family

Verona, Italy

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Verona, Italy

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Family Diary, August 2009

     Flew Gatwick to Verona. Taxi to Romeo and Guillietta Hotel, booked through Citalia.
Hotel was small, but a great location as it is in an alley right next to the opera arena. Our room was okay but tiny, there was not even room to open the suitcase! However, the air conditioning was good and the shower was excellent. (It should perhaps be noted that in 2014, when we wanted to return to Verona to see an opera, we decided to stay here again. For position and price it is fabulous.)

Lunch in an outside pizza place, Canteena del Arena. Pleasant.
Walked around. Had coffee and ice cream and a spritz (which cost €19 each. Hmm.)
Found a supermarket.

Had dinner in the main square, right next to the Roman amphitheatre (which is where they stage the opera.) It looks better preserved than the one in Rome but is smaller.

Spent the evening walking through pretty squares which the children complained were spooky.

Wednesday: A brilliant day!
I woke 6am and made David get up. The boys joined us and we borrowed bikes from the hotel and cycled round Verona. It was perfect. Lovely cool air, very few people or cars. We saw lots of pretty squares and ancient buildings.

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Back to hotel for breakfast.
Walked to Dante’s square and had coffee and ice cream.
Looked around a market. Some nice ‘touristy’ stuff.
Saw the balcony from ‘Romeo and Juliet’.

At 8pm, we went to the opera (we had pre booked our tickets when in England.) We were shown up to the stone steps, where everyone sat (apart from a few people who had paid extra for chairs in the main arena. I think our view was better, though probably not so comfortable. When we returned in 2014, we took garden chair cushions to sit on!)

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     They herded more and more people in and we kept squashing up until it was completely full. I liked it. It made you realise what it must have been like in Roman times, they sat on the same steps, looking at the same stage.
The two girls next to James (who we didn’t know) had a picnic. Somehow he managed to be invited to share it. He will go far in life.
The opera was brilliant. We had told the children that they had to stay at least until the first Act (it was Aida.) The boys left during the first interval and because the hotel was so near they could safely walk there on their own. A good first introduction to opera for boys.
Rebecca and David both stayed until the end. The Triumphant Entry scene was fantastic – there were 300 people on stage, including four white horses. (After that scene, everyone clapped and cheered and some people thought it was the end and left!)
It was probably not as good musically as The Royal Opera House in London, but without a doubt was the most impressive staging I have ever seen and was a brilliant introduction to opera for anyone who has never seen one. We sat on ancient stone steps and watched the moon rise in the warm sky while listening to the music. It was magical.

     It finished about 12:45. We collected the boys and had a pizza and red wine supper. Everywhere was open, it was as busy as daytime. Went to bed 2am. Great day.

Thursday: Got up 8:30.
Breakfast in hotel (it is an okay breakfast, pleasant buffet and good coffee.)

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Walked to a Roman theatre next to the river.
Woman giving out guide books at the entrance asked our nationality and David said, “German.” Why? We were then given all the information in German, which none of us can read.

Went back to hotel via market square and had iced drinks.

After dinner had hot chocolate in the square. It was very thick and dark, reminded me of blancmange, which my Mum used to make when I was young.

Went to bed early but had a bad night. Thin walls and the man in the next room had stomach upset. Most unpleasant.

Friday: Walked to cathedral. Rebecca had to wear a ghastly blue hooded cape over her shorts.
Drank lemonade on a terrace next to the river.
Lunch in square. Boys had buckets (literally) of lemonade.

Taxi to station, caught 4:30 to Milan. We discussed how noisy the Verona hotel had been. We all thought the sound proofing was very bad. Except for the boys. They said they had not heard a thing. But the lady next door had been very rude and kept banging on their wall. Oh dear.

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Garda, Italy

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Lake Garda, Italy

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Excerpts from a family diary August 2014

Wednesday: We arrived at Hotel du Lac du Parc, booked through Citalia. I had recently had surgery, so David and I drove there via France, Luxembourg, Germany and Austria. It was a lovely drive, really interesting and the traffic was okay.

Met the family there (they flew.)
I walked around the hotel grounds. Very pretty gardens with lots of little ponds with bridges and ducks. There are chalets in the grounds where you could stay (seemed to suit people with young children who prefer to self cater.)

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There are also two swimming pools, one which seems more suited to young families. Both have plenty of sun loungers next to them and a nice mix of shade and sun. We liked the one next to the bar, where you could buy drinks and ice creams and take them back to the loungers.

I was feeling ill so had dinner in my room. The family ate in the hotel restaurant then played cards in the bar.

Hotel is nice.

Bathroom light seems to be permanently on, which is a little odd.

