|
|
By Vicky Wells, on October 16th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Oct 16 ~ Day #159
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$15900
|
$312.18
|
$14086.12
|
$88.59
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
15190+73=15263
|
6378.9
|
6752+910=7662
|
119+29=148
|
29451.9
|
Current Location: San Miguel Hotel, Altea, Alicante, Spain
Today’s Total Expenses: $312.18
Transportation: $201.20
$174.00 (Flight from Bristol to Alicante)
$7.00 (€5.20 – bus from Alicante Airport to train station)
$12.12 (€9.00 – train from Alicante to Altea)
$8.08 (€6.00 – cab in Altea)
Accommodation: $80.54
$28.14 (timeshare)
$52.40 (€38.90 – Hotel San Miguel)
Food: $30.44 (€22.60 – Greek Restaurant in Altea)
Miles Traveled Today:
Road Miles: 73 (Burry Port to Bristol)
Air Miles: 910 (Bristol to Alicante)
Train Miles: 29 (Alicante to Altea)
Saying Goodbye to Friends
This is the day we have to say goodbye to our good friends and traveling companions, T & E.
E has graciously offered to drive us to Bristol airport so we can catch our plane to Spain, even though it is almost a four hour drive for her – two hours each way!
We have enjoyed the time spent with these friends both at their home in Wales and traveling with them on the narrowboat and throughout Italy, Greece and Croatia.
Although goodbyes are always difficult, it’s always good to get back to your normal routine and way of life. Thanks, T & E!
Flying With EasyJet
This time we chose EasyJet to fly with. We had booked the flight before we flew with RyanAir. After the pleasant experience with RyanAir, we may have chosen them again, but at the time we were booking, we had not heard very good things about RyanAir.
Truly, I don’t know if they would have been any cheaper. When you have to travel on a specific day, the super-cheap flights may not be available.
Also, this was a one-way booking, not return, and that often makes a big difference, too.
No point in speculating. We chose EasyJet and the flight was on time and comfortable.
Bus or Train?
I had checked, quite a while in advance, about buses available from Alicante airport to Dénia and thought, given when we were arriving in Spain, that we would have two or three choices of times.
As it turned out, the bus we were planning to take had summer and winter hours and we were now in the winter season. So the choices became more limited.
We found the stop for the ALSA bus to Benidorm, where we could make connections to Dénia. It was about 7:40pm and, in the summer, there would have been a bus at 8:00pm, however, the next bus in this season was 9:00pm – a wait of 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Okay, well, I also thought that the last bus from Benidorm to Dénia was at 11:00pm – stay tuned, I was about to be proved wrong.
Our Own Personal Travel Guide
There was another person waiting at the ALSA bus stop who was traveling to Benidorm.
As it turned out, Jan had lived in Spain for the last seven years as a travel guide for the Costa Blanca area, and had only recently returned to England.
She was back to visit a friend in Benidorm.
She was also surprised that there was no bus to Benidorm at 8:00pm and told us there were other options.
She said we could take a local bus to the train station in Alicante and from there we could get a train to Benidorm and then on to Dénia.
Just after she said that, the local bus arrived and we all, Jan included, made the decision to head for the train rather than wait well over an hour for the bus.
No Train to Dénia?
When we were getting our trains tickets, our new friend, who spoke Spanish, asked for tickets to Dénia for us and the ticket agent just shook his head – not a good sign.
Jan was certain that there would be a train from Benidorm to Dénia and so we bought tickets to Benidorm.
During the trip from Alicante to Benidorm, Jan was in touch by cellphone with her friend in Benidorm who checked about the train to Dénia, as well as the bus, just in case.
Not Good News
The news was not good.
The last train to Dénia was at 8:00pm, so that was totally out.
The last bus was at 10:00pm and the train we were on was arriving at 9:53pm – not enough time to get from the train station to the bus station.
Now what?
The options were to take a taxi from Benidorm to Dénia – way too expensive; stay overnight in Benidorm – again, way too expensive; or, continue on to the last train stop which was Altea (pronounced al-TAY-ah), about a third of the way from Benidorm to Dénia and perhaps get a cab from there.
