Travel Tips

Having lived in the Middle East for most of my life, I am this year [2005] enjoying things that I did not know I had been missing.
I spent my first Christmas since 1968 in Scotland in 2004 and had the joy of getting up early on Christmas Day and putting on boots and leaving footprints in the snow. I wasn't the first to leave my mark, the birds had got there before me. But I felt exhilarated by the fresh air, the clean sparkling roads, and the trees covered in white.
I was back again in Spring when the leaves were just beginning to unfurl, and the world started to become green again.
Then again in Summer when I could walk outside without sweating, and see everyone looking bright and happy. In the countryside the fields were turning yellow and the wild flowers along the roads and railway lines were splashes of vivid colour.
Now it is autumn and I love the cool fresh air on my face- but not the cold winds of Cardiff. The rustle of leaves underfoot, becoming slippery and soggy after the rain. The change in colour of some of the trees' leaves : the sycamores, oak and beech and the bracken too have replaced the green and the vibrant colours of the gardens, and the purple heather of Scotland.
No wonder the British talk about the weather. It changes all the time. Where I have lived In Africa and the Middle East the colours do not change with the seasons; but your body knows the changes from 'cold' to hot to humid to stifling- and none of them are enjoyable.
I wish more Brits could appreciate that they are living in a 'green and pleasant land'.

Having suffered three family bereavements in the past 2 years,I have been taking a look at my life. I am glad to have been born when I was, and worry for my grandchildren who don't seem to be entering the same more-or-less safe world that we did.
At age 7 I was allowed to travel by train from London to Inverness alone
As youngsters we used to wander around on our own with no parents worrying about us, and with no mobile phones to help us if in trouble. My brother and I would set off cycling across London heading for Epping Forest when neither of us had reached two figures. Needless to say we never got there, but we tried, and were allowed to try.
My girlfriends and I formed a skiffle group and went off playing at youth clubs on Saturdays. I'm almost tone deaf but that didn't matter as I was given the wash board to play, using shoe brushes...or jars filled with lentils to swish around. It was fun while it lasted.

I had a vivid imagination as a child and liked to act out fantasies to an audience comprising my dolls and soft toys. As for actual stage appearances, I once mimed being a prince coming to rescue a damsel in distress, and was a mermaid in Peter Pan; both while at Primary school. At secondary school I was prompter; curtain puller, an oak tree; and then finally a key figure [a teacher] in a review in my final year. I appeared in a quiz show on TV; was in an advert for the college where I taught; and did voice overs for a trade fair and a documentary while living in Sudan. No BAFTAs, no Oscars....nothing but sheer enjoyment.
I played hockey for my school and other sports for enjoyment. I was scorer for our local cricket club, and enjoyed swimming. I came third swimming across the harbour, and diving in from the harbour wall - no great deal, there were only 3 competitors! And again, in Sudan I came first in the Ladies' race- all the other competitors chickened out, so I gamely did a length and won a bottle of shampoo. Such was my claim to fame.
Would I allow my daughters to do these things? No I wouldn't and didn't.

Have times changed , or does being a mother and grandmother make one more protective? Yet, I see all the young today backpacking round the world, doing things we would not have dreamed of doing... the more things change, the more they remain the same.

This 'drop out' year reminds me of the things I've missed in my 30 plus years in Africa:
sunsets,rainbows, green trees and grass, frost on the ground
bonfire night, Christmas lights
British humour on TV: Little Britain, Have I got news for you;
TV Quiz programmes: Millionaire , and The weakest Link
Good documentaries : Time Team, Discovery Civilization

With our sojourn in Cairo at an end after six years, I decided I needed a trip to UK to do some genealogy, see my children and grandchildren, and relax before returning to Sudan and a new page in our lives, as a retired Darby and Joan.
It also gave me the chance to meet two VT-ers: evaanna , and alancollins. Great meeting them both, and I'm awaiting evaanna's new pictures with impatience!
The weather was hot even for me who has lived in Africa since 1968! But as I write this, there is rain , badly needed by the plants. So, maybe summer is over, but the heat will disappear too.

I've been back in Khartoum for nearly a year. It has been a new experience , going back to a place that has changed so much in 6 years. I'm still fathoming the road system , and can't face the thought of driving here again. And the heat. My body must have changed. I used to pride myself on being cool when my students were fanning themselves with bits of paper. Now I'd rather stay indoors than venture out- unless absolutely necessary.
So, I'm off to Dubai [ I know, another hotspot] till .August.
Strangely enough the haboobs [duststorms] we used to dread in the past, are becoming less frequent, though the fine dust whenever there is a breeze, gets into my computer