took myself out for a sunset walk to the harbour.
Ramsgate Royal Harbour
Its really weird walking through the deserted streets, most of the shops and stores are shuttered. The wind blowing a gale and rubbish swirled around like drunken dervishes.
Passing other walkers, they hurriedly lift their scarves to their eyes and scurry by…I guess it’s a bit like it was at the height of WW2. Otherworldly and covert….who’s the enemy? Them, me or Covid-19!!
The view of Ramsgate from the harbour arm is always lovely but I didn’t tarry since I was getting blown off my feet. I think I walked back quicker with the wind at my back pushing me along.
Ramsgate from the end or the harbour arm Looking out to sea….so windy I could barely stand up
On my way I stopped off at Peter’s Fish Shop and bought a box of hot chips and fish gougons, then into ASDA for tartare sauce and a bottle of Gallo Rose. Again, it’s totally weird to see the empty shelves…something we were expecting with Brexit on the horizon, but Covid-19 has knocked that out the water.
Fish gougons and chips, washed down with a good rose and the sultry tones of Kenny Rogers
Back in the room I put on some Kenny Rogers (may he rest in peace) and had a party for one….
Overall I got in just over 3.6kms (slightly over 2 miles), and although I’m not doing as much boots-on walking as 2017 and 2018, the miles are slowly adding up.
As per Government recommendations, the over 70s should be staying at home and avoiding contact with the general public.
Hah!!
Tell that to any number of oldies out and about. Every time I go out, I see more elderly than youngsters.
Clearly a good time to be out since there’s hardly anyone else on the streets.
My daughter’s mother-in-law, soon to be 80, is totally defying both the government and her family, and goes out every day….even the threat of not being able to see her youngest grandson or death is not acting as a deterrent.
And so it came to pass, the time has come to part ways 😥😥😥 unbelievably I left my trusty companions behind on the Isle of Wight….seriously unbelievable. I walked past them at least 20 times since yesterday’s walk and again on my way out the door today at the start of my journey home. As I sat down on the ferry I suddenly realised I’d forgotten to pack them. Sigh. 🤪🤪 my daughter always tells me I’m unobservant…understatement. what??!!
We’ve travelled well over 3000 miles together in the last 4 years and I feel quite bereft that our parting has come about so abruptly. However, that said, they were wearing out (much like me) and I had planned to buy a new pair next month before completing The Pilgrim’s Way. Perhaps they knew that and decided to hide in the corner and sulk 😂😂😂
So goodbye my trusted friends, we’ve known each other through thick and thin, over hills (too many) and many a dale (mostly at the bottom of the next hill)….you’ve provided support through some tough times, helped me balance across rivers and streams, kept me from falling flat on my face when exhausted, and been there with me every step of the way. We were that close I even named them; Gemini, the twins.
Gemini – My walking poles
Hmmmm. Actually, now that I’ve just written their obituary….I miss them already and I’ve changed my mind….I had said to the family to drop them off at a charity shop but suddenly that feels rather churlish, so change of plan…I’ll ask them to post them to me. 🤔🤔🙄 You can’t just discard old friends in such a cold-hearted way…..
Broadstairs and various other locations on the Isle of Thanet often feature in films and my daughter and I were lucky enough to have seen Maggie Smith during filming of The Lady in the Van a few years ago (when we still lived there).
I spotted the article about the film Sulphur and White in the Thanet News, and I am devastated 😥😥 broken hearted 💔💔 etc etc…..how did I miss this?
Now seriously, I do wish these film companies would give us advance notice of who will be in the area BEFORE filming, not after. For sure I would have rescheduled all my jobs…..😂😂😂
On balance, I’d rather have seen Dougray Scott than Maggie Smith…no offence to Maggie of course, but Dougray would have been pleasing to the eye. Oh well, some you win, some you lose 🤪🤪 I guess I shall have to go see the film.
Not yet too old to have a heart-throb 💓💓💓💘.
I’m just coming to the end of my 2nd stay on the Isle of Wight, and I can confirm that the north west of the island is not as dramatic or pretty as the north east side. Okay so it has Cowes, which as a town is quite pretty, but the coastal walk is a bit boring between West Cowes and Gurnard, which is where I am located.
