Dream Holiday

My Dream Holiday

I have been fortunate in my life. I have visited many countries and holidayed in cities and seaside towns. When I was bored with lying on the beach and too afraid of cold water to swim in the sea I went on courses. I always planned to go travelling when I retired but after I moved to Brittany my plans changed. I was happy to explore Brittany which is a beautiful and interesting place.

Now back in the UK I do not drive so even outings are limited to public transport.

I am quite happy staying at home, reading, writing and painting. My Grandson provided me with a large screen TV with Amazon Prime so that I could watch tennis. I am passionate about tennis. Well to be more precise I am passionate about Rafael Nadal.

When I was in Brittany I used to watch tennis at the house of a very good friend Claudie. Now I am here in the Uk and she has moved to Pau near Biarritz.

So my dream holiday begins there.

I will take a plane to Biarritz and Claudie will meet me there. We will spend a week in a luxury hotel. Claudie will show me the best and most exciting places to see and enjoy in Biaritz. Next we will fly together to Paris after spending a few days exploring, my friend Sylvaine who lives near Paris will meet us to take us to her house which is in an amazing location on the edge of a forest.

Next, the three of us will return to Paris for the Roland Garros tennis Grand Slam. Both Sylvaine and Claudie are tennis fans. We will have tickets for every day of the two weeks duration of the tournament and of course we will be staying in a luxury hotel.

After the final we will visit the Eiffel tower and take the lift to the restaurant at the top for dinner. Then we will visit my favourite museums and art galleries in Paris. The Musee d'Orsay is my favourite so that will be on the top of the list. Next will be Rodin's Museum and Gallery. We will also spend a day in Monmartre.

Of course every day we will eat breakfast, lunch and dinner in the best restaurants and drink the finest wine and perhaps champagne.

Moving on from Paris our next destination will be to London and Wimbledon. We can either fly to Gatwick and spend a day with my son and his wife. He lives seven miles from Gatwick or we could take to the Eurostar to St Pancras. We will spend a few days in London in a luxury hotel. We will visit the National Gallery , Tate Modern and Tate Britain. Then sated with art it will be off to Wimbledon for two weeks. After the final we will spend at least two days in a spa because I think we will need a rest.

I will take the train back to Stoke, Claudie will fly back to Biaritz and Sylvaine to Paris.

The Door

 

The Door

I am going to be late for my Dr's appointment. I did want to go to the Travel Agent's too. I'll ring the Doctor to apologise. There's a phone box. This door is heavy. I push harder, it opens, I fall in. Gosh it's dark in here.

"Who are you?" says a voice from the shadows.

Victoria Richards. I am in a terrible rush. The train was late. I want to make a phone call. I was going to book a holiday and I have an appointment for a blood test. Are you a doctor--

"Yes, I am The Doctor."

Yes, but doctor who.

"That is correct. I am Doctor Who."

Don't joke. I need to make a phone call.

"Of course, I can help you with your phone call and travel needs. Would you like interplanetary travel or time travel. I can arrange everything for you."

Travel? So, it's not a phone box or the Dr's.

I walk forward towards a light, -- no it can't be. It looks like the control panel of a plane so many flashing lights and screens.

The Doctor says, "You are my dear on the Star Ship Enterprise."

"That's OK then." I say to myself. "Where else would I be on a Monday morning on the way to the doctors."

I must have said the last bit out loud because The Doctor speaks again.

"That's correct my dear. The Doctor is here. I think you mentioned a blood test."

What? No. Let me get out of here. I want to open the door.

The door opens automatically. I run out into blinding sunlight and bump into a passer-by.

"Sorry, sorry, so sorry."

"No harm done. Now look where you are going in the future."

Pacifique

 

Que pensez-vous lorsque vous entendez "le Pacifique"?

Dans les années quatre-vingt, j'étais membre du mouvement anti-nucléaire. J'étais membre de plusieurs groupes, mais le plus important était le groupe intitulé «Femmes travaillant pour un Pacifique indépendant et pacifique». Une des choses que le groupe a fait était d'amener 9 femmes des îles du Pacifique en Angleterre.