Altea Here We Come
We opted to continue on to Altea and hugged Jan goodbye and hopped on the train which was about to leave.
When we arrived in Altea we felt kind of lost. The train conductor tried to direct us to the local police who he thought might be able to help us. There were no taxis at the train station (well, actually, just a train stop, not really a station).
We weren’t able to find the police station and walked down the main street a bit and stopped outside a cafe that was still open – everything else seemed closed.
A gentleman who was just leaving the cafe asked us, in perfect English, if we needed help.
We explained our situation and he said he knew of a inexpensive hostel where we could get a room for the night.
Well, that sounded pretty good to us and he started to give us walking directions. Well, we were exhausted and didn’t relish the idea of lugging our backpacks even further than we already had. He offered to call us a cab saying it wouldn’t cost much as it wasn’t very far. We accepted his offer and the cab arrived very quickly.
We arrived at the Hotel San Miguel in just a few minutes after a cab ride that cost us only €6.00.
Before checking in we asked the price of the room and were told it was €36.00. That seemed really reasonable, so we checked in and were shown to our room.
It was basic but clean and had its own bathroom. As we had been told this was a hostel, we had expected just a bed with a communal bathroom, but this place was great. It even had a small balcony.
Almost 11:00pm – Time for Dinner
It was certainly time to grab something to eat. We had a wonderful breakfast with T & E this morning, but since then the only thing we’d had to eat was a chocolate bar.
After dropping our bags in our room, we headed out into the warm night and wandered past several restaurants.
We chose a Greek restaurant that had a rather extensive and pretty reasonable menu.
We both opted for a Souvlaki dish and ordered a pitcher of beer to wash it down. The meal was fabulous and very filling.
More Serendipity?
During our travels we have found that a lot of mistakes turn out to be happy accidents and this was one of them.
Would we have made it to Dénia if we had waited for the ALSA bus at 9:00pm? Maybe, maybe not. The connection in Benidorm was not guaranteed.
However, by missing both the last bus and the last train, we got a chance to experience Altea, which is the type of town that we like. Not too touristy, not too big. Even though our stay here will be short, we know we’re going to enjoy it and it is a place that we will remember for a long time.
Back to Hotel San Miguel
Well fed, we returned to our hotel and basically just fell into bed and into a sound sleep.
Only One Downside
The only downside to this detour was that we had already paid for the same night’s accommodation at our timeshare in Dénia but even with adding both costs together it still wasn’t too bad, considering.
By Vicky Wells, on September 28th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 27 ~ Day #140
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$14000
|
$0.00
|
$11770.38
|
$84.07
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14364
|
4515.8
|
5180
|
119
|
24178.8
|
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 28 ~ Day #141
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$14100
|
$22.15
|
$11792.53
|
$83.63
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14364
|
4515.8
|
5180
|
119
|
24178.8
|
Location: Burry Port, Wales
Today’s Total Expenses: $22.15 (Sept. 28)
Food: $22.15 (£14.00 – fish & chips – Sept. 28)
Miles Traveled Today:
Zero
Combining Days – Again
We have, again, combined a couple of days. Putting them in separate posts would make for very short posts.
Packing and Weighing
As we mentioned earlier, we found perfect carry-on bags that met RyanAir’s restrictions. We are now in the process of deciding what to take with us for the two weeks we’ll be in Europe.
It’s tough to pack two weeks worth of clothing, toiletries, etc into a carry-on bag, but that’s exactly what we need to do. And, we need to stay within the weight restriction as well.
Fortunately, T & E have a scale for weighing bags and we are certainly putting that to good use as we try different combinations of items to take with us.
We think we’ve got it cracked, but I’m sure there will be last minute substitutions and/or additions before we actually leave for the airport on Wednesday.
Moving Furniture
This may seem like a strange entry for our blog, but while we’re away, T & E are having their hardwood floors refinished. In order for that to happen, all the furniture needs to be removed from the floors that are being refinished.
So, we spent time both on Monday and Tuesday moving furniture to other parts of the house to make sure all the floors are clear.