Thursday: All had breakfast on the terrace.
Very nice food.
Nasty coffee and juice from a machine. Then realised that other people were ordering drinks from the waiters. We copied and then had very nice coffee and fresh juice.

Mark said he did not want to see the opera in Verona, which we have already bought tickets for. David said that was fine, but he had to then pay the €120 for the ticket.
Mark then asked, “Why would you pay so much for me to not enjoy something?”
I decided not to join discussion.

There are dogs here which is nice. Someone has allowed their dog to wee in the lift, which is not nice.

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Went to pizza place opposite hotel for lunch. Villa Aranci. Very nice, rustic setting, not too expensive Boys had tankards of beer, I had some nice wine.

I slept. Everyone else swam.The hotel provides blue swimming towels, which is good (some hotels do not allow you to remove towels from the rooms.)

Becky sunbathed. Boys then played “How near to Rebecca can we throw the ball and not hit her.” They do not improve with age.

Nice dinner in restaurant. Family went to watch a jazz concert in town, I went to bed.

Friday: Pouring with rain, which was disappointing.
Breakfast.
Relaxed day doing very little.
Lunch at pizzeria again.

Nice dinner then had hot chocolate in the bar and played games. Everyone discussed the bathroom lights, which are always on in all our rooms.

Saturday: Raining again.
Family went to hotel gym or read/slept.
Went to Co-op near hotel and bought food for lunch.
Ate on balcony (each room has a balcony overlooking the garden.) Mark chose beer, nutella and crisps. Great diet….

Family played Catan then swam.
I walked into town with Nina (Riva del Garda, a five minute walk from the hotel.)Saw a band.

Sunday: Not raining. Excellent.
Breakfast, then family swam. An Austrian boy joined them at the pool.

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 Walked into town and looked around. Some nice shops selling touristy things.

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Pizza in restaurant next to lake. Bottled water which arrived open and tasted of ‘tap’.

I slept, family went to pool and played volley ball.
Were joined by a group of Germans. Mark said he managed to use all three of the German words he knows. One is a swear word. Super.

Found a switch under the mirror in the bathroom. This operates the bathroom light. Informed family.

Nice dinner. The restaurant staff are really friendly. They have noticed that James eats the most, so always give him a huge portion.
David always orders three bottles of wine: a nice one for us (and anyone else who wants it), a sweet white (usually Becky and Nina drink that) and a red (for just Mark. Hmmmm)

Monday: Another cloudy day.
Gave up on pool when it started to rain.
Walked into town (5 minutes) and got a ferry to Limone. It was very windy on the ferry, wished I had worn something warmer.

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Limone was a pretty town. Had some nice little shops for buying trinkets.
Had coffee and ice creams, then got the ferry back.

James told us that going to reception to say that you have lost your key card for the fourth time is embarrassing.
Rebecca told us that she is going to make an “I am 22” badge. (She gets a lot of attention from boys in the 12 -15 age bracket!)

Tuesday: Rebecca did the ‘ice bucket challenge’. The concierge (male) seemed delighted to throw a bucket of iced water over her.

Drove to Verona.
Stayed at Romeo and Guilietta hotel (booked through Citalia).
We had been told that parking was provided. They showed us on a map where we would probably find a parking space (which is not what we were expecting) and gave us a permit.
I was ill, so slept in room. Family walked around the city and had ice creams.

Watched Madam Butterfly in the arena. Is such a magical setting. This time we took cushions to sit on and bottles of drink. They confiscated the bottles, though we were allowed to pour the drink into plastic cups. (They said it was due to the health risk from glass bottles. However, there were people wandering throughout the arena selling glass bottles of drinks, so was somewhat inconsistent!)

Wednesday: Returned to Garda.
I was ill so stayed in room.
David, Nina and James took big inflatables to the lake and floated around on the waves.
I was too ill to go into dinner. The staff were very accommodating and let David order from the restaurant menu and then bring it to me on a tray. So much nicer than having to pay for room service.
They also started to ask if David had murdered me, as they had not seen me for some time!
During the meal, the room started to shake. I texted to ask if we were having an earthquake.The family all rushed upstairs thinking I was having a funny turn! They assured me I was imagining things, should stay in bed and went back to finish their meal.

Thursday: Another sunny day so family relaxed at pool.
News reports were all discussing the earthquake tremors from the previous day (Ha.)

Saturday: I finally felt well enough to go into dinner.
It was fun but clearly the family had become rather out of control in my absence: Mark received a menu with additional comments, such as, “okay but sauce no good” scribbled next to each dish. The head waiter was adding his own recommendations! David produced a list of Italian phrases copied from google translate, which he proceeded to read while the waiter waved his arms in exasperation. James confided that he has now lost his room key six times, so has ‘borrowed’ the cleaner’s one.

