leics' VirtualTourist Home Page

Now the children have grown up I am doing the travelling I could not afford before. I'm told by my friends that I'm getting braver and braver about travelling alone (I didn't go anywhere abroad until about 7 years ago) and I'm quite pleased with the number of places I've been to so far. I loved Rome , especially OstiaAntica but have really enjoyed everywhere I've been.

Last year I managed to fit in another visit to Florence in late May, to fill in the gaps from my first visit (though the weather was rather horrid), as well as exploring Winchester , Windsor, Silchester and Salisbury. At the end of July I took myself off for a couple of nights to Gwynedd in Wales, where I was at university; it's still a very special place for me.

At Easter, and in August, I went to Slovenia, a place I suspect I never would have visited but for the friendship I've made via VT (Ursa9), who has become a sort of substitute daughter as well as a good mate. And it's a really lovely country so I am definitely going back again.

I spent a few days in Prague in October, and Christmas was a return visit to Cyprus....again, to see the bits I missed last time (especially the archaeology). Whilst there I did (for me) an amazing thing: I took a day-trip to Egypt and finally, finally saw the Pyramids and a little bit of Cairo.

I finally made arrangements to visit another of my must-see places....Pompeii....for February this year. It was out-of-season (still sunny, though chilly at night)so there were few people about; it was wonderful to have Pompeii more-or-less to myself for a couple of hours. I was based in Sorrento, and also managed to visit Herculaneum, Oplontis, Capri and Amalfi whilst I was there (the bus ride along the coast road was superb). I willhave to go back there soon: there is more of Pompeii to explore, more ancient sites, the museums in Naples.......and Vesuvius, which was 'shut' when I visited!

I'm taking a friend to Rome just after Easter; her first visit, my third.......it'll be wonderful to re-explore the sights that wowed me the first time...and then I'm off to Venice the week after, for the first time.

And (mirabile dictu!) I can actually get to the VT Euromeet this year, as it falls at the end of the school hols! Flight and hotel in Karlsruhe are already booked, and I'm really looking forward to meeting VT-ers there.

For the summer, I am pondering Tallinn and return visits to Krakow and Slovenia (my regular archaeological dig may be a bit problematic this year). There's still time to decide though. I'd like to go to Athens this year too, if I can fix it. Maybe in October?

Going back to 2006 I visited Ireland , Carcassonne , Narbonne and Florence, with a visit to Krakow in August. October was a ramble round south Devon and part of Dartmoor, and Christmas was spent in Malta.

I've also visited a tiny part of Turkey: Hisaronu, Fethiye and Kayakoy; not much at all really, and it's a country I would like to re-visit.

I really have been to Paris but far, far too long ago for the photos to be uploadable (or even find-able!). I live in hopes of a romantic trip there one day, but I'll probably end up returning on my own!

I'm a keen archaeologist in my spare time. In the photo (excavating Medieval dump deposits in York) I'm the one in the hat. I'm fascinated by the past, particularly the past of the ordinary people.......you know, the ones whose lives did not get recorded. Being an archaeologist is rather like being a forensic scientist; you have to find the evidence for your ideas, and that appeals to me.

I dig each summer at Sedgeford in Norfolk; there is dig info on that page, and in the travelogues below. It's an excellent dig, and anyone can join (we have people from all over the world, and run an excellent basic training course) so if you fancy exploring a bit of Anglo-Saxon England next year, look at the SHARP website.

When I can't dig, I used to do a great deal of fieldwalking, although less over the past couple of years. That means I walked across ploughed fields very slowly, picking up evidence from the past. People used to put the contents of their rubbish heaps onto their fields so there's always lots of pottery to find, and this will show when the area was occupied. Many fields will produce not only pottery from Medieval and Roman times but even flint tools from more than 10000 years ago! Fieldwalking is a great stress-buster and really brings the past to life. England is particularly good for this type of archaeology, because there has been such intensive settlement and farming over the centuries.

There's less archaeology for me to do locally nowadays as local farming practices have changed.

The best UK prehistory sites are in Orkney, I think. The albums below have some info too: I really will get round to writing 'Roman' and 'Medieval' history pages one day!.

Leicestershire is quite big and I only live in a small part of it ......... but it's ok for now. I'd much rather be living in the middle of nowhere, between the sea and the mountains, or in another country entirely. We'll see what happens. I think I'll probably have to win the Lottery first, which might be difficult as I don't actually do it. Hmmm....flaw in the plan there somewhere.

The UK is a fascinating country (or grouping of countries) from a historical and landscape perspective, so I've been making as many pages as I can about places large and small. They are listed on my England and Wales pages. I've been to Scotland as well, but too long ago to have the photos available for VT; must go back there soon.
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So.....onwards and upwards, exploring and finding-out, seeing what there is to see, by myself or not. The world is a huge place, with an infinity of excitements.......how can one not be thrilled by the potentials and possibilities?