Oh my goodness, yesterday was NOT good. I thought I had sleeping sickness. I just could NOT stay awake. I slept for an hour in the morning (having woken up for good at 5 a.m.), another after lunch, then at 5 I fell asleep sitting upright, managed to have curry for a meal, and then fell asleep on the sofa again and didn't wake up until 8.50 p.m. I took myself off to bed then. I slept until 2 ish, came downstairs for a cuppa and to read, then after a couple of hours, went back to bed and slept on until just before 6 a.m. My body was clearly wiped out. I feel just a tad more with it today.
Penguin display at the Antarctic Centre, where Rosie took me on the Monday before I flew back. It was a guided tour, and very good. I passed on going into the cold room, where they gave you an arctic jacket and turned the temperatures right down for 5 mins or so. Rosie had 3/4 length trousers on so her calves and ankles felt that bitter cold!
A couple of the real penguins. These are all rescues - one has a damaged tongue so could never hunt as they use their tongues to get the fish turned around and down their throats; and another had lost a leg.
Two of the huskies on display. They were really relaxed! We saw two different varieties of huskies outside. One, the Malamute, was very heavy boned and as the guide explained, pretty thick in the head!!
We went round the Haaglund course - these are the tracked vehicles used in the Antarctic which cope really well with snow hills, slopes, slabs of broken ice, crevices etc. I was elected co-Pilot, which meant I had to tell the driver when the road was clear so he could do the circuit and I sat in the front.
The crevice we went over.
I took a video, but am being told it is too big so will have to wait until Tam is here at the weekend, and she can talk me through it.
I found this lovely little puffin in a charity shop this week and of course it came home with me. When Rosie was over here last (in 2004), we all went to Skomer Island, off the beautiful Pembrokeshire coast. There the Puffins are so unbothered by people, they would walk around your feet. When I saw this, I was instantly taken back to our visit.
This morning I was determined to try and avoid a morning nap, so went off to Brecon, over the Epynts (as the other road in town is closed for roadworks at the moment.) I got cat food and Christmas place mats from B&M Bargains, and then went to Morrisons for a couple of things, including a Steak and Kidney pie for my tea tonight. I had a wander round the town and got stamps for the first lot of Christmas cards, and another two packs of C/Cards from the Red Cross charity shop (they were on a half price special). Another stop at the Tenovus charity shop, where I found a good quality navy cotton mix jumper by the Crew Clothing Company. £7.99. Price new is £49.
This afternoon I have been relaxing watching Ruth Mott's Country Christmas (1995) and JUST up my street. Then The British Christmas Desserts No-One Makes Any More. Well, I have never even heard of anyone eating Sticky Toffee Pudding prior to the year 2000 although apparently it was a "thing" from the 1970s onwards. NOT in 1950s Britain at Christmas though. No more was something called Tunis Cake. As for Blancmange (he pronounced the C, for heaven's sake!), that was a Sunday teatime thing, rather than a Christmas treat and Queen of Puddings was something we had at School. Ah well, the screen didn't mind me shouting at it.
I am now hoping to stay awake till gone 9 p.m. before taking myself off to bed. Let's hope I am over the worst of the jetlag now.
I guess that all the sleeping was your body clock trying to reset for Welsh time!
ReplyDeleteI've got that Ruth Mott programme for a blog post later this week - I'm glad you didn't add a link.
They were talking about Tunis Cake on Radio 2 last week. My Mum used to get us one very year for Christmas - Col had the cake and I had the chocolate!
Back on Welsh time now, although it does NOT feel like a Tuesday!! Enjoy Ruth Mott - well, that is a given. Like your family solution to eating the Tunis cake :)
DeleteYour body is definitely playing catch-up!
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't playing very nicely either!
DeleteTunis cake was the highlight of my 1970’s childhood Christmas ! I seen nasty ones on supermarket shelves full of horrid ingredients so when I heard about them I wasn’t tempted but then last year heard of the Cornish Food Box people and they have them made by a little bakery. They are exactly as I remember and I cried a bit when I tasted it as it took me right back to being little. They are worth every penny and I’d far rather give a small business my money than a supermarket. Blancmange used to make me heave, the only other thing we had occasionally was Angel Delight but it needed lots of milk which was never bought in the quantities it is now. I watched the Ruth Mott a week or so back and loved it, pure comfort viewing, and what a mine of information that lady was. Hope your sleep settles soon x Danette
ReplyDeleteI have never even seen one in a shop! We just had the traditional Christmas cake and Christmas pud and mince pies. Well done to you for sourcing yours ethically. I preferred jelly to blancmange, and only discovered I liked trifle in my 60s!! Agree with you over Ruth Mott - so comforting. Took me back to Creative Living days . . . and the Green Valley, and Victorian/Edwardian Farm programmes.
DeleteI think you just might be getting your internal clock back in order. I know when we came back to Canada (the middle of the country) it took me a few days to acclimatize to the time changes.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
You're not kidding. It wasn't too happy to play ball either. No more long haul flights for me. Europe is as far as I am likely to go in the future, in search of museums, archeology, history, historic buildings, birds, botany and butterflies.
DeleteTravel certainly plays havoc with one's internal clock and it takes a good bit of resetting! I really hate when I can't stay awake in the daytime for whatever reason--nodding off as I sit at my desk and feeling that I might fall out of my chair. Hopefully as this week progresses you'll feel more your normal self.
ReplyDeleteMy head was so groggy too. A horrid few days, especially Sunday. Slept much better last night and feel almost normal today. About to bake a cake to take down to my new neighbour.
ReplyDeleteI have not been away like you but still fall asleep sitting in my chair, must be my age
ReplyDeleteIt is a rare thing for me to fall asleep sitting up. I am so out of kilter and have no energy even to write out Christmas cards!
ReplyDeleteI've worked nights so know it can be traumatic to reverse your body clock, hope you're feeling better.
ReplyDelete