Il y a eu une grande réunion à la mairie de Manchester où les 9 femmes nous ont raconté des histoires, des histoires horribles. Ils ont parlé des résultats que les essais nucléaires et l'immersion avaient faits sur les peuples. Ils ont tous posé la même question. Pourquoi vous, en Europe, ne saviez pas ce qui se passait? Cela faisait 40 ans

Le groupe a produit une vidéo et un diaporama intitulé "Nightmare in Paradise". J'avais un diaporama et je donnais des conférences et montrais les diapositives. C'était toujours difficile de le faire car je l'ai trouvé très émotif et j'ai dû essayer de ne pas pleurer parce que les effets du test étaient si horribles.

Vous verrez sur la carte qu'il y a des centaines d'îles. Cela semble autant que des étoiles dans le ciel. Mais la population comparée au reste du monde est petite.

Le pire et le plus triste, c'est que je crois que cela continue aujourd'hui. Près de 40 ans plus tard.

Rio

 

As I walk past an Italian Supermarket I wonder where I am. Yesterday in a supermarket I heard Robbie Williams singing angels. I spent the morning in an internet cafe. Surrounded by skyscraper flats and hotels it could be anywhere in the world. The noise of the traffic is deafening and fatiguing. A barefooted youth passes me carrying a surf board. I follow the youth. Is he going to the beach? No he's not so I change direction hoping to reach the beach and a more peaceful space. I glimpse the sea and quicken my steps. I wait 5 mins to cross the road. When I reach the beach the noise of the traffic beats the sound of the crashing waves. I wish I was a surfer at least I could escape the thundering traffic.

From hunger I almost enter a McDonald's but I opt instead for a restaurant. I take a table outside. Whilst eating my meal I watch a shoeless old man pass amidst the heavy traffic. He is pushing a handcart laden with rubbish. In the opposite direction a horse and cart driven by two young men whom I suspect would have been in school in many other parts of the world pass by. The cart is also full of rubbish.  

I back inside and order hot Amarillo, delicious. I look outside. It is raining again. It has rained for two weeks-since I arrived. I was told to bring warm weather clothes, beach clothes. I have spent one afternoon on the beach. The waves are too big to risk swimming and the under current grazes and bruises ones body as it drags one over the coarse sand.

I have bought lots of traditional rubbish but never expected that I would have to buy an umbrella.

 

Time Time Time

 

Leaving the doctor's surgery Alice knew she was fortunate that he had made time to see her. She knew that she didn't have much time today. Now she must use her time well.

'However', she thought, ' there is a lot of time before the train is due.' She wondered if it would be on time today because it was usually late. Alice decided to take time walking slowly to the station.

She passed several homeless people sitting on the pavement outside the station. ' None of them have any time to give, they are all rushing for a train,' she heard one of them say.

Alice reached in her pocket and took out the pound coin she kept for the supermarket trolly and threw it into the open violin case saying ' I have enough time today. In fact,' she said taking time to open her hand bag and finding her purse she took out a £5 note . 'I have more than enough time'.

Continuing her journey to the station she remembered that there was a book shop on the station. 'Great ' she mused. 'Book shops are always a good way to kill time. It will be time well spent too.'

At the station, in the crowd of travellers, she felt a hand on her arm. 'Do you have time to hear about Jesus? It will only take a few minutes. He can be with you for all time'.

Alice slowly lifted the hand away saying ' Sorry, today is not a good time.' and she walked quickly away and into the bookshop.

She walked around the shop taking time to read the titles. 'I won't have time to read a book on the train,' she thought. 'But what about a newspaper. Certainly not the The Times. It takes too long to read that. Along time ago I used to buy the Sunday Times. She gave it up because She didn't have time to read it all. Now a magazine would fit the bill. What about 'Time Out' .

War Time Memories

 

War Time Memories

I don't remember containers for waste food for chickens but I do remember "pig bins" in the street. This was during the war of course and I think for a few years after. Also in the street were air raid shelters. Huge concrete things. I can't remember them having doors but just door sized holes.

