More Connections (of a different sort)

Aberdeen

I have reached Day 55 of a 56 day trip. I have slept in 12 different beds. demystified 12 different showers, made and changed about 20 rail reservations and managed a wardrobe designed to take me from the end of August to the end of October. Did you know that travel is an especially beneficial activity for older adults because it fosters brain plasticity? I'm not joking. 

In Soft-Wired: How the New Science of Brain Plasticity Can Change Your Life, Dr. Michael Merzenich — known as "the father of brain plasticity" — explains the importance of getting outside our comfort zone and embracing the unfamiliar. People who travel to new places, keep learning languages and continue to experience new things into old age, are far less likely to develop cognitive decay, according to Merzenich's weighty body of research.


 

a new dress in Paris

Learning to navigate unfamiliar places and situations strengthens our problem solving abilities.

When I arrived in London, I found that Sterling money that I had purchased at my credit union was no longer current. It was a Bank Holiday. No chance of remedy! Fortunately, credit cards are preferred in post-Covid times. Vancity will reimburse me. No worries!

September was a peaceful month in La Charité.

My month in La Charité provided me with the opportunity to live a peaceful life in a French town. I had lots of time for reading, walking, speaking French and meeting new people. I gained a new appreciation of healthy cooking when I visited the local market to buy my produce. I also discovered that I am a person of much  energy and curiosity and that sometimes, at home, I get weighed down by other people.

 a few of my Shetland family

One of my goals of this 70th birthday trip was to share our family with my daughter. Many of our Shetland relatives have had the opportunity to visit Vancouver but many have not. Unlike when I first visited 35 years ago, no one has known my grandfather. In Canada, I have no living aunts or uncles and each nuclear family is busy with its own affairs. The Shetland people are extraordinarily friendly and hospitable. I feel very much at home. I believe that Christina will carry on the connection.

Three weeks of togetherness with mother is a lot of connection.

Daughter and I have never travelled for 3 weeks together. Twin hotel rooms and ferry cabins do not provide much alone time. I get anxious on transition days and I don't enjoy being busy all day. 

Today is our last day in London and we have chosen some alone time. She has gone to see the Beatles'

crosswalk at Abbey Road and to visit some vintage markets. I'm spending reading/writing time and having my hair done in Chelsea. We'll meet in the afternoon for our last hours in London. Hopefully, we will visit together another time.

one of my favourite views of the trip

Hamefarin 2022

Some family members met at the Whalsay Heritage Centre.

 "Hamefarin" means coming home in Shetland. If you are a Canadian or New Zealander in my Shetland family, Shetland is regarded as your home. If you visit, you will be hosted by as many relatives as possible. It is important to introduce each successive generation to their Shetland roots. 

Our family comes from the island of Whalsay, "The Bonnie Isle". Yesterday, we visited the house where my grandfather lived and had tea, ate in the only restaurant on the island (not quite soft opening) and attended a gathering held in our honour atThe Whalsay Heritage Centre.

Whalsay is an island of about 1000 people where everybody waves at passing cars because they are probably family or friends. My ancestors can be traced back 3 centuries on the island. If you visit he Centre's webpage, you can view the gorgeous display of Shetland lace knitting. We looked at photos of Whalsay weddings over dating back to the 1880's, war medals, deserted villages of stone houses. The older people "filled in" some of the details.

My grandfather lived in this house before he joined the Merchant Navy.

I always visit The Hoddens, my grandfather's boyhood home. His nephew's widow lives on the property today. Land on Whalsay stays in the family. Young couples often build a new house on the land. Where once people depended on the land and sea for their living, most people have jobs now.

Many of our Whalsay family are buried in the churchyard.

I believe that connection to our roots enriches our lives. It has been a wonderful experience to share with my daughter. She has met some younger family members. E-mail addresses and Facebook requests have been shared. 

After a full day of visiting, my daughter and I visited The Dowry restaurant for some wine and charcuterie. For a small town, Lerwick has some excellent restaurants.

The Dowry Restaurant where "Jimmy Perez" eats sometimes.

Why Frenchwomen Don't Get Fat (Really)

Number one reason:stairs

There are many explanations about why Frenchwomen don't get fat but after spending a month in rural France, I have some of my own ideas. The number one reason is stairs. Over the last 4 weeks, I have been averaging 7 flights a day. At home, I take the elevator to my third floor apartment. 

lots of walking paths  (with benches to rest)

I really enjoy walking for a while and then sitting on a bench to enjoy my surroundings or to read.

There is a lot of work being done to promote the enjoyment of the natural setting of the Loire River. Benches, lounges and tables are located at regular intervals. 

I've been stopping at the tabac (newsstand) to buy a French newspaper or magazine.

In France, I have been enjoying the fresh fruit from the Saturday market. Each of my days begins with 

slice of fresh melon. The fruits and vegetables from the market taste so flavourful. I'm wondering how to enjoy better quality produce at home.

I love the Satuday market.

The French like to label. Real estate listings include graphics showing energy costs and CO2 emissions.

Food has labels indicating nutritional values.

My tuna salad and Bio bread are A rating and my ham is  C.

 

I bought this San Pellegrino drink but it is an E rating. I have not drunk it.

It seems to me that although there are pastries at the boulangerie and a menu formule includes three courses (entrée, plat and dessert), portions in France are smaller than in North America. 

I have only a few days left in La Charité before taking the train back to Paris. There are rail strikes in France and UK right now so plans need to be changed constantly. I've a couple of days in Paris before I meet daughter in London. She's bringing me a size smaller pair of jeans. Those stairs must be working!

Bienvenue à Mon Aventure

I am in France but Tilde is not.

After a long blog sabbatical, mostly caused by the disappearance of my earlier works, I have decided to resume my efforts.  Naming the blog is important. I have tried "Home and Away" and "Wondering and Wandering" but it seems that there are too many variations of these words on the Internet.

So, as I lay in my cozy bed in the French town of La Charité-sur-Loire, my mind would not stop. What name would be unique to moi? Surely, there can only be one dachshund named Tilde and I always spell the familiar maternal title "mum." I am also the mum of a darling daughter who will soon be travelling with me but she's quite private.

my bed in La Maison des Mots, boarding house and B and B in La Charité

Everyone who knows me, knows that I am a reader, a dreamer and a traveller. Not so much a tourist

as a person who likes to "borrow other people's lives." I'm greedy for experiences. My "real life"

is enriched by books, films and travel.

I love to visit France

France is my special destination. J'adore everything French:the language, the food, the style...and on it goes. During Covid, I worried that I might never get a chance to visit again. I turned 70 this year. What if I wasn't strong enough to navigate cobblestones and train stations? What if? What if?

I mentioned that I like to vicariously enjoy different lives. Well, during Covid, I began to visit Instagram.

Who can resist crazy dachshund dogs (not as cute as Tilde), French décor (lavender. faiënce and candles),

or gardens?

My mantel in France houses books that I have read and  bottle of Domaine La Petite Forge that I purchased on a personal visit to a winery.

Over a year ago, Meta (with its omniscient algorithm) suggested that I might visit #maison-des-mots. Barbarajo, a former Vancouver bookseller, had renovated a house in the French town of La Charité-sur-Loire. I already owned one of her cookbooks Cooking for Me, and SometimesYou. More investigation

She had a garden, two libraries and a cat called Minette. My husband is allergic so we have no cat. Quel bonheur! I sent my deposit immediately. Covid or not! This was my 70th birthday present to myself! Une chambre d'hôte in La Charité-sur-Loire. Bienvenue à mon aventure!

My soon-to-be travelling partner. (I am also her Mum.)