Glastonbury Abbey

As the Glastonbury Festival gets under way this weekend, I thought it appropriate to show you another side of Glastonbury, from my recent trip to Somerset.


Glastonbury Abbey - now in ruins - was once the grandest and richest Abbey in England...

 Medieval floor tiles

It is the legendary burial place of King Arthur and his Queen Guinevere...

And traditionally the earliest Christian sanctuary in Britain. Some believe that Joseph of Arimathea brought Jesus here..

The Abbey sits in 36 acres of beautiful parkland...

Truly a beautiful place to visit!

Liebster Award

Recently, I was very kindly given a Liebster award by the lovely Melanie over at Mel's Corner. If you've never heard of this award, it's a really nice one to get and pass on as it's there to highlight new or relatively unknown bloggers, and give their blogs the attention they deserve. 

"The Liebster Award is for bloggers with under 200 followers and the rules of the award are that the nominee must link back to whoever awarded them, write 11 random facts about themselves, answer the 11 questions from the award giver, and then nominate another 11 bloggers and make up 11 questions for them to answer. It's a great way for new and undiscovered bloggers to meet new people, get more followers and find some blogs that they want to follow."


So here are 11 random facts about me...

1. I was so painfully shy as a child that I refused point blank to talk to anyone for the first few months of school. My teacher warned my parents that I would never get far academically

2. My favourite colour is red…. cherry, burgundy, crimson, amaranth (ha! new one!)...all shades just as long as it's red.

3. I have hyperdontia (more teeth that I should) and as a child I had an overbite that meant I could fit 3 fingers sideways between my upper and lower teeth. Four teeth extractions and 5 years' orthodontic treatment later and I have the perfect Colgate smile I'm told.

4. I have a ridiculous memory… I can remember minute details like exactly what I was doing, what I wore and what I ate on Day X, and I have very clear memories from my early childhood. When it comes to books and films, though, I can watch or read them ten times over and they seem new each time.

5. If I could live anywhere in the world, I’d like to live near the ocean, and walk on the beach at sunrise and sunset every day.

6. The most famous person I’ve met is Lewis Hamilton (Formula One driver) – at his book signing in 2007….he was very friendly and chatty, and seemed like a genuinely nice guy.

7. I am terrified of flying. Kind of spoils the travelling lark, but I now use pharmaceuticals to cope. I am also very afraid of being in a car with someone else driving fast, suffer from arachnaphobia and detest all other small things that flap or creep or crawl (even moths).

8. I was born on a Sunday. 

And the child that is born on the Sabbath Day,
Is bonny and blithe and good and gay

9. I  only learnt to drive at the age of 23. I was a very nervous learner and gave my poor husband (then boyfriend) several minor heart attacks by pulling off stunts like stalling the car in on coming traffic, doing a wheel spin on a very steep hill, and so on. He was a very patient (and brave!) teacher...

10. I  can't ski. I found this out the hard way and came down the mountain on a stretcher. These days I stick to snow shoeing.

11. I  baked my own wedding cake. A huge, square carrot cake decorated with butter icing and fresh fruit that was delicious, if I say so myself.

............

And here are my 11 questions with answers...

1. What made you start a blog?
I was young, naive and suffering from the delusion that I have something to say that someone, somewhere would be interested in reading! Now, I'm a little bit older....
Seriously, I was looking for something creative to do, and a way of recording my somewhat haphazard path through life.

2. Favourite destination?
Way too many fabulous places to pick just one! My top five would be... The Maldives, Vietnam, Thailand, Italy, Canada and South Africa. Actually that's six - you see how hard it is to pick and choose! 

3. If you could be/do anything what would you do?
A professional travel writer/photographer... unfortunately, being a professional medical writer is not nearly as glamorous as it sounds - sometimes I write about a really exciting new cancer treatment, and then sometimes I write about laxatives  - but it does pay the bills! 

4. Favourite past time?
Hiking and photography... preferably taking photographs while hiking.

5. What's your worst habit?
Procrastination. No, maybe I mean indecisiveness. Nah, definitely procrastination... I'll get back to you on that one!