We, the kids, used to use them as play grounds. My memory of playing hospitals in them is very vivid. The beds were made out of house bricks. Not comfortable as you may imagine. We were all assigned roles, nurses, doctors and patients. I opted to be a patient but refused to lie on a brick bed. But you are a patient you have to lie in bed they said. In my ignorance I didn't know what the word patient meant but I though it sounded much more interesting than doctor or nurse.

I can't remember ever spending a night in a communal shelter. Oh no. We had a private shelter in the back garden. The council gave grants to people to build shelters. So armed with a plan and instructions my father who couldn't be described as a handy man set to. In spite of the jibes and laughter of the neighbours he built a very credible edifice which he furnished with bunk beds for all our family of six. On the first night of an air raid there was standing room only. The scoffing neighbours seemed to have no shame in packing into our shelter. I remember being held in my mother's arms as she stood unable to even sit down.

Weather

 

Weather

27th June 2019 So, thank you sun you have helped my water lily to open. How beautiful it is.

20th June 2019 The weather is not suitable for gardening, especially for cutting the grass. There is so much to do at this time of year so I went out this morning even though rain was forecast. The first few minutes were dry and I thought that the sun would shine. How wrong I was! It started to rain but was not too bad at first. Then the rain got heavier and then became torrential. Finally, the hailstones fell. I persevered because there are so many shrubs that need severe and drastic pruning. When I entered the house for lunch tired and soaked to the skin, I had to change my clothes. Is it worth it? Of course it is.

March 2019 How welcome is the arrival and sudden appearance of the host of golden daffodils accompanied by the forsythia and primroses. The garden appears to shine like the sun.

September 2013 It was the best of years and the worst of years!

It began with warm weather bringing every thing on rather too soon.

Next it rained. Then it rained some more. And just as we thought we'd had enough it rained even more. The plants were drowning and the grass was like a bog. Lawnmowers were defeated and their wheels spun until the lawns were ruined.

Then the sun arrived. It remained day after day. It was great. The grass dried out, the lawnmowers were repaired and the grass was cut. The sun remained. Walking on the grass was like walking over concrete. The benefit was no need to cut the grass for weeks. However the newly planted flowers and shrubs sulked and refused to grow.

June 3rd 2013 The last time I tried to upload photos to this blog it was impossible so I started a new blog. I thought I would try again as it is raining and I am reluctant to work in the garden.

March 2013 I planted flowers and now they are all drowning in their own little pools. If you click on the link below you can see the Rance in flood. I took the video in Dec 2011. It is much worse today.

May 2011 Finally after weeks of sun it has just rained. Not a lot but at least I don't have to water this evening. If it rains a little more maybe I will be able to put in new plants. I have just bought even more today. I was also given a dozen tomato plants, a pheasant tree and a tall blue flower ( I have forgotten its name already). Thinking I should make labels that do not disappear. I have started to list everything in the garden. I can't believe how many different kinds of trees I have (over 20) and the garden still seems empty.

May 2011 Rain forcast for tomorrow but not a cloud today. The beds I watered ready for the dahlias and seeds are so dry you can't tell that they have been watered at all.

It is interesting that the theme in the libraries is 'water'. We have painted fish in water, we have written poems about water, we have lectures and slides about fish and water. But no rain and the local lake has been drained. What is happening?

March 2011 The garden needs the rain and so do I. It means that I can rest and I don't over do it.

Dec 8th 2011 Video of snow

Feb 2011 Lovely sunny day today. I stacked some wood and cut more of the Pampas grass; when there is a big job to do I divide it in to parts and estimate how many days it will take me to do it. I looked at the pampas and saw a circle. I thought I could cut a quarter at a time. So I have done 2 quarters ie a half.

I cut out some of the dead wood from the Mimosa. The weight of the snow in the Winter broke some of the branches. I can't believe how tall it is and that I planted it. I must take some photos of the trees I planted to remind my self that trees do grow. Each time I plant something I feel sure that it will die. I never leave enough room for things to grow then I have to move stuff.