Month: June 2023

We packed up and left the lodge.  They (The Holiday Services Manager) asked if everything was OK, of course Mal said no, several things that we brought up previously but mainly no cushions for the outside seating. Mal said no problem we would just put it on Trip Advisor. She asked him not to but to send it all to her, having written it already, no problem! We will see what she comes up with!

We then went to the country park for a walk and we also went into the visitors centre. All the occasions we have been there and we never realised that  Romney Marsh is known as the Fifth Continent!

The Ingoldsby Legends (1837) recognised the importance of Romney Marsh as a fifth continent through the statement ‘The world, according to the best geographers, is divided into Europe, Asia, Africa, America and Romney Marsh’. Stretching between the counties of Kent and East Sussex, Romney Marsh is one of England’s most distinctive and unique landscapes. Much of the area lies below sea level and the landscape is one of wide fields, endless skies, meandering ditches, isolated farms and villages. At its southern tip is the great sweeping expanse of shingle which makes up the Dungeness peninsula, the largest shingle cusp in Europe.

Every day is a learning day!

We also went all the way round the community garden. Mal would like to start a similar project at the Jubilee Centre.

We also  bought a very interesting book. It is 622 pages long!

Maybe we can learn some more.

We stopped in Hythe on the way back for lunch at our favourite place Truly Scrumptious, they are consistently good. We also had a pot of tea which came with a tea cosy. We sat outside.

Back home and it was watering all the plants, home and allotment. All the washing was up to date as we had a washer dryer in the lodge.

Thought for the Day – “When you recover or discover something that nourishes your soul and brings joy, care enough about yourself to make room for it in your life.” ~ Jean Shinoda Bolen

Ellie went for an early morning walk with Mal as we knew it was going to rain and it did!

We went for a drive and then stopped at The Warren Inn for our lunch but we had to eat indoors.

Still raining and so we stayed in the lodge and watched the tennis from Eastbourne, with a bottle of Prosecco!

The sun came out later so time for our walk. There are so many rabbits around the country park and that means a lot of deep rabbit holes, so you have to be careful!

And I found an orchid. I think it is a pyramidal orchid but I am far better on Cypriot orchids.

 

Thought for the Day – “Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” ~ Mahatma Ghandi

Ellie is very relaxed on her holiday!

We went to Dungeness to our favourite fish place, the Snack Shack. I had to have the lobster! It seems because the price of lobster is now so high, a lot of restaurants have stopped serving it, so I made the most of it. The food is just so good there and freshly caught.

It gets unbelievably busy there and we hadn’t realised it opens at 11am.

We then went to Greatstone Beach for the afternoon. Not many people on the beach!

A good thing the tide was way out  as later we were told there are a lot of jelly fish around at the moment and they sting quite badly.

Early evening a walk in the country park and then outside the clubhouse for a drink.

Thought for the Day – “As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.” ~ Maya Angelou

Mal had a message with some good news about the Jubilee Centre. Roger Manwood school in Sandwich have offered to design a logo, one of their art classes and then have the local people judge the best entry. At least people seem to be taking notice that the centre is up and running again!

About 9.30, one of the staff, Victoria came to check that everything in the lodge was OK, so we told them a few things that were wrong , no welcome pack, but we had  brought a couple of dishwasher tablets with us.  We also had dressing gowns but no slippers. No cushions on the outside chairs, a broken stool in the living room.

We went into Romney and went and looked at the little area that is the Burma Star memorial park. My dad received the Burma Star.

We then went to Littlestone Beach, a non dog beach so we kept Ellie on the grass area.

We then went and had lunch again at The Warren Inn. At least at this pub they DO give you a strawberry with a pink gin! The pork loin was large and very tasty, so I shared a little of it with Ellie.

When we arrived back at the lodge, the Head Housekeeper arrived with profuse apologies and gave us these!

That was very nice of them.

We had an evening walk in the country park.

Thought for the Day – “The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself.” ~ Anna Quindlen

Mal walked Ellie early and then went to the allotment to give it a good soak as we are away a couple of days.  I soaked the garden plants and then we headed off to Romney where we had booked a lodge.

It is a short journey and we didn’t have entry to the lodge until 4pm so we went and sat in the garden of the Warren Inn and had our lunch there. It has to be our favourite pub around here with lovely owners who love dogs! There was a difference in temperature from the previous day when it was 30 degrees. Sitting in the garden it was about 23 and windy which was very nice.

We have a nice spacious lodge right on the edge of the park, so nice and quiet. It is a 2 bed/2bath lodge so plenty of space.

We unpacked and then took Ellie to the country park which is literally next door. Later we went and sat outside the clubhouse and had a couple of drinks. We chatted to a permanent resident of the park who sadly lost his wife a year ago. She caught Covid, then pneumonia very quickly. They had just celebrated their Golden wedding. How sad.

Thought for the Day – “Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” ~ Anne Lamot

Mal took Ellie for the early morning walk at 5.30, going to be a hot day! It was nice for me to have a lie in, not long though.

After a s**t week we had a lovely afternoon listening to Glasto in the garden (very loud!) and a jug of Pimms.

Mal sat shelling loads more peas so that I can freeze some.

I have to say I really enjoyed Cat Stevens at Glasto…that took me back! Mal was at a Jubilee Centre meeting . They are trying to sort out a management team.

Thought for the Day – “It makes no sense to worry about things you have no control over, because there’s nothing you can do about them. And why worry about things you do control? The activity of worrying keeps you immobilized.”  ~ Wayne Dyer

An early morning walk with Ellie.She was chasing a frog by the river.

Later I drove Mal to his second art class. Birds this week.

My iron, which I have had for some many years, in Cyprus and it came back with us because it was so good, was towards the end of its life. It was leaking and spurting out steam when it shouldn’t. I tried to get another Tefal and now they are a lot lighter. We ordered one from Amazon, £150. Well worth it when you consider how many years I had the last Tefal. I am very pleased with it but when I was looking for something else yesterday, I noticed that there was an offer on and they had reduced it by FIFTY pounds!

We contacted Amazon “if you can find it cheaper somewhere else!” The girl isn’t allowed to give us a refund for the difference but we can send the first one back and order another to arrive tomorrow. It is no hassle to pack the first one up and drop it off at Evri with a note saying we found it cheaper elsewhere. What a crazy world we live in!

We have a fantastic  harvest of peas, the pods are bursting and so far, there haven’t been any maggots in any of them . That’s a bonus!

Mal painted an excellent ‘egret’ and he said the lecturer/artist gave him so many tips again. I think he is going to sign up for a course in September.

Thought for the Day  – “To experience peace does not mean that your life is always blissful. It means that you are capable of tapping into a blissful state of mind amidst the normal chaos of a hectic life.” ~ Jill Bolte Taylor