I'm feeling much better which is good because there's lots to do this week. Kipp starts school on Thursday and I've got to go through his clothes, shop for the required school supplies, and stock up on lunch items. His first-grade teacher is coming tomorrow afternoon for a home visit. It will be interesting to have a chance to talk to her, since back in 1976 she was my fourth-grade teacher.
So, anyway, much cleaning and organizing is on the docket these next few days. In the meantime, I continue to post my trip diary.
August 2005, Trip to England and France
Day 2: I had chosen to stay in the city of Chichester merely for its proximity to the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum which I went to on Day 2. The weather was gorgeous and the place was not crowded at all. As I made my way through laborers' cottages and re-constructed medieval hall houses and kitchen gardens, I came across a handful of filthy pigs wallowing happily away in their muddy pen--and I could relate! I felt just as happy, wallowing away in history. By mid-afternoon, however, my jet lag was seriously slowing me down and the sight of straw pallets and medieval beds made me so sleepy I ended up napping under a tree near the mill pond.
After finishing at the museum, I collected my luggage at the hotel and made my way, again via train, to the ferryport in the city of Portsmouth. I had no time to tour the city, only enough time to hop on the ferry for my overnight Channel crossing to Saint Malo. The ferry, called the Val de Loire, was impressive, more like a cruise ship than any American ferry I’d ever been on. It was a busy place, with four restaurants, a movie theatre, cabaret, bar, shops and observation decks, and so many happy families: English, French, and German. I was the only American on the boat. Also, the only lone traveler as far as I could tell. But I comforted myself by thinking of this journey as a scouting mission and making plans to bring my family with me someday. Everywhere I looked, it seemed a celebration of family.
In the restaurant, the English were all chowing down on huge plates of fish and chips. Trying to fend off any trace of seasickness, I ate a light supper of cucumbers, tomatoes and mozarella, and turned in for the night. My cabin was tiny, but the bed was the most comfortable one I encountered during the entire trip, with a miniscule duvet that was the perfect weight for warmth. Exhausted, I slept the whole night through.
10:23:34 AM 
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