Category: Travel

I am staying in a lovely house owned by a cordial retired lesbian couple who are off with their dog on holiday in Southern Europe in their small RV.   Autumn is here and I don´t really have the clothes for it, but they have lent me sweaters to keep warm.  The cats are still hiding under the bed, but they will come out eventually to eat.

The challenge here will be loneliness. I can feel it already.  A realtor would say it is a nice place to raise kids or retire. Not much going on. The house is over an hour away from London, about $13 a trip, so going in to hang out is unrealistic.

There are some churches, a couple of restaurants, a couple of grocery stores and a pub or two.  Meetup groups in the area include Bored Moms, a retiree group called the Naughties, a DIY group, Weight Watchers, a group called Love Your Life Again and a dog walking group. There is a fabulous gym – the best I have ever seen – but joining would cost me $195 for a month, and a one-day pass is $20.

I need to think about how to make this environment work for me.   Each place is special, but unlocking what makes it special can be challenging. Isolation is a killer for long-term travelers.  Last night I went to bed at 7 pm.

 

 

On my way to London loaded down like a mule, lugging around camera equipment in a backpack that makes me look like Quasimodo, the Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Especially experiences with an ongoing utility such as languages, dance, cuisine, art and volunter service.  Not selfies in front of monuments, drugged tigers in Thailand, or other Disneyland photo ops. Behind the camera, not in front of it.