Time to Catch Up….Or Forget How!

A month or more on from the Camino; better catch up with myself, or I shall forget how to write .

Withdrawal symptoms,if that’s the right term,at first,once over the relief of completing the Walk and returning home.But after a few days they diminished as real time tasks, like the greenhouse, garden & allotment became practical solutions.

Then a momentous moment when baby Martha was born . 

And there were the almost consecutive birthdays of parents,Tom & Vickee,followed closely by older brother, Jude. 

 Very special cake,created by Hannah.

Time then to go for a trip in the “Bus”, as the motorhome is known; so down to Wells in Somerset, where we found a very Special Cathedral and Bishop’s Garden to explore – greeted by a Pilgrim!  

There was also a Farmers’ Market together withCraft Stalls, that amounted to one of the best I have ever seen,here or abroad.Wells is wealthy place, still, and it’s waters still flow from the original source in the Garden, a place of religious practice,since before and including Roman times. 

 We were camped close by the famous Wookey Hole Caves and we walked there one evening, not to go spelunking, but to try the local and only Pub.What a mish- mash that was – stripped down Gastro pub type tables in one area, then the remaining space, festooned with New Age bric a brac, but very badly done. Although the cider was good , the food etc, was very over priced. I felt as though the place was on its uppers.

Must mention the visit of my brother Matt, over from Holland; he and I enjoyed watching the Cricket, together and enjoying suitable liquid accompaniment.

It did not take long for the idea of another Camino to formulate -The Camino Ingles,119 Km in length, from Ferrol to Santiago de Compostela – and in what seemed no time at all, Mac, brother in law, Roger and old friend. Dermot , were signed up.Flights are  booked for the end of September and I have managed to reserve all necessary accommodation, with the help of Booking.Com and a telephone call to one establishment, made by my clever, daughter in law Nelly, in Spanish, whilst she, Dan and our two  nephews were with us, last week-end.During which Dan did the 8.2 Sutton  Fun Run ( now known, as the Great Midlands Run), in 59 minutes.Well done Dan! A really chilly, damp moring for runners and spectators, alike. 

Looking to next month for a Bus trip to Croatia, after ax wedding in Gloucestershire and negotiating an appointment with my Urology Consultant, for the annual review of the surgery undertaken last July. What a year it has been and so fortunate to have been so well treated by our great National Health Service and so well looked after by Barbara and the family.

Babs and I put on our walking gear, yesterday and re- visited an 11 mile walk for Henley- In-Arden to Stratford Upon Avon, mainly along the Canal, in welcome sunshine; that’s the first  “proper” walk since the last Camino and the new boots felt really good, too. The only minor problem  I  encountered , was being stung by the canal side, fortunately , Barbara was on hand to pull out the black sting from the side  of my head; it ached for a while, as far down as my jawbone! Nevertheless ….