Fish & Chips
On Tuesday evening we opted for fish & chips from the local “chippy”.
Okay, okay – hey, we’re in England and we just can’t get enough fish & chips.
By Vicky Wells, on September 23rd, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 23 ~ Day #136
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$13600
|
$0.00
|
$11770.38
|
$86.55
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14290
|
4515.8
|
5180
|
119
|
24104.8
|
Location: Burry Port, Wales
Today’s Total Expenses: $0.00
Miles Traveled Today:
Zero
Burry Port Harbour
It was a beautiful sunny day so E suggested that we take a long walk and see Burry Port Harbour.
There was a bit of a chill in the air – it’s September, after all – so we dressed appropriately for our outing. We all had good walking shoes, long pants and jackets.
The tide was way out but E warned us that, when it comes in, it can come in very quickly, so we always had an eye to the water as we explored the shoreline.
The sand, which was wet but solid, seemed to go on forever. It looked like you could almost walk over to the Gower (a peninsula directly across from the harbour).
Millennium Walking Path
The town of Burry Port had built an extensive walking path along the harbour and shoreline as their millennium project.
We certainly took advantage of it, as many other people were, too, to explore even further.
As we walked we noticed that even here there were still lots of wild blackberries on the bushes, but we didn’t pick any this time.
Stone Monolith
We came across a stone monolith, in a stone circle, while walking the Millennium path. It was quite impressive and obviously erected recently (meaning not an ancient artifact). But there was nothing to say what it was for, or why it was erected and by whom.
Nonetheless we enjoyed discovering it.
By Vicky Wells, on September 22nd, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 22 ~ Day #135
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$13500
|
$0.00
|
$11770.38
|
$87.19
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14290
|
4515.8
|
5180
|
119
|
24104.8
|
Written by Geoff Wells
Current Location: Burry Port, Wales
Today’s Total Expenses: $0.00
Miles Traveled Today:
Zero
Ear Infection
I seem to have a tendency to get ear infections and just before leaving the US I started getting the symptoms. To make matters worse, both Vicky and I caught colds on the flight over. Being cramped up with a couple of hundred strangers all night is a wonderful germ-spreading environment.
We have been in the UK for about three weeks now and the colds are a little better but my ear does not want to clear up. Since I don’t have a doctor here the only alternative is the hospital emergency department.
Visit to UK Hospital
Surprisingly all the nurse at the desk wanted to know was my name, date of birth and allergies. She did not need any health insurance or credit card.
After waiting for about 90 minutes a doctor called my name. He examined my ear and prescribed some drops. I had had these drops before in Florida and a tiny bottle was over $80.
No Charge Hospital Visit
The pharmacy in the hospital took the prescription and handed over the medicine. When I asked how much the girl just said, “There’s no charge.”
Bottom line – the doctor and the drugs cost absolutely nothing. Living most of my life in Canada I was used to free health care but we have a photo health card ID and drugs are only free to those over 65.
Health care in the UK is a basic human right. So different from the US where someone’s sickness is just another opportunity to make a profit.
Getting My National Insurance Number in the UK
I left England when I was seventeen and had never been back. After graduating from school I had a couple of jobs to earn the money to move to Canada.
I don’t remember getting a National Insurance Number but I know I had to have had one. Since we are considering the possibility of moving to the UK, I thought it would be a good idea to see if I could get my National Insurance Number.
We walked into the local Job Centre Plus office and I explained to the receptionist what I wanted.
A councillor asked for two pieces of ID and typed my name into her computer.
After 47 years my info popped up along with my address in Edgware.
The councillor wrote down my National Insurance Number on a Post It note and handed it to me.
That was it! I could now got out and get a job, pay taxes, etc, etc. I was now officially home.
We are still not sure if that is what we want but the process was remarkably easy.
It will be more difficult for Vicky, of course, because she was born in Canada. But, there are still strong ties between Canada and the UK so I don’t expect it will be too difficult.
