March 25 - Cornwall

I loved the time we spent in Cornwall. The whole area was just so interesting. Back in 2014, we made our base at Ludgvan, just a short distance east of Penzance. We stayed in the annex of a cottage owned by a lovely young family. It was the perfect base for multiple day trips.

 One of these trips took us to Mousehole – pronounced Mowzel. Parking was an issue. There simply wasn’t any available. The streets were exceptionally narrow and the houses were built to the edge of either the road or a sliver of sidewalk. It was a fascinating place to visit and a good spot to watch either the incoming or receding tide. Tides came in and out with some speed. At high tide the fishing boats rode high on the water and at low tide these same boats were stranded on a wide expanse of slushy mud.

On my virtual walk from Land’s End last month, I didn’t notice the route taking me through Mousehole. Instead, the route seemed to veer a little inland to the site of the Merry Maidens. We had also been here on a day trip. The Merry Maidens are a near circle of stone rocks – I suppose much like a mini version of the more famous Stonehenge. The legend goes that eighteen young women set out from the neighbouring town for a day of festive dancing. Unfortunately for them, the day in question was the Sabbath, and the girls were all turned to stone as punishment for their sinful behaviour. In 2014, we were the only visitors to the site, and I found it peculiarly eerie.

On another day on our long ago holiday, we drove to St. Ives, about 10 miles north of Land’s End. It was a beautiful sunny day and we spent some pleasant hours down by the harbour and tried our first Cornish pasties. However, be warned. Parking was limited to an area at the top of a steep hill leading down into the town. It was okay going down but coming up was a different story. I remember that this was also the first and only time in Cornwall where we spotted another white cane user.

I am including three pictures with this post. The first is of Lyle standing beside the name board of our Ludgvan cottage. I would highly recommend this accommodation. The cottage was suitable for a couple but you do need a rental vehicle. 

Lyle standing beside cottage

The second is a street view in Mousehole. Because of the proximity of the houses and the narrowness of the thoroughfare, it was hard to take this picture. I remember that Lyle had to stand in the middle of the road while I stood safely at the edge, supposedly watching for traffic. The picture shows Lyle standing in the centre of the street.

 

Lyle at Mousehole

 

The third picture is at the site of the Merry Maidens. It was a rather dismal day and I suppose that this did much to add to the eerie atmosphere.

 

Sue with the Merry Maidens

 

 

March 16 - Virtual Travelling

I have begun another walk. This time I am walking in England. With everything that the coronavirus has taken away from us, I am glad that I have found the joy of virtual walks. In these COVID times when travel in real time is not recommended, I am enjoying my virtual travel experiences.

Since I last wrote about my walk in New Zealand, I have completed the ninety mile distance of Hadrian’s Wall. This wall, stretching across the English/Scottish border, was actually a fortress constructed by the Romans. It was begun in 122 AD and with labour provided by Roman soldiers, was completed in just four years. Only a few sections of the wall are visible today but there are numerous sign posts and museums along the way that give the hiker a glimpse into the rich history of the area. The website that I used to track my walking progress also sent me several descriptive postcards and I was able to follow my location on the route with global maps. I would love to do this walk in real time.

With the ease of the virtual traveller, I have now moved to the south of England, actually to the far southwest corner of Cornwall. Several years ago, Lyle and I were fortunate enough to spend a couple of weeks in this area. I remember that we caught the train from London to Penzance. I was excited to be going to the town with the same name as Gilbert and Sullivan’s operetta, The Pirates of Penzance. Of course, these days the town is simply a peaceful seaside resort on the Cornish coast.

Last month, I started my virtual walk about ten miles west of Penzance at Land’s End. The location is very aptly named. The road goes no further. It is indeed the end of the land. From our time there in 2014, I have a vague memory of a rambling hotel, a restaurant and a few gift shops.  However, Lyle and I both have a very distinct memory of the landscape itself.

Land’s End is remote and rugged. We were there in shoulder season so it felt isolated as well. Rocky cliffs lined the shoreline and the ocean was wild. With my cane, I found it hard going on the uneven pathways but the view was spectacular. The wind whipped about us and the waves surged against the rocks. Out in the channel it was easy to imagine how so many ships had come to grief. Apparently, there are multiple shipwrecks below the surface.

On my virtual walk I missed all this as I merely started at the beginning of the road. I am glad that I am doing this walk virtually because my memory says that this section of the road was fairly narrow and walking on the edges could be hazardous. If you want to check out the website I am using, it is:

www.theconqueror.events

 

 

March 6 - Cane or Wheelchair?

Generally speaking, I am a white cane user, but there are the odd occasions when I choose to sit in a wheelchair. Those times have usually been at airports.  Airports can offer mobility challenges even to those folk who are fully sighted and independently mobile. It is at times of crowds or uncertain distances that I have elected to sit in the chair, partly for my own safety and possibly also for the safety of others.  With my mobility cane there is always the potential to trip myself or be the cause of tripping someone else. Sometimes sitting in the chair is the only way I can get airport assistance.

Using the wheelchair is not always an easy decision but it is often a practical one. I was reflecting on this when I read No Time Like the Future: An Optimist considers Mortality by Michael J. Fox.  As you may or may not know, Fox is challenged with Parkinson’s Disease and has definite mobility issues. For the most part he uses a support cane. He is able to walk, but not well and not far. At one point in the book, he wrote of his experience at a busy airport.

Fox wrote that when he sat in the wheelchair, he felt frustrated, isolated and basically at the mercy of whoever was pushing the chair. He felt more or less like a piece of luggage.  At a particular airport as he approached the scanner, Fox announced that he would rather walk through the scanner and have the chair inspected separately. This caused some confusion to the airport assistant. The view seemed to be that once Fox was in the chair, that is where he should stay.

I have encountered this viewpoint at various airports. A couple of years ago as I approached the transition scanner at Heathrow, I told my pusher (yes, I know that word has a different connotation these days!) that I could walk through the scanner. I was told very firmly that I needed to stay seated and I would be patted down in the chair. I found the pat down very intrusive. At one point I was asked to raise my buttocks so that the wand could be passed between my body and the chair. How much easier it would have been if I had been permitted to stand and walk through the scanner and the chair could have been inspected separately.

Not everyone has the choice as to whether or not they should use a cane or a wheelchair. I am writing in hopes of gaining some understanding for people who live in a world of transitional mobility.  We don’t think twice if we see a person taking glasses off or on to read something. That is simply a case of transitional sight. The person might see distance or close up differently. Why then should we raise our eyebrows when a person transfers from cane to wheelchair to suit a given situation.  Let us all try harder to look at the humanity rather than a person’s aid to his or her mobility.