Sunday: Mark has been to keen to try the little “make your own tart” things at the buffet breakfast. Unfortunately, the pastry case (which in fairness, does look remarkably like a small ice cream cone) turned out to be cardboard. It is for collecting jam in, not eating. He realised on his first bite.

Breakfasts were nice. There was an extensive buffet and in one corner was the ‘egg lady’ where you could line up and ask her to cook eggs, omelets or pancakes.

David and Mark, James and Nina decided to take two man canoes out onto the lake. There was a cabin in the hotel garden where you could hire canoes and life jackets.
They went out and I took photos.
Such beautiful scenery.
Rebecca then switched places with Nina and the two boys went together.
They managed to tip up and lost James’ tee shirt, which he had been using as a back rest.
Also, at some point, each male decided to stand up. Individually. For no reason. Why would you feel the need to stand up on a canoe? It is like climbing towers and throwing socks in random places: one more thing about men that I cannot understand even a little bit.

Monday: During breakfast, James’ room key fell out of his pocket. (I have lost count now.) A nice lady pointed it out.

The family drove up into the mountains around Garda. They said it was cold! They took some great photos of the views.

Mark locked one of James’ shoes in the safe. He then lost the code. The only option was to ask the security man to come and open the safe. There was some discussion as to who should do this. I have absolutely no idea how they explained that it contained only a flip flop.

At dinner time, there is a miniature orchid on each table. Very pretty. Nina caused ours to have a slight mishap. May try and switch it. Or glue it?

The hotel is full of German people. I guess they drive down, presumably with their dogs. I have had to instigate a ban on mentioning the war or speaking loudly in a fake German accent. (Do other mothers have these problems?)

We left for our long drive home.

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This was such a lovely hotel, with friendly staff. Even being ill here was nice because they had such a relaxed manner. It was clean and pretty with lovely meals and lots of activities, most of which we didn’t manage to try. I definitely hope to stay here again. Next time I will hire bikes, and get the ferry to all the little towns around the lake and maybe walk up a mountain or two. Will also be ideal if I ever decide to bring my ducks on holiday….

Palma del Rio, Spain

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Palma del Rio,Spain

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Family Holiday 2008.

A learning experience……

Saturday 2nd August (Please note the month. It matters…)

Flew to Malaga.
Waited over an hour for Hertz hire car to be ready.
Drove to Palma del Rio.
The instructions, map and actual road numbers all completely different. Felt somewhat stressed. Spent about an hour in Palma del Rio trying to find villa.
In the end we phoned the owner and forced Rebecca to use her GCSE spanish and get us directions. (She actually did rather well.)
Met Pepe.

Villa very pretty, lots of dark wood and comfortable furniture. Rather smelly (of poo.)

Extremely hot.

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(This villa can still be booked through: holidaylettings.co.uk I notice that it now has air conditioning. If your husband ever tells you that ceiling fans are just as good as air conditioning, do not believe him.)

Went to Supermarket in Palma del Rio. Hard to find stuff without speaking spanish.
Bought food and cleaning materials.

Family swam, I cleaned villa (it wasn’t dirty, I just could not work out where the smell was coming from and felt better knowing that I had thoroughly cleaned everything myself.)

So hot. At 9pm it was 40º.

Sunday: Fuse blew at 6am and everyone woke because the fans stopped working.

Late breakfast then swam, read, relaxed.

Evening, had dinner in Rio del Palma. Most restaurants have shut for August (because it is so hot that everyone who lives here goes somewhere else! This area is known as ‘The Frying Pan’ and I know why now…)

Walked through a park and had an ice cream and some nice sangria.

Monday: Shopped, had pizza lunch then swam.

Went into Palma but did not manage to find the Tourist Information Office.

Ate dinner in a restaurant that used to be a monastery. Menu was all in spanish. When we used the dictionary we translated it as ‘road kill’, ‘chatty aubergine’ and ‘gizzard’. Meals pretty awful when they arrived (so maybe those were the correct translations after all.)
Puddings were very nice, so was the sangria.

Way too hot.

Tuesday: We found the Tourist Info but they didn’t speak any English.

Did very little, too hot.

Wednesday: Had a very nice coffee in town and strolled around.

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Drove to Cordoba. Saw mosque turned cathedral, lots of arches. I found it more interesting than the boys did.

Cordoba very pretty, lots of narrow streets selling silver. I bought a silver necklace.

Had hot chocolate and churos.

Walked around a park.

Found a nice tapas cafe.

Walked some more. My feet hurt (probably swelled up in the heat) so bought some leather sandals. Then got a whole new lot of blisters in different places.

