Category: journal

Since I was born. Over 50 years now…

Certainly been a busy summer. Somerset, Jon’s stag do, Stefi and Davide, birthday, birthday party, Jon’s wedding. And no huge DIY projects – just the lovely garden to enjoy. And to cook in with my new fire bowl.

Sunday morning and we’re setting off to London to attend Eliza and Richard’s 25th wedding anniversary do at the Shangri-La hotel on the 34th floor of The Shard. Much excited anticipation from the girls, who love a party as much as they love the idea of going up the Shard. Parents also pretty excited and looking forward to seeing R&E after about a decade.

 

Very plush.

And very high up.

Richard said a few words.

Amazing coincidence discovered later…

 

As of Monday, Neve started attending the University of Cambridge Primary School, where Isa works. (We’ve been hoping we could wangle this since Isa started working there after Easter, having abandoned the then-sinking ship of St Philips in January.)

To accommodate this, Isa’s hours have been extended from part- (mornings only) to full-time.

Isa and Neve have to leave early — around 0810 — which means Lola has to leave for school on her own. And return on her own. She loves it!

Lovely holiday let near Blakeny and Holt. Super weather: mostly dry and sunny. Days on the beach (Cley, Wells), walking locally, steam trip to Sheringham. Blooming lovely.

Didn’t have to do much more than walk out of the mammoth house to be in the middle of lovely countryside. Woods, fields, sea, the spires of nearby churches — that was pretty much all you could see. Nearest neighbour was about a mile away down at Glandford and happened to be a lovely little arty cafe and gallery.

We got there on Friday evening without the car blowing up, which was nice. (We’d had a random overheating event a few weeks before which, of course, blew the head gasket.) Mum and Dad had got there a few hours before and were finishing unpacking. The place was amazing — amazing vaulted living area and [insert more hyperbole here].

The next day, Saturday, we wandered down to the nearby village of Glandford and had coffee and pastries and a look around the art galleries there. Very pretty hamlet with some lovely flint-built dwellings including the farmyard that also housed the Art Cafe and galleries (some of the art was pretty good), as well as a small terrace, large house or two, and a pretty church with a, erm, what’s one of those clockwork bell-ringing things. Clarion?

Lola really loves walking Sunshine!

We went to Cley-next-the-sea on Sunday. Mostly pebble beach; salt marsh to one side; freshwater to the other. Lunch from the van; much paddling from the girls, and nearly swimming from Grace. On from there to Blakeney for a quick gander and an ice-cream.

Think we stayed local on Monday. I put together a scavenger hunt for the girls to make the prospect of a walk more inviting. It worked really well, with everything on the list being eventually ticked off. Even a bone. At some point, we (Isa, Dad and I) drove to Holt to pick up a couple of things (toothbrushes!) from Budgeons. We took a brief wander to the town centre (partly in search of Aperol) and then, on the way back, dropped in to Holt station to check out the times of trains to Sheringham

On Tuesday, we took the train to Sheringham from Holt. Yes, of course, it was a steam train. Good fun. Bought sarnies at Tesco and took them to a little shingle working fishing cove. The girls had a lot of fun clambering over the rocks which were covered in children despite a “Danger: keep off the rocks” sign. Having decided there was no more danger there than is represented by clambering around on any jumbled but stable collection of hard, uneven surfaces, and recalling the amount of fun we had as children clambering on rocks, we decided to ignore the sign.

Erika, Chris, Rosie and Tom Rigg all come over for a coffee and a game or two of badminton on Wednesday. They were staying in Cromer — though up to a day or two previously, had been camping only a mile from where we were.

The following day — a real scorcher — we went to the beach at Wells-next-the-sea. Sun, sea, sand, seals — the whole caboodle. The kids had a fabulous time in the water and spent most of the time (about four hours) there. It’s a lovely beach — the same one we went to with Manisha all those years ago — with great swathes of golden sand, clear water, multi-coloured beach huts, a piney spit of land across the channel down which boats chug and seals idle…

 

We travelled on Saturday: the usual train to Stansted and then the 7pm flight to Treviso. Nice and smooth with plenty of time at the airport. All our cabin bags were taken in to the hold, which annoyed us slightly, as some people coming on after us seemed to retain theirs.

Renzo picked us up and took us back to Nonna’s where a pasta fagioli awaited us, along with Nonna and Stella.

Sunday…?

Monday I went to Tasca with Lola to get a new socket for the kitchen. Which I then fitted. In the afternoon, we went to Iperlando for bits and pieces, plus 80 litres of milk for Dedi. Selena, Alvise and Benedetta came visiting in the evening. Later, I helped Claudio (by holding things) while he drilled holes in the bed frame so we could put the legs on.

Tuesday, Mum and Dad arrived.

Wednesday we went in to Treviso. Coffee at Spiga D’Oro and a wander around the centro. The kids had a go on the gallopers. Out for Pizza in the evening to celebrate Dedi’s end of muto.

Thursday. Chilled at home in the morning. In the afternoon, Lola and Mum stayed at home making a cake for Dedi and Mum, Dad, Neve and I went up the Montello and drove down a road that led to someone’s house and nowhere else from the end of which we hoped to see onto the Piave but where more interestingly we met a retired man and his wife and grandchildren and who gave us stories of their life and a bottle of Clinto wine.

Friday. Venice. We took a water taxi from just down from the station to the Rialto. Fantastic. Not much more expensive than the tragetto would have been for all of us. And he was a lovely guy who enjoyed Dad’s conversation about the boat and the business. The boat was lovely; iconic.

Milled around Rialto a bit, then down a calle off the Grand Canal to Al Paradiso – as recommended by Davide’s friend at the rehearsal – for lunch. Decent food, nice quiet location, friendly staff.

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Saturday. Lunch in Marco’s restuarant in Treviso.

Sunday. Mowed the lawn. Susi and Duccio, Marino later, in the afternoon.

Monday. To the commune in Paderno for birth cert. Then on (having dropped Nonna back home and kids with Dedi) to Treviso to get documents stamped, ratified. Found the wine shop Marino had told us about, and a lovely bread/spice/knick-knack shop next door.

Tuesday back to Treviso with Mum and Dad but without the kids so Isa could go to the Tribunal. Stopped for bread and cheese and wine in a wonderful old bar off Piazza Signori. Back for lunch. Mum and Dad went off for a drive (up to Asolo) in the afternoon while I went with Isa and the kids to Treviso. They all had hair sessions booked with Susi.

Wednesday. Coffee with Assunta in the morning. Dad wowed by Stefano’s workshop. Great story of the planer/thicknesser which Stefano’s dad had bought in Venezuala and later shipped back to Italy. Off to Caorle with Dedi after lunch. Quite a long trip and we ended up in Porto Santa Margherita instead. Collected many seashells along the sea shore. Back via motorway so Dad could practice paying…

Thurs morning was goodbye to Mum and Dad :(.  Then nice long bike ride with Isa and the kids down to the commune in Paderno and then on to the gelateria. Treviso again after lunch – trying to do some clothes shopping for the girls (failed).

Friday took it easy as I had “un po’ di malessere”. Chilled around house in morning while Isa went and helped Dedi with a cleaning job at gelateria. Stefi picked us up in the afternoon and we all went back to Bruna’s for merenda and a chat.

Saturday, pasticcio. The kids helped Nonna make the pasta. Bruna came round to help put it all together.

Easter Sunday. Also packing day, as we left the next morning.