6. Cooking or baking, which do you prefer?
I like the idea of baking... but I never seem to have much success. So, I'd have to say cooking as the outcome is typically more edible.

7. A summer's day at the beach or a rainy day curled up on the couch?
Summer's day - no contest. Assuming that's a summer's day in Cape Town, or Thailand, or somewhere that actually gets summer days... and not the Britain of the past three 'summers'!

8. Your most prized possession?
My husband. OK, so he's not a 'possession' in the true sense of the word, but my life would be incomplete without him.

9. What is your proudest moment?
I don't really know. Perhaps the day I graduated with my doctorate... seeing my parents' faces in the audience when I walked up onto the stage in my ridiculous gown and hat - miraculously not tripping over my own feet - made it all seem worthwhile.

10. Guilty pleasure?
Cheesy music. Flick through my ipod and you'll discover that I have very poor taste... ABBA, 80s rock, One Direction.. they're all on there and kept me happy as I pounded the pavements in training for my Moon Walk.

11. Ultimate pet peeve?
At the risk of offending any smokers among my readers, I would have to say second hand smoke! Yes the smoking ban, quiet literally like a breathe of fresh air, has meant non-smokers no longer have to tolerate smoke in any indoor places, I still get seriously peeved off when I step outside and have to wade through the mob of nicotine addicts desperately puffing away around pub and restaurant doorways, train stations, public parks,and so on. Just walking down the street in someone's smoke channel can wind me up and wish that I could carry a mini fire extinguisher with me...

To quote Douglas Adams (of 'The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy' fame): 
If we see you smoking we will assume you are on fire and take appropriate action.

.............

And now for the part when I list  the bloggers to whom I pass the Liebster award baton. It's a bit tricky, as most of the blogs I read have 1000s of followers and the rules of the Liebster are that it is passed to bloggers who have around 200 or less followers. So, I don't have 11 blogs to list but I have picked a fabulous four! Please do pop over to their blogs and say hello....

Archie and family

From Chaos Comes Happiness

Peetee's Palace
The Firefly Photo Files

And finally, here are my 11 questions to pass on...

1. What is your earliest memory?

2. If you had to eat just one type of food for a week, what would it be?

3. Which place do you absolutely have to see before you die?

4. What is your favourite film of all time?

5. And favourite book?

6. You are about to be stranded on a desert island for 6 months. What three things would you take with you?

7. If you were hosting a dinner party and could invite any four guests (famous or not), who would you  invite and why?

8. What was your first blog post about?

9.  What inspires you to blog?

10. What one thing will you never, ever do again?

11. What is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for you?

Look forward to your answers!

A huge thanks again to Mel for giving me the award!

Gadding About Glastonbury...

Mention Glastonbury, and most people immediately think you mean the Glastonbury Festival... a massive and typically very muddy annual performing arts extravaganza. But if you're ever in Somerset when the Festival is not rocking, be sure to spend some time exploring the town of Glastonbury itself. It's a weird and wonderfully eclectic mix of unusual shops and quirky cafes....

Lately...

I've been so busy Livin' la Vida Loca... well, doing all kinds of fun and crazy stuff anyway... that I just can't seem to find the time to write about it all on here!

I'm hoping to soon get round to telling you all about...

A long weekend in the beautiful Somerset countryside.... exploring the kooky town of Glastonbury, hiking in the Cheddar Gorge and being part of a mad but fun farm wedding with 'wellies' compulsory attire!

 Ruins of Glastonbury Abbey

Glastonbury

Going Ape! Been there, done that, screamed like a girl and been declared certifiably insane for even contemplating participating in such a ridiculous activity.

And another long weekend hiking in the stunning Lake District... one of the most beautiful regions of the UK...

Photos all my own

She Finds Sea Shells On The Sea Shore...

I spent hours each day on my recent South African holiday, combing the beaches of Plettenberg Bay for pretty shells and other treasures from the ocean. I picked up loads....