By Vicky Wells, on September 21st, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 20 ~ Day #133
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$13300
|
$0.00
|
$11770.38
|
$88.50
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14290
|
4515.8
|
5180
|
119
|
24104.8
|
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 21 ~ Day #134
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$13400
|
$0.00
|
$11770.38
|
$87.84
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14290
|
4515.8
|
5180
|
119
|
24104.8
|
Location: Burry Port, Wales
Today’s Total Expenses: $0.00
Miles Traveled Today:
Zero
Combining Days
As you can see, we’re combining a couple of days in this post.
The reason for that is because these days were pretty much just relaxing days without much to report.
Booking Flight to Alicante
One thing that we did accomplish was to book our flight to Alicante, Spain for Saturday, October 16th.
After looking through a lot of websites, we chose to book with EasyJet – we’ll report the expense on the day we actually fly.
It seems a bit odd that we will be flying to Treviso, Italy on September 29th to spend some time in Italy and catch our Greek cruise. We’ll then be coming back to Wales on October 13th only to leave again for Spain on October 16th.
That’s just the way things worked out.
By Vicky Wells, on September 17th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 17 ~ Day #130
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$13000
|
$70.38
|
$11700.00
|
$90.00
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14068
|
4490.8+6.5=4497.3
|
5180
|
119
|
23864.3
|
Current Location: Burton On Trent – Trent/Mersey Canal System
Today’s Total Expenses: $70.38
Transportation: $70.38 (combination of transportation & accommodation)
Miles Traveled Today:
Sea Miles: 6.5 (canal miles)
Great Breakfast Before Getting Underway
E made some terrific omelets for all of us this morning before we cast off again and continued our journey back to Sawley Marina.
More Team Work
We, again, took turns at the tiller, that is until we got close to locks or into busier areas or tight spots, then we would relinquish the tiller to Geoff who had a much steadier hand for such things.
Both E and I got quite proficient at handling the locks, but E had it down pat and I followed her lead.
We were both good at mooring the boat when necessary as well and getting on and off the boat at the locks, without much delay.
Branston Water Park
Now, I know that most people, when they hear “water park”, think of water slides and wave pools. I do, too.
However the water park at Branston is simply a park area that has a lot of water space. This area is protected for wildlife and waterfowl. There are no slides or wave pools here.
It is a lovely, peaceful area and this is where we decided to stop for lunch today.
What’s the Rush
At the next lock we came to we were met by a very impatient woman. I really can’t say what her problem was but she made it pretty clear that we weren’t moving as quickly as she thought we should be.
Locks can only be worked a certain way. You’ve got to wait for each step to be complete before you can go on to the next one.
We certainly weren’t dawdling and we are now fairly proficient with working the locks but she sure seemed miffed about something.
Oh, well. Life’s just too short. We didn’t let it ruin our day but I can’t speak for how her day was going.
Wild Blackberries
On the outbound leg of our journey we had made a mental note of an area where there seemed to be a lot of blackberries still on the bushes.
We kept a look-out for the spot and were able to pull over and moor the boat along a section of bushes that appeared to be waning but still had some pickable fruit.
We got off the boat, containers in hand, and began picking what we could. A lot of the fruit was very, very ripe and we were getting stained fingers because the fruit was so delicate.
We actually managed to pick a fair bit considering it was pretty late in the season and we combined our treasure with some apples and nectarines to make a pretty tasty fruit crisp for dessert.
By Vicky Wells, on September 16th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 16 ~ Day #129
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$12900
|
$70.38
|
$11629.62
|
$90.15
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14068
|
4483.4+7.4=4490.8
|
5180
|
119
|
23857.8
|
Current Location: Town of Alrewas on theTrent/Mersey Canal System
Today’s Total Expenses: $70.38
Narrowboat: $70.38 (combination of transportation & accommodation)
Miles Traveled Today:
Sea Miles: 7.4 (canal miles)
Two Birthdays to Celebrate
Today we have two birthdays to celebrate for two granddaughters – both K and C – Happy Birthday to both of you! Love you both!
Time to Turn Around
As we headed out this morning from Killington, still headed in the wrong direction, we were definitely feeling the pressure to get turned around so we could get back to the marina on time.
