the biggest pumpkin in Twyford

From small beginnings, great things happen.

And so, on a warm summer July day in Twyford, England, this mere pip of a pumpkin has taken hold. In time, weather permitting, this pip will blossom into the biggest pumpkin in all of Twyford, England.


The owner is no other than Adam Workman, winner of last year's prestigious "Biggest Pumpkin in Twyford" award. Oh yes, the beer is the secret. Everything looks bigger and better after you have had a pint or two.

inspired minds want to know

"True ease in writing comes from art, not chance,
As those move easiest who have learn'd to dance.
'Tis not enough no harshness gives offence,
The sound must seem an echo to the sense. "
Alexander Pope, An Essay on Criticism: Part 2, 362-365

I'll bet you didn't know that Benjamin Franklin lived in Twyford, England. It was here in 1771 that he began work on his autobiography. The village is on the river Itchen, a short three miles from historic Winchester, the capital of King Alfred's England.

I'll bet you didn't know that Alexander Pope went to school here, but so do Ollie and Charlie Workman. Charlie studies Mandarin Chinese and loves to draw. Ollie loves to act in school plays.







This is the house in Twyford where at the age of 65, Franklin began work on his autobiography. Adam Workman and family also lived in this house. More.

bellagio when it rains

A picture may be worth a thousand word, but it will never replace being there.

The family had just driven from Tuscany to Bellagio, on Lake Como and checked into our hotel, The Pergola. The weather began to change immediately.The wind picked up, the temperature dropped, and clouds gathered between the mountains.

What had been serene and peaceful, became foreboding.The sky which had been half sun half gray was now full-blown gray and wet. The boats began to rock to and fro. The wind whistled through the masts. The chains anchoring the boats clanged in furious rhythm to the wind.

The rain which had until now held off, began to beat against the window of the hotel. As the rain began to fall, the visibility was reduced to nothing. White caps appeared on the lake. It is the quickness of the change that is so surprising. In a moment the beauty is replaced with the fury of nature.

electric cars

Along the Champs d'Elycees in Paris, France, Toyota has a showroom for its newest and sportiest cars. Here it is, the 2004 fuel cell concept Toyota Triathalon Race Car.



"The MTRC was conceived to compete in three different environments: an off-road course, a smooth and high-grip racetrack and a narrow city street circuit, as if in a 'triathlon.'"

Top Speed.

Buds and mates

Here is a photo of Will and his mates at the Manchester United Soccer Camp from the summer of 2009.

Will is on the left on the bottom row. Along with Will is Ignacio, next to Will, Pedro, the second to the far right , bottom row, and Jordan, in the middle on the top row.

For more information on the residential courses in Manchester, click here.

guard dog

Arles was a key city in Roman times. A Roman arena still stands guard along with this dog.

Arles was a depressed town that Vincent Van Gogh came to in the 1880's. Painters can still find inspiration in the colors of the town's window shutters and doors, as well as the cafe at Arles which was the subject of one of his most famous paintings. (You can compare the real cafe with the artist's version by clicking above.)





Today it's a conservative place, the stores shut up shop when the tourist buses go home at six, but the town comes to life for the Saturday market, which brings in farmers from thecountryside, and during festivals of tauromachie between Easter and All Saints, when the town's frenzy for bulls rivals that of Spain.

Travel Info.

sports bars

In Manchester the football club is Manchester United.

The drink is a pint of your favorite ale; the food, well, it is heavy and unappetizing. But, the fans come for the football and the ale anyway. Hey, maybe, it is an upset stomach from that spicy food that causes the English football fans to become so unruly.

"Manu," as the team is more familiarly known, is Will's favorite team. In England a great way to start a conversation is to wear a football jersey. You will get a response either way. Loyalties are intense and local.

cars

Space and the price of gas are the main factors in choosing a European car.

My brother-in-law just bought a Fiat that gets over 70 miles to the gallon. And it flies down the road at speeds in excess of 80 mph. I am beginning to get excited about Fiat's foray into the American market.

Occasionally you will see a Chrysler Jeep, Land Rover, Nissan Pathfinder and even a mini-van, but these sitings are rare. There is simply no where to park them in most European cities. And then consider that many of the cities and roads were originally built over a thousand years ago when the main means of transportation was a donkey and cart if one was not on foot.

Gasoline sells for a little more than one euro a liter. It sounds cheap until you figure that a liter is roughly equal to a quart and a euro is almost a dollar and a half. If you do the math, gasoline sells for almost six dollars a gallon. Thank goodness the tanks are small.

