Somerset in the Rain!

Katharine at "Rivas" restaurant where she treated me to a very nice lunch!

Jen and Min at 8 Belmont Rd in my old workroom, now a living room....very nicely decorated too!

Exeter 24th July, Richard with his "not quite so cheesy" grin!

Posing after the ceremony, now officially R Hall (MEng)

Lunch at Wetherspoons.....I had a Guinness, Jenny and Richard had fruit juice!!!

Here I am in Othery, Somerset at Mary (sister) and John (brother-in-law)'s home having been driven here yesterday by Richard (son) after his graduation at Exeter Uni on Friday. Richard is now an MEng and we are all very proud of him and his achievement after four years of hard slog......well sometimes anyway......no, seriously, it was a lot of hard work I'm sure! He just made it look easy!! He has also recently passed his driving test at first attempt so it was a double celebration.

He is starting a temporary job in his chosen career in a couple of days and is looking for more permanent work soon, hoping that engineering in some areas hasn't yet been hit too hard by the recession... He and his girlfriend, Jenny, are staying in the Exeter area for another year but expect to move after that and to travel perhaps. Jenny has a maths degree from Bristol so they are quite a pair!!

I have been in the UK and Guernsey for a couple of weeks now, seeing family and friends, trying (and succeeding!) to bore them all with my Caribbean photos and tales of sunshine. It's been so good though to see everyone again and to spend time in the National Trust shop selling sweets etc. I made quite a few cello bags for the sweets...I haven't lost the knack yet(!) and even managed to get some knitting done in between all the very necessary chatting!

I have spent rather a lot of time on this, my wonderful little laptop, sourcing essential things for the boat such as ear candles.....don't laugh.....just wait 'til you try them! Everyone seems to have a broadband set up now so the internet is free and FAST and I have been able to win things on ebay.....it's been quite hard not to get carried away after a seven month break from my "addiction" to the site....but I must try to stick to lightweight things. I'm very unwilling to pay excess baggage again... so I'd better stop............ NOW!

The weather has unfortunately been mostly fairly awful since I've been back but then it's quite a nice change from the heat and humidity in Trini except that I hope I don't become too deacclimatised... if that's a real word.... before we go back on August 13th?

Richard is driving up here again tomorrow from Exeter to take me across to Holbeach, Lincs to see my father for a few days then I am training down to Chichester to see friends there before ferrying back to Guernsey. In Holbeach, I hope I'll be able to persuade my father to go online so that he can stay up to date with my travels via this blog. You simply can't say it all on a postcard these days!

There will be farewell parties with friends and family back in Guernsey as I have no firm idea when I might come back next time. As we sail west later on this year, the distance and difficulty to fly back increases and the fares rise well beyond my reach until we are in Australia.

I'm really looking forward to the trip island hopping westwards across the Pacific...it's supposed to be so much nicer than the Atlantic! Not too sure about the long distance from Trini to Panama though with the stories of pirates and big seas and not too many safe havens en route anymore...but at least we won't be alone!