As we passed some other boats headed towards us we inquired about the location of the next winding hole. One person didn’t seem to know, another told us it wasn’t too far down the road.
It was E’s keen eye that finally spotted it – really nothing more than a scooped-out section of the bank on one side – just past Tamhorn Farm Bridge.
Geoff executed a near-perfect three point turn and we were finally headed back the way we had come, with some time to make up.
More Rain?
Well, after all, this is England, right? So I guess we should have expected a certain amount of rain.
We pulled over and decided to have lunch while waiting for the rain to pass.
Back to Alrewas
We all took our turn at the tiller while heading back and, as luck would have it, we made it through the swing bridge, 90 degree turn and lock at Fradley Junction and all the way to Alrewas before we stopped for the night.
We even had time to visit that wonderful butcher shop and picked up the makings for a liver dinner.
That meant that Geoff would be doing the cooking tonight and, as always, his liver dinner was to die for!
By Vicky Wells, on September 15th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 15 ~ Day #128
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$12800
|
$70.38
|
$11559.24
|
$90.31
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14068
|
4476+7.4=4483.4
|
5180
|
119
|
23850.4
|
Current Location: Trent/Mersey Canal System
Today’s Total Expenses: $70.38
Narrowboat: $70.38 (combination of transportation & accommodation)
Miles Traveled Today:
Sea Miles: 7.4 (canal miles)
Farewell to a Team Member
Just after coffee and breakfast T & E headed into town so that T could catch the bus to take him back to work.
He would rejoin us on Saturday but we would miss him as we continued on our narrowboat journey along the Trent/Mersey Canal.
Fradley Junction
We were now on our way to Fradley Junction where we would have to make a decision to either continue along the Trent/Mersey Canal or make a turn into the Coventry Canal.
This was also our “turn around” point. We couldn’t go much past Fradley Junction without turning around to head back if we were going to get back to Sawley Marina for our early Sunday morning check in.
As our map seemed to indicate that there were no locks along the Coventry Canal, at least not for the distance we expected to travel it, we chose to make the 90 degree turn at Fradley Junction into the Coventry Canal.
Coventry Canal
Now, saying we were going to make a 90 degree turn seems really simple, however, turning a 45-foot boat in a busy junction after just coming out of a lock into a very narrow canal is somewhat challenging.
Not to mention that as we turned into the Coventry Canal there was a swing footpath across the canal, and several other narrowboats coming and going into the junction.
On top of that, we needed to fill up with water and the water supply was just past the swing footpath and was crowded with other boats also filling up with water.
Old Salt
Geoff was, of course, at the tiller for this entire process and you would have thought that he’d been doing this kind of thing for years – an “Old Salt”, if you will.
E and I worked the lock, the swing bridge and the lines but Geoff did all the maneuvering of the long, narrow boat like a pro.
We replenished our water supply and were off again exploring the Coventry Canal.
Winding Holes
If you’ve not traveled the canal system in England, you may never have heard the term “winding hole”. However, if you are piloting a narrowboat on the English canal system this is a very important term.
You see, if you want to turn a 45-foot or longer boat around (which doesn’t bend in the middle by the way), you need to find a winding hole because it will be the only part of the canal wide enough where you can turn around.
The map we had was not totally clear about winding holes along the Coventry Canal, but we knew we’d have to turn around soon.
The plan was to get turned around and then moor for the night. That was the plan.
As we headed down the canal we noticed the boat ahead of us wave us off and we slowed down. It appeared they were trying to head into a section of the canal system that was still under construction, at least, according to our map it was.
We then realized that they were actually using this wider part of the canal to turn around. But, we were now too far past this wide section to do the same.
Oh, well, we thought, we’ll find a winding hole further down the canal and turn there. That’s what we thought.
Killington
We continued past lots of lovely English countryside and not much else.
Just as we were beginning to lose the light we came upon the town of Killington and decided that this was where we had best spend the night even though we still hadn’t found a place to turn around.
We moored the boat and explored the little town. We even thought we might treat ourselves to a pub dinner tonight only to find that the pub had closed, permanently, on September 11th!
So, it was back to the boat to make dinner and settle in for the night.
