More Bookmarks

There are those bookmarks, which you have no memory of making and are a bit of a puzzle.  A hotel in Rome is one of them.  I haven't been to Rome lately, nor have I contemplated it.  Naomi, my daughter did go a few years ago and perhaps this is her bookmark:

The Beehive

I must admit that I like the look and feel of this hotel and having looked at the site I have been wondering if I could manage a trip to Rome in the near future.  Perhaps during my October holiday next year.  The last time I was there was in the early spring of 1990.  My goodness, that was 21 years ago!  Cliff, Naomi, Emma and I were on our trip through Europe to Cyprus before going back to Canada and moving to British Columbia!  We never did move to BC.  Cyprus and the Middle East were too alluring!  We spent 8 years in the region and then moved to the UK.

I loved Rome.  We found a wonderful bed and breakfast off the Spanish Steps and stayed for nearly a week.  The B & B was run by two sisters who had lived in Manchester at some point in their lives and spoke English with a strong Mancurian accent.

Emma became fascinated with men in uniforms on this trip, especially sailors.  She was 6!  They wore lovely white, crisp uniforms.  I think that and their hats may have been what attracted her.

Yes, I have decided!  I will go to Rome in October!

Suki Teapot

Two years ago this March, Emma and I went on a librarian's course in Oxford and stayed two nights in one of the colleges.  I hadn't been there since the 1960s and it was such a surprise.  I had forgotten what a wonderful city Oxford is.  That same year, we went back just to wander around.  I rediscovered Blackwells bookstore and came across a wonderful teashop on the high street.  I don't remember the name but I did fall in love with their teapots and took their name:  Suki.  The one shown in the link is ceramic with a built in infuser.  However, it only holds enough for one person.  Look at the price!  £22.42.  Ah well, I can dream!  And is the tea really that much better? (Oh dear, I just went back to look at the teapots and discovered that the one I originally saw was not the one in the link above.  I think that the only difference is the colour.)

I have made 3 or 4 trips back to Oxford, usually on book buying trips for my library.  In fact, I will be going again in two weeks time to buy non-fiction.

Melanie Frobisher

Each year there is a village fête in Englefield Green.  A few years ago, I met Melanie Frobisher, a photographer with a difference.  She takes photographs and does something with them so that they look like watercolour paintings.  I bought two, one for my friend Asa who was leaving Egham for China.  It was a wonderful scene of Windsor Great Park, where Asa had lived for 4 years.  The second was a scene of beach huts, which gives you a nostalgic feeling for summers of your youth.  I loved them both.  Since then, I have bought 3 more on behalf of the school for teachers who were retiring. 

(More next time!)