Barbs's Big Bike RIde

This year I have decided to stay and enjoy an English Spring. It has been a long time coming but at last it is here and I am off to explore my own back yard. Well actually travelling up the UK mainland as far north as possible before 21st June and see how close I can get to the Midnight Sun.


After my travels along the Camino de Santiago across northern Spain last September on my trusty old iron donkey, I have bought a lighter bike in the hope that I can get up a few more hills and by going from Lands End to John o Groats (LEJOG) I can avoid the killing headwinds of the Spanish meseta.


So here she is, we had a jolly naming ceremony on Saturday and hopefully the good friends, food and weather I enjoyed will carry me through to the farthest northern climes. Thank you all for a great send off, admirably topped off with one too many pints The Village Bike listening to Mojo Triangle.


And she is called Eleanor, isn't she beautiful, I hope I still have such tender feelings after 6 hours in the saddle, but probably only in the nether regions I fear.


The map link on the right will show a rough itinerary and route and I will try try to update with my actual route, if I can work out how and where I am as I go along, you know there will be little correlation but I will get there or somewhere in the end!


If you want an email update, submit your address in the box also on right and hopefully it will find its way through the ether to you.

Thursday, 10 February 2011

settling into school

I have had four working days now, and I know why I had to stop helping at Meldreth PS, my back is killing me. I am now doing mornings only and am setting up classes in the tailoring workshop.  I have managed to get all the machines going, there is one electric, Jones machine, relatively easy to start; the next is a hand singer machine of relatively  modern design but still took me two days to work out how to thread it as it had been left in reverse, and the last was also a singer of the old shuttle spool, which I do vaguely remember using probably with my grandmother, which I eventually got going too.  There is also a treddle machine.  (OK non sewing readers can wake up now) Save to know this was a major achievement.  I plan to start the classes to teach the women to sew,  making school bags for the children who are currently using any flimsy plastic bag to carry their lunch and books in, multi practical me thinks..
I went to the weekly market in Ntungamo to get fabric, needles and thread to teach the women to sew.  It is a weekly market of everything, I didn't take my camera as we were told it was full of theives, I think referring to the ned to haggle rather than mugging, so I will next time, hopefully let you see.  This local town appears to have most of what we might need and it is fun poking around all the various stalls to find things.
I will write later about teaching methods but the children are incredibly well behaved considering they do a 7.45am-4pm day, they have little in resources and every thing has to be laboriously copied from the board in english.
I wanted to upload some photos of my lunchtime view and walk to school through the plantation as well as my room and the rest of the centre, unfortunately it keeps failing to upload possibly because the files are too big, I try to compress them but still not having much success, all ideas of a solution welcome.
thanks again for all your comments, I have to go now to play volley ball, yes this is a hand eye ball coordination sport, I even played badminton yesterday!

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1 comment:

  1. Unknown11 February 2011 at 01:57

    Hi Barbara - great to hear all your news! So enjoy logging in and reading your blog. It sounds like you have jumped in with both feet and getting down to business, as we know you would! It's a shame that you can't download any photos, and as you know I am no whizz at computers so can't help you there! Steve asked me to pass on a message - when you finished playing volley ball and badminton, which country were you in!! This is in memory of playing tennis in the Lakes many moons ago!!
    I went to to the hospital yesterday, and they are just going to keep any eye on me and if I do need an op it will be in late May. I'm pleased that I am still able to go to the States in April to help Susan at the masters golf tournament in Atlanta.
    Take care, and look forward to hearing from you again soon.
    Love Steve, Liz, Ben and Meg xxx

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