We decided we had better get underway fairly early the next morning because the longer it took us to find a place to turn around the longer it would take us to get back and the schedule could get a little too tight for comfort if we didn’t turn around soon.
By Vicky Wells, on September 12th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 12 ~ Day #125
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$12500
|
$230.38
|
$11347.70
|
$90.86
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
14027+41=14068
|
4451+1.3=4452.3
|
5180
|
119
|
23819.3
|
Written by Geoff Wells
Current Location: Trent/Mersey Canal System
Today’s Total Expenses: $230.38
Narrowboat: $70.38 (combination of transportation & accommodation)
Food: $160.00 (approx. £100.00)
Miles Traveled Today:
Road Miles: 41 (Coventry to Nottingham)
Sea Miles: 1.3 (canal miles – we’ll add them to the sea miles)
Narrow Boats
After a short drive from T’s digs in Coventry we arrived at the Sawley Marina in Nottingham. There was some inevitable paperwork but we were quickly assigned our boat and given a stack of maps and binders with all the information we could possibly need about places along the route.
Narrow Boat Exchange
Owning timeshare allows you to exchange not only to resorts around the world but also to more exotic vacations like narrow boats on the British Waterways Canal System.
You can, of course, just rent your boat directly which would cost you around $1500 US/week (£1000/week) but we were able to do it for just the $200 exchange fee and a year and a half worth of our points from our timeshare account. There was, of course, an additional fee also imposed for insurance etc. from the marina and that amounted to approximately $300 for the week.
What is a Narrow Boat
My great grandfather on my mother’s side was a barge builder. He built some of the original narrow boats that were used to transport goods around England during the industrial revolution.
Remember, this was before roads, trucks or even railways. The barges were loaded with good and horses would tow them from the tow path alongside the canal.
Modern Narrow Boats
After railways took over goods transport the canal system fell into disrepair and the canals silted up.
During the 1960s people began to use the canals again for pleasure boating and the modern canal boat was born.
How Narrow is a Narrow Boat
Most canals were dug by hand so they were only made just wide enough for two boats to pass. In fact, in some sections and most of the old locks and bridges there is only room for one boat.
Some canals are wider than others and can accommodate larger boats but if you want to be able to travel on all the waterways then your boat can’t be wider than 7 feet.
What they lack in width they make up for in length. Our boat was about 45 ft long but they can go up to 72 ft.
Training
Before you are allowed to take the boat out of the marina they want to be sure you know how to handle it.
After loading all our personal belongings and stowing the week’s groceries that T & E supplied, we all sat down to watch a DVD on how to handle our craft and work the locks we would find along the way.
Practical Training
With the DVD under our belt we all went ashore and joined the other folks taking out boats today for some practical practice at working the locks and tying some knots. We were shown how to use the windlass and moor our boats along the tow path for the night.
Leaving the Marina
It was now around 4pm and finally time to get underway. Since I had the most boating experience I was elected captain. Of course with two women aboard this was purely an honorary title. 
First Night
Top speed for a narrow boat is about 4 miles an hour which is a brisk walk so we did not get far the first night.
You are not allowed to travel at night, of course, so we moored at Shardlow before the sun went down.
Gourmet Galley
Everything in England is small – houses, kitchens, bathrooms – but a narrow boat galley sets a new standard in small.
It’s amazing what the girls could do in such conditions. Our first night we were treated to smoked salmon, Stilton cheese and champagne as appetizers (the English say “starters”) followed by lasagna, fresh baked bread and red wine.
Anniversary Wishes
Anniversary Wishes go out today to Vicky’s daughter, Krista, and her husband, Wayne.
Happy Anniversary you guys!