Walked to a horrid square. Ate horrid ice creams.

Drove back to Palma. Passed a castle on a hill which was lit up so it looked exactly like it was floating in the sky. Magical.

Thursday. Did nothing, too hot.

Dinner in Ecija, in a museum restaurant (was better than it sounds.)
We were always the only customers in all the restaurants.

Friday: Swam and lazed.

Saturday: Went into town and managed to buy postage stamps without Rebecca helping! Had lemonade and coffee.

Drove to the castle and had a beer. I got locked in the toilet. For ages. Family didn’t notice.Image 3

Sunday: Rebecca traumatised as there was a lizard in her room. Mark not overly sympathetic. I tried to catch it and chased it behind the wardrobe, which didn’t seem to reassure her.

Went into town for a coffee. It’s nice coffee but I swear the price went up a little every day. David tried to order coke instead and the man asked if he wanted milk in it, so gave up and had coffee too.

Went back to villa to find a mouse swimming in the pool.

Went to chinese restaurant in Palma. Nice, lots of food, really tasty.

Drove to Cordoba. Found Salon de Te. Very interesting. Had drinks and tapas.

Drove home via a really cool square – Plaza Cappuchino – full of low lights and candles.

Monday: Drove to Seville.
Followed walk in guide book for a while but extremely hot and children complaining.
Gave up and went back to Palma for dinner.

Tuesday: Lazed around.
Started planning another trip to Seville tomorrow, will be better prepared this time.
I did some washing in the children’s bathroom and noticed sewage bubbling up into the shower tray. This explains the unfortunate smells.

Wednesday: Men came and emptied the septic tank. Stinks.

Drove to Seville.
Left the children at an amusement park with a telephone and lots of instructions about staying together.
We got a taxi into town. I had worn comfortable shoes.
Wandered around Seville, very pretty (though still hot.)
Had coffee.
Had a horse and carriage ride around the city and park – much the best way to see the city without dying of heat exhaustion.

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Tried to buy a tea pot but all the shops were shut..
Collected the children. They had all had fun except for James who was slightly hysterical due to a scary roller coaster that Rebecca had insisted he went on because they weren’t allowed to separate.

Drove back to stinky house.

David made cocktails then gambled with the children. (Sometimes not convinced we would get any parenting prizes.)

Thursday: Coffee in town.
Tried to order a bread and tomato dish that we have seen other people eating. Failed. (Stupid waitress.)
Tried to buy a tea pot. Failed. (Stupid town.)
Read swam, played cards.
Went for a drive (in search of tea pots. Failed.
Dinner in Palma, then watched a Jude Law film in Spanish. Was not great.

Friday: Had coffee at the ice cream parlour in Palma. Nice. David had crushed tomatoes, olives and bread with oil and salt. He was happy.
Drove around, swam and lazed.
Dinner at a nice hotel in Ecija.
Packed. David appeared to be trying to pack the drawers but he assured us he was mending them.

Saturday: Home. Felt cold.

St Croix, U.S. Virgin Island

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St Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands

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1999 Family Diary (While we were living in New Jersey.)

Sunday March 28th: I made pancakes for tea. After their baths, the children went to bed in their travelling clothes. They were so excited!

Monday: Woke 3:30, left house at 4:00 am.
Drove to Newark and parked in long term parking.
Monorail to airport. Checked in 5:30.
Boarded plane, all going well. Taxied to runway, then returned to gate because pilot felt sick!
Delayed 3 hours. Phoned and sorted out connecting flight.
Finally flew to San Juan.Airport felt dirty and I was worried about eating anything there.

   Got a tiny plane to St Croix. No bags. David left me and children in a nearby Pizza Hut while he went to find our cases. Was suddenly aware that I was on my own, in a strange country, with three small children, no money (left purse in car) or phone and a food bill. Hoped David hadn’t done a runner!

   David returned and we drove to Colony Cove (800-828-0746) Our condo nice. It had tiled floors (good for sweeping up sand), a three bedrooms and two bathrooms , a sitting area and a little kitchen. You opened the curtains and there was the beach, right there. Breath taking.

Tuesday: Shopped in local town and had breakfast.
Walked along beach, found a huge conch shell.
Swam in pool and played on beach.

IMG_1833In the afternoon, David smashed up the coconut so the children could see inside. It was old and dry and we had another one which wasn’t ripe, so we couldn’t eat them but it was interesting. Rubbed the milk on our skin (was sure I’d read somewhere it was good for you.)

  We drove along the south coast. Very barren, no palm trees, lots of cactus and rocks. Went to the eastern most tip of the US. Walked down to the beach and played in the sand.

Thank you for reading this extract. The rest of the blog is included in my new book:

The Sarcastic Mother’s Holiday Diary.