Cowes
Some of the houses in Cowes The weather has been wet wet wet and I haven’t managed very many walks, as well as which, with age, I seem to be less enthusiastic about walking in the rain than I used to be 🤔🤔🙄🙄
Besides West Cowes, there really is bugger all to see except the sea, and I saw a lot of that, along with dozens of craft, of all shapes and sizes. The Solent is a very stretch busy of waterway and you can see boats from small rowing boats up to humongous tankers heading for Southampton.
Dramatic clouds. I got back to the house just before the rain came down Wild seas A walk on the beach
Across the water are the chimneys of what looks like a refinery….really unattractive….whereas from the Ryde side 😉 you can at least see the Spinnaker in Portsmouth.
Refinery across The Solent Red Jet ferry
So yeah, uggy weather aside, its been a tough assignment that I have not enjoyed one little bit and not much walking to compensate. On my first day on the island I walked all the way into West Cowes, and on other days I walked to the bouy on Egyptian Esplanade However, I did get in a lot of sleep and read about 4 books….all by Mary Wesley; light, easy reading. Mind you I’m chomping at the bit for a good nail-biting thriller. Next week maybe while on holiday in Sidmouth….or perhaps not since we have about 4 road trips planned.
Egypt Point Gurnard Lock
One really interesting thing I did find is this house….imagine if she’d said no!! Or they hadn’t met at all.
Rosetta Cottage Awesome history..imagine if they hadn’t met!!Sunset.
I managed to get out for a quick walk this evening at sunset….hoorah.
Now that the coronavirus has reached the Isle of Wight, I’m grateful to be leaving tomorrow before the authorities shut down anything except essential travel. I could not imagine anything worse than being confined to the island.
The Brexit campaign promised that Britain could survive and thrive without the EU, that we could manufacture and produce what we needed.
Now that the coronavirus has raised its ugly head, suddenly supplies from chin are starting to dry up.
What now then Brexiteers? Will our Brexit PM encourage and provide the means for British manufacturing to kick in and start making items that we import from China?
The area that I’m working in is very near to a designated Dark Sky area….and it lives up to its name. Its DARK at night. So dark that if I’m standing outside I can barely see my hand in front of my face.
Its super cool for a restful sleep (I like it pitch dark when I sleep), but it’s not super cool when you have to drive in this dark, which I had to do last night.
Just after my break yesterday I realised that my face was swelling up again; same place as last time. That pesky parotid gland again 🙄🙄 And remembering that I ended up in hospital for 3/4 days the last time because I ignored it, yesterday I went into a bit of a panic.
I still have 10 days of my assignment to complete and I cannot afford to lose that much money. Besides which the agency wouldn’t be able to find a replacement for a few days. So I immediately got onto Google and did a search, found a surgery, cajoled the receptionist to get me an appointment and to her absolute credit she booked me in immediately.
And thus it came about that I had to drive in what can only be described as a black hole. The only benefit is that on the obscured turns, you would see a cars lights for miles. But on unfamiliar roads, with nothing to show landmarks, it was a bit nerve-wracking.
However, I’m glad I did, because the doctor put me onto some kickass antibiotics and that seems to have held the infection at bay…for now. At least it hasn’t gotten worse. As for the dark sky, just maybe before I leave we could have at least one night of clear skies, I might just get to see the stars 🤨🤨🤨😉 Do you think the universe might comply with my wish?!!
Meanwhile, the grey skies continue and the forecast is for much the same for the next week
I was watching The One Show on BBC1 a couple of nights ago and they featured a small snippet about the Painted Ladies; our favourite butterfly.
Their arrival in the UK is awaited each year with much anticipation and there is much competition between butterfly lovers as to who will see the first one and where!
a painted lady – borrowed from the butterfly conservation website credited to Iain H Leach
I remember some years ago, quite some years ago, I was working in Suffolk, right next to a farmers field surrounded by hedgerows and trees.
It was Painted Lady season and to my delight it was one of the best years for their numbers and one day, seemingly out of nowhere, suddenly there were thousands of these exquisitely ethereal creatures alighting on every branch, along every hedge and flowers everywhere. A plethora of fantasy as far as the eye could see.