By Vicky Wells, on September 8th, 2010
Our transportation, accommodation, food and entertainment cost so far
|
Sep 08 ~ Day #121
|
Budget to date
|
Spent today
|
Total to date
|
Daily average
|
|
Total
|
$12100
|
$114.03
|
$10950.43
|
$90.50
|
|
Miles by Road
|
Miles by Sea
|
Miles by Air
|
Miles by Train
|
Total Miles
|
|
13905
|
4451
|
5180
|
119
|
23655
|
Current Location: Custom House, London
Today’s Total Expenses: $114.03
Transportation: $19.59 (£12.60 for the Tubes)
Accommodation: $75.64
Food: $18.80 (£11.98 for Bangers & Mash)
Written by Geoff Wells
I grew up in England. From the time I was born to when I emigrated to Canada at the age of 17 we lived in the same house in a suburb of London called Edgware.
Our local underground station was called Queensbury, which was on the Bakerloo Line. Directly opposite the Queensbury underground station was the Esoldo Theatre which was a marvelous old building with an elegant restaurant on the balcony level. My mother and I would stop in for afternoon tea on our walk home from my piano lessons.
My parents purchased our home before the Second World War and had lived there during the London Blitz. I didn’t come along until after my dad got out of the army.
It’s not a big house, just two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs with a living room, dining room and kitchen downstairs. We had a good sized back garden where dad grew all kinds of fresh vegetables. The front garden was a typical English floral garden with lots of fabulous smelling roses.
Today I was going home for the first time in more than 45 years. I expected there would be changes but I was not prepared for what I found.
We caught the DLR (Dockland Light Rail) train at the Custom House stop and made our way to the Jubilee Line.
Some time, about 10 years ago, the Bakerloo Line got shifted around and my home stop was now on the newly created Jubilee Line.
Okay, you have to expect some changes after 45 years, even in England. Nothing really looked familiar until we got to the Kingsbury Station which is the stop before Queensbury. This is a journey I made every day when working at my first job in London. The Queensbury station was familiar but much smaller than I remember.
The Esoldo Theatre was replaced by a seedy looking apartment building. Everywhere I looked were buildings that were familiar but nothing looked quite right.
The walk from the station to my old home was much shorter than I remembered and the houses along the way were looking tired and in need of care.
My dad and neighbours on the street were proud of their gardens and worked tirelessly on wonderful displays of flowers. All the gardens were gone, concreted over to provide parking spaces.
On a whim I rang the bell on the my house not really expecting anyone to be home. We saw the curtains move and then a lady with a head scarf opened the door.
I explained who I was and surprisingly she invited us in. I’m sure if Vicky had not been with me she would not have done so. She very graciously showed us around and even offered us refreshments.
From the street the house looked close to how I remembered it. The garden was gone and the front door was different but I could still reconcile my memories with today’s reality.
Inside was a different story – nothing was the same. It was so small – there was no way the furniture I remember could possibly have fit.
We had three fireplaces in the house and they were all gone. The wall separating the living room and dining room had been torn down and the two downstairs fireplaces were covered by built-in closets.
The kitchen and pantry had changed so much there was no way I could fit my mental picture into what I was seeing.
When I was young, my brother had built in cupboards on one wall but I ripped them out and put the head of my bed where they had been. This gave much more room but ironically now the new owners have built a new set of built-in cupboards where the old ones had been 50 years ago.
The next stop was the shopping parade on Mollison Way. This is where we went every day for groceries, meat and bread. At the head of the parade was the Flying Eagle Pub, the off-license and the fish and chip shop.
The Flying Eagle is now an Indian restaurant and the fish and chip shop now sells kebabs.
Not a single shop is the same – groceries, butcher, green grocer, fish monger, drug store, bakers – all gone. There is still a Post Office in the news agents but the store is totally different.
We continued walking as I struggled to find anything familiar. We kept going right into Edgware and the site of another favourite theatre that had been torn down and replaced with apartments. Both the butchers and the hardware store I had worked at as a kid were gone.
I gave up. This was not anything like the area I grew up in and nothing was familiar. We caught a bus that would take us along the Edgware Road back to London.
I am not naive enough to believe that I could return and find everything exactly like I left it but I did expect some degree of familiarity. At the very least, I would hope for improvements, but I didn’t see any.
The new residents of this area do not seem to share the same values as my parents.
My father paid £500 for our house which is now worth £250,000 but I don’t think I would want to move back even if I could get it for what my dad paid.
My home is gone and all that is left are the memories.
|
|