If you enjoyed this, you will love The Sarcastic Mother’s Holiday Diary.
I have always written a diary on holiday, so last Christmas, I decided to find all my old diaries and blogs, and make a book for my children. However, several other people also asked for a copy, so I have written a public version – it’s available on Amazon and has been described as “The Durrells meet Bill Bryson”!

Why not buy a copy today? I think it will make you laugh.

The US link is here:

https://www.amazon.com/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1549015525&sr=8-1&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

The India link is here:

https://www.amazon.in/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1549015429&sr=8-1&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

The UK link is here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sarcastic-Mothers-Holiday-Diary-ebook/dp/B07N95281F/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1549014970&sr=8-2&keywords=the+sarcastic+mothers+holiday+diary

 

In the Care Home

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In the Care Home

They visit me often
These people,
With their stiletto eyes
And brittle bright voices
That speak too fast.
I sit here
Under the waterfall of their words
And I wonder, “What’s for tea?”

They visit and I sit
In my chair,
Watch their fidgeting hands
See shadows dull their eyes
While their mouths smile,
Kiss my cheek.
Handing me photographs to look at.
I ask, “When will it be tea?”

I look at their pictures,
Names, places,
That float just out of reach
And because they’re hoping,
I nod and smile.
Who are they?
Groping to understand why they’ve come.
And I wonder, “What’s for tea?”

anneethompson.com

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   It is hard to imagine what suffering from senile dementia must be like. However, after my brain surgery, it took a little while for my brain to start functioning normally and I am guessing it might be similar to having dementia. Whilst I could read people’s moods, sometimes they spoke too quickly for me to keep up with what they were saying. My family kindly didn’t inform me until later how often I repeated conversations, but I could read in their expressions that I was doing something wrong. There were things that I knew but they were out of reach, I couldn’t bring them to mind. Watching television involved too much light and sound, too much stimulus.

   Everything was difficult because nothing was automatic. Even having a shower was a challenge because I would be drying and then realise that I had forgotten I had shampooed my hair and had never rinsed it off. To not rely on one’s brain was very disorientating. The only thing that was easy was eating! To have a simple, concrete event where I knew exactly what to do, felt some control and independence, was very important.

See also : https://anneethompson.com/poems/general-poems/faces/

Sorrento, Italy

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Sorrento

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Excerpts from a family diary 2012

      Monday: Boys’ alarm failed. They woke at 4:45 in a panic (I’m not sure they had packed.)

        Left home 5am, one hour delay at Gatwick, then flew to Naples. Mike decided to check out the G-forces on plane by juggling with three tennis balls during take-off. Then checked out High Life magazine for drugs.
David sorted hire car while we collected cases.

      Drove to Sorrento. Managed to miss a ‘no entry’ sign and went the wrong way down a one-way street. Within seconds two policemen (who had been hiding?) hurried over and fined us 39€.

         Staying at Hotel Bristol, another Citalia hotel. All rooms have sea view and balcony.

P1040849         Had sandwiches at pool side bar. James mentioned that everything in his suitcase needs washing. Super.

        Evening meal lovely, though slightly rushed as the next course arrived the second we finished eating the last one! Friendly service. Delicious ice cream.

          Walked into town. Lots of little shops selling leather goods and lemon products.

           Tuesday: Breakfast really nice. Lots of fresh fruit, breads plus cooked stuff.
David tried to plan activities. Not sure we were helpful.
Views so beautiful, want to absorb them.
Went to pool on roof. Nice but very over looked. Issued one towel per day by pool attendant/nazi. Get told off if we leave pool via side rather than steps. Not allowed to take inflatables into pool. Not allowed to reserve loungers (which is mainly good, deters people from leaving a towel at dawn to reserve best chairs. But does mean you have to guard your towel when swimming or predatory pool man reclaims them!) Not allowed to do shoulder stands. Not allowed to jump in. Not sure my boys and the pool attendant are going to be friends…….

          Walked into town and bought calzones and stuff for lunch. Saved about 75€ on hotel price. Ate on balcony.
Read, snoozed, swam.
David started campaign to have inflatables allowed in pool. Am hoping it doesn’t last all week.
Boys seem to swim mainly under water – unsettling when they loom below me as I’m struggling to reach the side.

          Another nice dinner.
Mike admitted he ‘may’ have been seen naked whilst changing on his balcony. Why was he changing there? Luckily person doesn’t sound old enough to have heart attack.

          Played Catan in the lounge.
It’s a really nice lounge, lots of sofas and a piano for James to play.
Fernando won. Of course. Actually, we all nearly won at some point. It was an extremely long game.

