Green Mountain

Another day and another special place to show you. Here we are again at the top of English Bay, looking inland, through the forest of aerials towards Green Mountain. We went right to the top when we passed through Ascension Island last year.

 

Look who we met on the way up! 

A very secretive land crab.

This time we decided to take Elliot's pass, which encircles the top and therefore has the great advantage of being flat!

I wasn't paying proper attention so I am not sure who Elliot was, but he has his own obelisk.

The path is very fun for Smalls because along the way there are several tunnels. One is even long and bendy enough that you get proper use out of the head torch you brought specially.

Mostly it is just a lovely walk with beautiful views and some amazing 'wild' flowers...

It has some areas where the endemic plants are being conserved and actively planted.

And importantly there is a box with a stamp.

Tomorrow we'll go back to the sea for anther special place...

xx

The end of the Earth

Hello, nice to see you. Have you got a while to come and see? There is a little place that I know that I thought you might like. It is a perfect little place where not too many people go. It is 1000 miles from anywhere...

 

Take the road out of George Town and across the wasteland of rubble and cinder towards Twoboats Village.

Go past the weird sculpture with paint poured all over it.

And turn left at Oneboat (leaving a sporting trophy is apparently optional),

through the forest of masts and antennae,

past bunches of rocks left where the volcano put them, there hasn't been enough time for the weather to soften them,

and turn right to English Bay.

There are no camels but watch out for wild donkeys and sheep instead.

This is where the most wonderful World Service is broadcast to West Africa.

And here we are.

Golden sand to be rearranged.

Blue see to frolic in.

Turn round and the BBC antennae are staggeringly tall.

There are pools to jump into

and to paddle in.

Waves softly lapping the shore,

slightly freaky black fish to swim with,

and treasure to be found.

A little slice of paradise right at the edge of the world.

Tomorrow, Green Mountain...

xx

Home again, home again, jiggety jig

We left St Helena on Wednesday morning and arrived in Northumberland on Wednesday afternoon... a week later. We had a lazy couple of days on the RMS St Helena which I failed to take any pictures of, then four days on Ascension Island before an overnight flight to RAF Brize Norton and six hours on a train. Oh and a bus, two taxis and a minibus.

 

George Town, capital of Ascension Island is a tiny community with a hotel, a handful of houses, a food shop and a great playground.

The charity shop is open for a couple of hours twice a week but furnished J with a hat which we forgot to pack, the boys with some sand toys and Tall Girl with a dolly called Rina (the Ballerina).

The little museum has an WWII jeep which you are allowed to sit in and plastic turtles to find and exchange for free post cards.

And Oxford Station has an M&S Simply Food with soft fruits, something we have not set eyes or taste buds on for ten months! Poor little Big Trouble had to ask me what these were and was too suspicious to try them.

He remembered these though and scoffed the lot!

More Ascension adventures to tell you about another day, but in the mean time we are shopping, eating fruit and Indian takeaway and overdosing on BBC2 and Channel 4.

Gardeners World, oh how I have missed you.

It's good to be home.

xx

Three Smalls at school

First day as a Mummy of three Smalls at school and preschool!

xx

August Slow Living

Once again I am hooking up with these good folks for a little reflection on the past month.

 

In sunny St Helena, it is known as Scruffy August. Think April showers with added fog, mix in a dollop of mist and quite a lot of drizzle and you've got it.

 

Having said that, one day last week was so lovely that we hung out at the pool for the afternoon, all be it with wetsuits on to combat the freezing water.

 

Not too scruffy!

Nourish

After spending July mostly eating cake, I have been trying to be a little bit healthier through August. Not totally succeeding but definitely an improvement. I have been making lots of soup to pack in the veg and have baked bread rather than cake.

Repurposed tyres are everywhere here since the alternative is landfill...

Prepare

No foodie prep other than trying to use up what we have in the freezer because in two days we leave for the UK. The last week or so has been a flurry of washing and packing and we are almost ready for the off. First though we have been preparing Big Trouble because tomorrow is his first day at preschool. He will be going every morning once we get back and is quite excited. He wants an orange packed lunch box for his snack so I'll be on the hunt once we are home...

Counting found pennies

Grow

We ate a handful of home-grown leeks this month and have a few more which I am saving for tomorrow. The flowers are doing ok too, I just hope they survive our absence because I have not found anyone to water them. Long may the drizzle continue...

Saving ladybirds

Reduce

We have started composting our veg waste again! The St Helena National Trust has started a scheme, taking it away to a central composting place. If they make more than they need for their propagation projects they plan to sell it back to the public.

78 little squares sewn around the edge.

Create

I have got back on the bandwagon with my crocheted blanket. It now measures 40 inches square (31% of the total). It is the only project I am taking with me so hopefully I can crack on with it... I also made my Stitches and Seeds banner and rejigged the blog template this month.

I have to say I am loving it!

Discover

 

I finished An Ode Less Travelled by Stephen Fry, which in the end I enjoyed very much. I found the first couple of chapters hard going and had got stuck there at least twice before, but this time I persisted and I am glad I did. The rest was really interesting and gave me a new appreciation for poetry. I am not sure I am ever going to become a great reader of poetry, but when I heard some read aloud the other day I got a lot more out of it than I would have done before.

 

We have met a new family here who are Swedish. My Swedish amounts to a few disconnected words, mostly to do with food and drink, but I have had fun rediscovering them in the depths of my memory in an attempt to communicate with Smalls who speak no English at all.

 

Enhance, Green

School hols have been upon us, and with the scruffy weather just keeping on top of life has been enough. No energy left for enhancing. I've got nothing on green either.

Enjoy

Lots of fun walks and solidarity-with-other-Mums-in-the-face-of-challenging-Smalls have meant August has been more enjoyable than it might have been. We have made new friends and soon will be reconnecting with old ones.

Bring on September!

xx