The good news for Americans travelling by car in Europe. You will feel like a Grand Prix driver in your small rental car tooling down the road with someone riding your rear bumper flashing his or her lights wanting to pass on a hair-pin turn.

Top ten car not in the US.

ty mawr country park

The Ty Mawr Country Park, Wrexham, in northern Wales is lovely collection of pasture, river, and woodland set in the Welsh countryside. It is a oasis of peace and quiet in an otherwise hectic trip. For a quick panoramic view, click here.


At one end is the impressive Cefn Viaduct built by Thomas Brassey in 1848. Ty Mawr Country Park is a favorite location for families, due to the petting zoo including retired Cavy the pony who has been put out to pasture along with donkeys. At the opposite end is the Pontcysllte Aqueduct, 1000 feet long and 125 feet high, taking the Llangollen Canal over the beautiful River Dee valley. (I did not take it, but you can actually ride the aqueduct in a small boat.)


The park doesn't show up on a list of things to do in Wales. But, it was still a nice break from a day of driving and an opportunity to stretch my legs with a short run. Besides, at this point in my trip I am extremely tired of the tourists, me included, and I want to see how the Welsh enjoy life.

Funny thing, it is not so different from parks anywhere. Mothers with strollers gather together to share news; old couples hand in hand, walk the grounds and talk; young groups of boys and girls wander down to the river, take their shoes off, and wiggle their toes in the cold water. Then, there I am, jogging along as best I can, trying to take it all in.

back in the usa

Back in the USA, so glad, I just want to keep singing the Beatles tune but change USSR to USA.

stratford

In Stratford-upon-Avon, I am staying at the Holiday Inn, located just across the canal that connects to the river Avon. There is a short walk to Shakespeare's house in the city center. The city has a great website with all the information you will need on what to do and where to stay.








The canals have colorful barges lining the banks. The river is lined with grassy parks. Swans glide gracefully by. Beautiful hanging flowers line most of the street lamps.














Shakespeare's house is well-preserved; a learning center connects with the house. Most of the other buildings built in Stratford are of a much later date. There is a drive to Mary Arden's house.

itchen' for a jog

After sitting on my rear for a day, I am itchen' for a jog.

Heading to the right out of Waterhouse Close and toward Winchester, I set out on a jog. For a half mile I put up with the cars speeding by at break-neck speed before I made my way on to the Itchen Path to Winchester. The weather was drizzling rain, but the wet felt cool and refreshing.

The path trails off into the valley that connects Twyford and Winchester and follows the course of the Itchen River.

Quickly the traffic noise is left behind and peace and quiet descends as you follow the course of the river towards Winchester.


Picture by Peter Jordan.

The river runs clear and staight. Trees hundreds of years old stand guard on both sides of the path as you make your way to Winchester. When there are no trees, there are raspberry thorns to deal with and stinging nettles. A mile or so later, you come to St.Catherine's Hill, which overlooks the city and once upon a time was a fort, as well as, the site where medieval Winchester buried its plague victims. Continuing on the trees open up into fields and then again to a tree lined path, before you come to the playing fields of Winchester College. Here ancient sweet gum trees whose girth is greater than the span of two arm lengths stand in silent grandeur.

The path takes you by houses lining the river and then you are in Winchester. In a moment you are at the ancient cathedral of Winchester where King Alfred the Great ruled England over a thousand years ago.

The return trip follows the opposite side of the river and a brief venture into a nature reserve. The final leg of the run ends at the Twyford church and a view of England's largest and oldest yew tree.

Oh yes, why is it called the Itchen River? My theory is that the name came from the stinging nettle that grows to six feet in height and lines the path in many spots, causing itching whenever it comes in contact with the skin.

near miss

We arrived in LeHavre with plenty of time to spare before the 11:00 p.m. departure on the ferry to Portsmouth.

Arriving at the ferry, we looked for somewhere to store our luggage. None was available, but the receptionists said it was quite alright to leave the luggage in the car and park the car at the ferry; Hertz would pick the car up. This seemed to good to be true, but with plenty of time to kill, we walked the waterfront while trying to call Hertz to confirm that we could leave the car at the ferry.

The calls to Hertz went unanswered, so finally common sense suggested driving to the car rental office to confirm that we could leave the car at the ferry. Of course, we couldn't. We had arrived at the Hertz office with only five minutes to spare before the office closed for the day, and had only nearly missed a disasterous situation.

last leg of the journey

This is the last leg of our continental journey - from Reims through Amiens to LeHavre (3 hours).

There we turn in the car (Hertz, 70 Rue des Briquetiers) and make our way to the DL lines (91, Quai de Southhampton 76600) for the overnight journey by ferry from LeHavre to Prtsmouth. We board at 9:30 p.m., depart at 11:00, and arrive in Portsmouth at 6:15 a.m. where we will take the train to Winchester and meet up with the Workman family.