          Wednesday: I got up early and went for a walk. Left David to wake the family. Returned to find David engrossed in a book. I woke family.

           Swam, read, swam. Lunch. Swam, read, swam.

           Dinner, then played cards in the bar. Musicians playing jazz.

            Thursday: 7am breakfast then David and I drove to Pompei.
(We went years ago when the children were small and unhappy in the heat and I promised myself that one day I would come back without them!) Everyone else had a late breakfast and lazed.
Pompei still interesting, still dusty, still incredibly hot.

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              Went to huge supermarket on way back to Sorrento. My feet hurt, next time will wear proper shoes, not sandals.
Finished reading The Book Thief. Best book ever.

               Friday: Up early and went to exercise room.
It’s very hot in there, was nice to swim afterwards.
Went to breakfast. Everyone asked me why my face was so red.
Checked evening meal menu. Planned day (doing nothing.) Swam.

                Played catan on the roof lounge.

P1040867           There are comfy chairs and big umbrellas, but it was still too hot to be completely fun.

            Swam.
Wrote postcards to my chinese friends. Had to use dictionary for mandarin words for volcano, eruption, historical site. Bit nervous I may have written rubbish or something rude.

             Nice dinner then walked into town. Bought gifts, which was easy as there are so many shops selling soaps and trinkets. Bit cooler tonight, might rain.
Saw three german shepherd dogs, made me miss Kia.

              Saturday: Gym at 7:30 with David. Painful. Breakfast.
Becky ate slowly while Fernando sang “We’re not getting any younger”.
James dipped his sausages in the nutella. Then his elbow. Separate tables are tempting.

             Lazed, read, swam.
Males played cards (extremely noisily) in smoking room.

              Walked into town and collected pizzas. Ate on our balcony.
Becky put in charge of rubbish disposal. Was banned from throwing it onto neighbour’s balcony or flinging it off roof. Have horrid feeling I am going to find abandoned pizza boxes in unsuitable place.
Mike went in search of watch (left in smoking room.) Pizza boxes currently in corridor. Hmmm.

               Lazed, read, swam.
Family joined with Irish family to play games in pool. They used James’ rolled up tee shirt as a ball (well, it’s not an inflatable.) Mike cut his toe on pool vent, watch still lost.
James said ants had found some food he was saving. Ah. Pizza boxes still in corridor.

               Another nice dinner. Watched olympics – Bolt won relay.

               Sunday: Gym and swam.
Breakfast. I love the breakfasts here.
Swam, read, lazed.
Walked into town with David. Had a coffee. Was nasty. Drank it in a little square surrounded by typical Italian houses listening to olympics on a television in a bar.
Bought lunch. Had an espresso. Was perfect.
Lunch on balcony. Fernando had done a workout with Mike in gym. Seemed to have trouble lifting his arms.

                Monday: Left hotel, drove to Puglia.

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            Name of some (one) persons changed to protect identity. (From what???)

Clearing the Air

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Clearing the Air.

Anne E Thompson

APPRENTICE AUTHOR

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Clearing the Air

Clearing the Air
by Anne E Thompson

As the poison seeped
out from him,
Lifting his heart and
freeing mind,
It flooded her eyes
and blocked her nose,
Drowned her dark, secret places
and eroded her spirit.
It diminished her light
souring her joy,
Leaving nothing light or free
within her.
But he felt so much better
For having said.

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It’s a Wrapper on the Floor Mum!

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It’s a Wrapper on the Floor Mum!.

Anne E Thompson

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It’s a Wrapper on the Floor Mum!

It’s a Wrapper on the Floor Mum
by Anne E Thompson

“There’s a letter from my school mum,
‘Bout a trip to test the sea.
I don’t really want to go tho’
“Cos is only Geography.
I need you to ‘phone my teacher mum,
I seem to have lost a book,
And my shorts are missing too,
Yes, I hung them on my hook.”

“But there isn’t any homework,
It’s just revision instead,
Yes, I’ve prop’ly cleaned up already,
The cup is under the bed.
I need you to buy more shower gel,
The toothpaste ran out last week.
I’ll phone her when I have time,
But don’t expect me to speak.”

“It’s a wrapper on the floor Mum,
Not the start of world war three.
There’s a party at Bill’s ’til late,
‘Fraid I think I’ve lost my key.
The dust will be there tomorrow Mum,
I like my clothes on the floor.
Those socks aren’t mine anyway,
Could you please just shut my door.”

ONE THOUGHT ON “IT’S A WRAPPER ON THE FLOOR MUM!”

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New York and Denver to Las Vegas

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New York and Denver to Las Vegas.