The interesting thing about these butterflies is of course that they are a long-distance migrant, which causes the most spectacular butterfly migrations observed in Britain and Ireland. Each year, it spreads northwards from the desert fringes of North Africa, the Middle East, and central Asia, recolonising mainland Europe and reaching Britain and Ireland.
Now, in my ignorance I assumed (mistakenly) that it was the same individual butterfly that started it’s migration, flying hundreds, if not thousands of miles across land and sea and then arrived here, to our delight.
But no. Apparently the butterfly that lands on our hedges and flowers and trees is in fact the 6th generation…..well, now that is to quote; ‘gob-smacking’. LOL I have learned much since arriving across thousands of miles across land and sea myself 😉 although I flew via SA Airways.
It seems that the first butterfly flies as far as it’s going to fly, it then lays it’s eggs and eventually dies, the next butterfly eventually emerges and sets off, the pattern is repeated and in due course (up to) the 6th generation is what we see here, and they are seen as far as northern Scotland, albeit the majority alight in England.
I was amazed. It’s one of those little snippets of information that is so incredible and previously so unknown that it sticks forever in your memory.
For more information about the Painted Lady (always reminds me of Geishas when I read that term) visit the Butterfly Conservation website
Since I logged off Twitter (3 months ago) and Facebook (last month) I’ve had time to do some proper reading (as opposed to scrolling) and have rediscovered the joys of WordPress. Whilst searching for interesting blogs to read, I followed the tag ‘Saxons’ and came across this blog, a blog that has turned out to be absolutely fascinating.
The writer transports you back in history to the time of the Saxons with just enough information to keep you interested, written in an easy to read format, you’re left intrigued and wanting to learn more.
After reading about the Mercian king; Penda, I’ve gone right back to the beginning of 2017 and am making my way through history.
The history of England and the UK is nothing if not varied and the allegiances are like the tides that surround our fair isle, they flow back and forth, with waves that violently crash or lap gently on the shore, with whirlpools and hidden depths to trap the unwary.
The problem with the history of this country is that learning one piece of history leaves you wanting more, and I am never satisfied. One of my favourite TV programmes is of course Time Team with Coast a very close second. I can watch them over and over.
http://lasmithwriter.com  Reading this blog is like following a treasure hunt, with links to fascinating people, places and events. I’ve seen many references to places and people I already know, with titles waiting to draw me in. Cuthbert in particular since I’m planning to walk St Cuthbert’s Way in the near future. As well as which there’s a post about my favourite king; Alfred the Great and Winchester. Winchester was the 2nd city I visited after London in 2002 shortly after arriving in England proper. It’s still my 2nd favourite, after London LOL, and I’ve been back many times.
Meanwhile, I have a lot of reading to do 😊😊 but it is all so very interesting…..
If like me, you enjoy the history of the Dark Ages (seriously? Its probably one of the most fascinating periods) and in particular Saxon history, then do yourself a favour and click on the link above, I’m sure you will enjoy her posts.
The Dark Ages according to Britannica.com : Dark Ages or Early Middle Ages, the early medieval period of western European history—specifically, the time (476–800 CE) when there was no Roman (or Holy Roman) emperor in the West or, more generally, the period between about 500 and 1000, which was marked by frequent warfare and a virtual disappearance of urban life.Â
The Middle Ages, or medieval time, is generally believed to have started with the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 and to have lasted about 1,000 years until about 1450. The beginning of the Middle Ages is called the Dark Ages because the great civilizations of Rome and Greece had been conquered. Ref https://westernreservepublicmedia.org/middleages/big_intro.htm
Personally I find this to be one of the most intriguing and fascinating periods of history and if the Sutton Hoo treasures and various similar treasure troves discovered over the years are anything to go by, then dark it was not…….
So the UK elections are in full swing and once again we are subjected to loads of promises about how the relevant party will spend our hard earned taxes…..
My question is this: does anyone actually believe anything they say?
Considering past history and how very quickly they change their tune and how often their memory fails after they get into power….is there any use believing one single campaign promise? Of any party?
And since this is being touted as the ‘Brexit’ election….Let’s remember, if you will, just how many lies Boris Johnson told in order to get himself into the position of Prime Minister (and still does). Does anyone in this country still believe any electioneering promises he makes?
Not Just a Granny 
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