I hope the crossing goes well, but I have my doubts. The online booking did not work, and the phone call to book the ferry, was overly complicated. But, all we need is a cabin and a bed to make it work well. We shall see.

random thoughts

We arrived in Reims after a grueling trip though back roads from Graffigny. If you imagine the road system in France as a giant wheel with Paris as the hub and spokes stretching out to the major regions, you will get a bit of an idea of how the traffic system works. So long as you are travelling along one of the spokes, the trip is fast and quick. But, when the trip requires going from one spoke to another, it can get a little tricky. Traffic, trucks, narrow roads, rain, and confusing signs all add to the experience. Still, there can be unexpected surprises, such as our happening on Doremy, the birthplace of Joan of Arc. Then, there are the hundreds and thousands of little villages that never made it into the tour books, but possess their own charm.

Arrived in Reims tired and ready for rest. Will and I are straying at the Hotel Mercore, just off the canal and a quarter mile from the cathedral. The hotel is like a Sheraton and if you like that kind of hotel, then this is the place. One thing to keep in mind is the super highway that runs along the other side of the canal. It makes for a lot of traffic noise.

Dan and Chris -Will and I thought of you while we dined at the Cafe du Palais. It is a kitchy (is that spelled right?) place that has good local food - the Reims ham is popular - and, of course, champagne. I took some pictures and will try and upload them later.

my grandmother's house

My grandmother's house isn't the same - how could it be? She is dead and gone these thirty years, but her memories live on. The house she lived in is now owned by someone strange; Aria and Pim, the present owners, showed me around, but still, it isn't the same.



Time marches on and all we have are the memories. Sometimes, I think it is better to let it be - to remember as we wish to remember, rather than trying to go back and see it as it is now. Graffigny-Chemin is a beautiful little village on the edge of the Vosges Mountains. The pace of life is quiet, the way of living hasn't changed much in hundreds of years - villagers farm and raise what they need. The population for years was declining as the young went to the big cities where there was employment. Only recently have new people come to the village, people escaping the clamor of the big city life and people seeking something simpler.



Once my grandmother's family had pasturage to the south of the village and it was sold. Once there were three gables on the roof, now they are no more. The family had their own chickens and horses, but the garden is overgrown. I think it my grandmother would prefer the past to the present.

to grandmother's house we go

The distance from Colmar to Graffigny-Chemin, France, where my French grandmother was born and raised, is not far, perhaps 120 miles as the crow flies. But, crows fly straight while the road from Colmar to Graffigny goes north then west. Even when going west through the Vosges Mountains, the road twists and turns - the result is a longer than expected trip.

This is an area that raises mostly hay and cattle.The villages are sparse as is the population - a result not only of the limited agriculture, but also of the two world wars that used this area as a battleground. In the town of Epinal, along the way is an American war cemetery. In the smaller village of Graffigny is a cemetary that contains the remains of British pilots shot down near the town in the Second World War. During the First World War, Graffigny had a small hospital that treated wounded American soldiers, one of them my grandfather, James Madison Pearson.

colmar, france

On a recommendation of Gary and Barb Scott of Wichita, Kansas, Will and Art are staying in Colmar, France.

The half timbered houses were built in the 14th and 15th centuries. The second stories almost always stretch out over the bottom floor, and with time many of the buildings take on a warped shape.

For more photos, click here.

To see more images, click here.







The Head House, named after the many heads built into its facade, is both a hotel and restaurant.

it's a small world

One comes to the conclusion that it is a small world after all, when after traveling from Wichita, Kansas to Italy's Cinquetere, you run into friends from back home.

Dena and Craig Robinson stayed in Vernazza, just a stone's throw from Monterossa, two of five cities that make up Italy's Cinquetere. Dena and Craig are staying in a hotel on the main square. Look closely over Dena's head, you can see Craig's K-State t-shirt drying on the balcony. I can't resist the cliche, When in Rome...
 





You almost need to be a goat to make the walk from Vernazza to Monterossa. The marrow winding trail takes you up the hill over a thousand meters from sea level.

Dena and Craig hiked the route the next day and brought along trail friends from Australia with whom we shared a beer or two. David and his wife are retired ranchers and farmers from Queensland taking a five month vacation in Europe.

hotel pergola

This is where breakfast is served at the Hotel Pergola in Bellagio, Italy. Our room is directly above the pergola overlooking the lake.

The hotel is run by the mama, and her children, along with their spouses. A restaurant supplements their income from the hotel business.