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New York and Denver to Las Vegas

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New York and Denver to Las Vegas

Excerpts from a family holiday diary

August 2010

Thursday: Flight from Heathrow. David used his Virgin Gold card to get us all into the executive lounge. Very nice, will forgive him for all those business trips. We made good use of the facilities. Becky had a haircut. We had cocktails and champagne, then a meal. Boys played snooker while we read papers and had coffee. Very nice.

Flew Economy to JFK. Flight lasted forever.

Arrived JFK. Got monorail to Avis. Rented totally massive car.

Drove to Hilton in Montvale. Nice but am way too tired.

Friday: Got bus into Manhattan. Checked into W hotel in Times Square. Very trendy. Suite. Bathroom had a glass wall, very strange – who wants to watch someone using the toilet?

Looked down into Times Square. Pedro spent ages looking out and learnt the sequence of all the electronic billboards. Can recite them. Sad. Clever, but sad.

Walked around. You feel like you are in a movie set in NY. So many people, everyone rushing, shops you can get lost in, sirens and cars beeping, smells wafting from all the fast food places and delis.

Ate at Smith and Wollenskys. David and James shared a huge steak (half a cow.) I ordered chicken, expecting a portion and a WHOLE chicken arrived! Delicious food but too much. Excellent red wine. Fun evening, ate and laughed a lot. Didn’t see anyone famous.

Saturday: Breakfast at Starbucks.

We all queued outside Abercrombie and Fitch, waiting for it to open. I had an argument with a woman who pushed in. Can’t quite believe I did either of those things, embarrassing.

Went downtown. Saw Statue of Liberty, China town, Little Italy. It’s nice to just walk around, looking at places.

Lunch in a diner. So american! Had booths and everything! Pedro had philly cheese steak. Very NY.

Got bus to Woodcliffe Lake, then taxi to Hilton.

Dinner at Applebees. A comfortable restaurant, reminds me of Beefeater in the UK but with lots of sports paraphernalia on the walls. Becky got told to move further from the bar – I always forget how strict the US drinking laws are.

Shopped.
Really really tired.

Sunday: Church at Cornerstone Christian Church in Wycoff. Saw a few people we recognised. Good music with a band, interesting talk, friendly people.

Went into city with some friends. Ate at a mexican restaurant. They kept bringing us huge platters of food. Really nice.

Walked through central park and round zoo. Very hot. Central Park always surprises me, such a big park in the middle of the city. Saw lots of places I recognise from films. The zoo is small and smelly but nice if you like zoos (which I do.)

Back to friend’s house. Take-out pizza.

Monday: Pancakes at IHOP on Route 17. Perfect! Quantities still huge though. It is not possible to only order one pancake, they come in stacks. All the coffee everywhere is ‘bottomless’ (free refills) which is wonderful.

Went to a friend’s pool. Swam, chatted, relaxed. BBQ chicken and corn with friends. Then went to Paramus Park Mall in the evening. So big! Dairy Queen ice creams, then said goodbye – always sad.

Tuesday: Gym and swam at hotel. It’s a nice hotel, very inexpensive and convenient being so near the city but also in New Jersey, so you can see a little of ‘real’ America too. Breakfast in hotel lounge. Bagels – I had forgotten how fantastic the bagels are in NY.

Drove round Upper Saddle River, saw the house where we used to live. Remembered all the traffic laws – like having to drive slowly past schools, not being allowed to park on the street at night, having to stop if you see a stationary school bus. Also all the ‘unwritten’ rules, like watching the opposite traffic lights and moving the very second your light turns green or you get honked!

Went to Summit, met friends.Sandwiches from a deli for lunch. Had forgotten how easy it is to get nice food in US. Summit is nice, lots of trees, lots of typically american houses, clean and peaceful.
Went to town pool. In US, most towns seem to have a town pool. You have to be a resident of the town to become a member but can then invite friends. It’s where people meet their neighbours and spend summer afternoons. It doesn’t really have an english equivalent.

Wednesday: Breakfast. Packed.
James informed me that if you hide shampoo they keep leaving more. (Horrid image of hotel shampoo stashed in mini fridge comes to mind…..) Becky added that it doesn’t work with hairdryers. (Not sure how she would know that.) The boys swivel chair was in the bathroom. They told me they had used it in a game. I decided not to ask… (Tip for parents of boys: If its not dangerous, illegal or mean, then you are probably happier not knowing.)
Boys raved about how comfortable their beds were and even went as far as looking at the name on the mattress!

Newark airport. Awful.

Flew to Denver.
Collected another car the size of a caravan and drove to Best Western in Dillon. Next to a lake. Very pretty.
Ate in an American Restaurant. Nice.
James threw lemonade over Pedro, who was surprisingly good about it.

