In an era of limited travel and fear of new infections, I appreciate that it may be several years before I am able to enjoy tropical locations and therefore, I have used wallpaper to create the feel of a jungle teeming with birds.
Usually, my sense of decoration could be described as bland but Covid times have taught me that it is possible to escape the mundane even when I can’t travel beyond my locality.
If the cheery surroundings encourage my writing as well, it will be an added bonus.
Filed under Lindy's Life
The travel industry struggles to cope during the worldwide transmission of an unseen enemy and companies are having to find parking places for their ships and planes.
The beautiful bay between the Solent entrance and the entrance to Poole Harbour on the south coast of England is currently hosting 5 large cruise ships. They have been anchored here while they await better times for travel. Sometimes they power away, probably up and down the coast to give their systems a boost and a few days later, they return to their positions. Local cruise ferries have taken the opportunity to sail close, giving the tourists a fabulous view of these majestic ships.
Old Harry Rocks, seen in the photograph below, erupt from the sea off the Headland of the Purbeck Peninsula and mark the end of the bay. Standing high on the cliff offers a fabulous view of the ships with a backdrop of the sandy beaches of Bournemouth and Poole.
For several months, nearby Bournemouth Airport became a car park for large planes, the majority were British Airways machines, while they waited for the resumption of air travel. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get a photo due to stopping restrictions but it was an incredible sight to witness our local runways crammed with jumbos, etc.
My memories of the Pandemic will be made up of these wonderful sights as well as the emotional upheaval and sacrifice. Someone taught me to write down 5 good things that happen in each day and this has been a great tool for coping in these strange times.
Filed under Lindy's Life
When I tell people that I have gone out for three lunchtime meals I realise that others are feeling less confident than I am about the ability of staff to protect their customers. In the UK it has been possible to sit inside of a restaurant for a few weeks but few of my friends have ventured out. I want to support the local businesses but am taking it slowly. My first outing was a wonderful lunch at The Jetty restaurant in Mudeford, Dorset. This restaurant is known for excellence and as you can see from the photo below, the views over Mudeford Harbour are outstanding.
The other two venues that I have visited are pubs serving food, one in Minstead Village in the New Forest and the other on the riverside in Stockbridge where I finally had time with members of my family who live in Oxford.
The three venues had different procedures but each felt safe. The staff were attentive and delighted to be serving customers once again.
It is such a pleasure to be enjoying the treat of having someone else cook. I always think other people’s cooking tastes so much better.
Filed under Lindy's Life
Near Dorchester, England there is a wonderful sculpture park developed by Simon Gudgeon as an outside gallery to exhibit his amazing work. Guests can visit by booking tickets for the day and recently I spent several hours enjoying the peace of wandering the grounds, contemplating the beautiful art and having time to appreciate the natural environment. Sculptures are situated around and in lakes and trees and there are many places to sit in reflection. If you intend to visit Dorset, this is a must see.
Filed under Lindy's Life, Travels, Writing inspired by Art
Weeks of restrictions on our movements have affected us all. Not far from my home town in Dorset is one of the main cruising ports in the UK, Southampton. It is capable of receiving the largest of passenger ships. They navigate the Solent Channel between the mainland and the Isle of Wight to reach the base at Southampton Docks.
During the Pandemic, these ships have laid empty except for the crew who maintain the essential systems. For several weeks, three of the ships have been anchored off the beach in Bournemouth Bay until their services are required once again.
The rise and fall of the tide in this area causes Poole Harbour to dry out at times, allowing people to walk across the wet sand and collect worms and other sea material. Kite surfing is a popular hobby giving spectators a colourful background.
Filed under Lindy's Life
Our local airport is a gateway for carriers such as Ryanair and TUI taking passengers to reasonably close destinations in Europe and private aircraft. It is unusual to see jumbo planes sitting on the tarmac but with the grounding of so many flights internationally, some of British Airways planes are parked for storage in Bournemouth.
Before things start to get back to normal (or as we are told ‘the new normal’) I decided to drive by to see what the fuss is about.
Well, it is impressive to see these planes crammed in to our little airport and I had the added bonus of watching the NHS delivery plane take off.
Filed under Lindy's Life
The enforced time at home and in nearby open spaces should have dragged but goodness, the 1st day of June has arrived quickly. Maybe the time spent exercising outside has eroded more hours of my days than the spin class at the gym or maintaining communications with friends and family through online tools has resulted in more frequent contact: lengthy conversations as we try to compensate for hugs and the joy of presence.
On these hot weekends, daily exercise along the beach can feel like being in a pinball machine, trying to avoid social contact of less than 2 metres, so we go for a walk as the sun lowers for the night. The water is shallow in Poole Harbour and when the tide is out, it is possible to walk a long distance before sinking in to one of the channels. This adult and child enjoyed their evening stroll, making the most of the quiet waters of Lockdown.
Filed under Lindy's Life
For a change, we left the beach and drove 20 minutes to take our exercise in the beautiful New Forest.
New life abounds in this national park with foals, calves, goslings, and baby donkeys. This new foal tested his hoofs in the water of the pond and then rushed to his mother for a little nourishment.
My granddaughter is not quite 3 and was mesmerised by activity of the newborn animals.
Located inland from the south coast beaches of Bournemouth, The New Forest was land covered in woodland until greedy kings of the past decided to harvest the wood to build their ships. Some wood remains alongside open land, all protected by law.
Famous for the New Forest Ponies that roam freely to graze on the land, it is a draw for families, campers, walkers, cyclists, tourists and locals who come together to enjoy its beauty.
Filed under Lindy's Life
The media report overcrowded beaches and poor social distancing in Bournemouth and Poole but my experience contradicts this observation.
There is the odd group of youngsters who clearly are not part of the same household and they gathered on the beach in their small groups but, in the main, they keep their distance from others.
The promenade is a busy roadway for bikes and pedestrians but it is possible to step down on to the sand and find plenty of space to observe the 2 m rule. I love to ride my bike along the promenade however I do not agree that bikes should be free to dominate the path and to play dodgems with pedestrians. Many times, I have wished the authorities would ban all wheeled vehicles, be they bikes, skateboards, cars, etc and avoid the risk of collision with the children, dogs, elderly etc.
These moss covered rocks gave the appearance of green hills erupting from the sand. One step up could be a dangerous decision as the moss acts like ice on a ski slope and I have witnessed the fall of a few unsuspecting victims.
Filed under Uncategorized
Poole Harbour is one of the busiest natural harbours on the UK’s south coast with constant traffic of leisure boats, pleasure boats and continental transport.
Lockdown has brought peace to the waterway and last night we decided to take our daily exercise at sunset so that we could appreciate its beauty. The harbour is too big to walk around within the allocated exercise time but a three mile round trip allowed us some fantastic and rare views of the quiet body of water.
In the first photo, you can see the narrow strip of land that leads to the peninsula of Sandbanks. Behind the buildings is a fantastic stretch of sandy beach. The lucky residents have views over the harbour to one side and over the beach and bay to the other.
Standing in front of the buildings above on the harbour side, we look towards the old quayside town of Poole.
Even though travel abroad will be restricted for some time, we are lucky to have some beautiful natural landscape to enjoy close to home.
Filed under Lindy's Life
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