Thursday: Beds do not compare well with Hilton, bad night’s sleep.
David went for early walk and came back with coffee for everyone.
Breakfast bar in hotel. James used internet in lobby. I looked at views across lake.

Supermarket trip. Family stocked up on bottles of water and gateraid (which no one likes, so not sure why.)

Drove. Went through a dodgy town (it had a ‘Kum and Go’ – didn’t stop to find out WHAT that was!) Listened to audio book. Drove. Denver to Vegas is shorter on the map…..

Amazing scenery. Amazing weather. Few rain showers, fantastic clouds, snow at one point when we were really high. Mountains, lakes, trees, rivers, cattle ranches.
Stopped at Bongo Billy’s deli (yes, real name!) and bought sandwiches. Boys bought food from a Subway opposite.

Had ice creams in Ouray. Cute houses, looks like a cowboy film set. Spent some time wandering around. Interesting curiosity shops.

Drove up a steep mountain pass – scary. Brilliant red rocks. Followed annoyingly slow lorry.

Pizza Hut in Durango.

Arrived at Holiday Inn in Cortez. Really nicely decorated with lots of American Indian stuff.

Friday: Slept well.
Breakfast not so good. Polystyrene plates and plastic spoons. David burnt finger on bagel. I put sugar on oatmeal, then discovered it was mushroom soup (don’t know how I missed that one!)
Got petrol.
Becky spotted meercats. But they aren’t really meercats, must be cousins.

Found track to Valley of Gods (not easy, drove along someone’s driveway at one point. Lucky we didn’t get shot.) Saw amazing rocks. Road very rough.

Back on main road. Totally straight, no bends for many miles.
Saw eagles eating dead horse.
Looked at American Indian stuff on stalls next to road. Interesting but expensive.
Went to a visitors centre. Looked across a valley to an ancient town built into canyon wall. Looked like a toy town because the canyon is 4 miles across.

Drove to Tuba City, checked into Quality Inn Motel.
Lots of American Indian stuff.
Ate in restaurant next door. All other customers Native American Indian. Not sure if that’s a good sign or not. Nice pink lemonade. Very pink. Menu had food poisoning warning at the bottom, rather put me off my dinner.
Bad night due to motel having a blocked toilets problem (not ours). Maybe related to food poisoning warning on menu…..

Saturday: Went to Indian Trading Post. Interesting, some good stuff.

Drove to Grand Canyon. Found really good place to stop, amazing views.
Saw eagles soaring. Beautiful. You cannot help but be amazed at the size of the canyon. It deadens all sound and sucks you into its peacefulness. Best if you avoid the main car parks which are touristy. Bought a Christmas ornament.

Drove to Las Vegas. Queues at Hoover Dam, checking for terrorists.
Drove down The Strip. Checked into Mandalay Bay hotel. Nice room, tele in bathroom.
Met my sister who has come down from Calgary.
Mandalay Bay is nice if you like massive hotels. It was clean and the rooms had everything we needed.

Sunday: Starbucks breakfast. James awake and smiling. Pedro awake but not speaking, just making rude gestures.
Pool, incredibly hot. Lazy river nice but too crowded.
You remember you are in a desert as soon as you step outside of the hotel.

Lunch in a diner. Huge portions again.

Walked to other casinos: Luxor – impressive (though males rather distracted by bikini clad girl in lobby.) Excaliber – pretty castle outside. MGM – boys remembered rainforest cafe. Too hot to walk further.
Las Vegas seems different to when we visited in 1999. It seemed smarter then, everything looked new and people were well dressed. Also, all the food was very cheap due to hotels making their profit primarily from the casinos. This time it felt slightly old. Lots of people were very casually dressed and the food was pricey. It felt like it was trying too hard.The casinos didn’t feel excitingly low lit, they just felt dark, as if they couldn’t afford any more light bulbs.

After dinner, drove to Bellagio. Amazing lobby, like a giant garden. Watched fountain/music display.

Monday: Coffee and donuts in room. Swam, chatted, relaxed.
Drove to Venetian to pick up theatre tickets. Ate in their Italian restaurant (waiters were arguing.)
Saw gondoliers and giant toffee apples.
Went to Phantom of Opera show. Nearly late because traffic was so bad. Show was short but good scenery and singing.
Drove home past erupting volcano and fountain display.
To date, seen 4 brides, 2 Elvis’, 2 show girls in a car park.

Tuesday: Donuts and coffee.
Packed.
Swam and sunbathed.
Drove to airport, which is right at the end of The Strip, so very easy.
Nine and a half hour flight home. Ugh.

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Please note: Some (one) names changed to protect the identity of persons involved. (I do not know why their identity needs protecting and maybe should be worried……)

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