Canal Cruising

                                                         Right Downtown where the Action Is!     HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! AYNHO   The night before we arrived in Banbury David was up at his usual time in the wee hours of the morning and he was feeling the rocks and bumps of very strong winds. I just snoozed right through it. We took off at our usual time in the morning having only 4 locks to get through. We were cruising right into the sun which at times blinded us. We didn’t know what was ahead of us. The first time we were in Banbury we moored just below a large grocery store so that we could stock up on supplies at the beginning of our trip. This time we cruised right downtown and moored in the center of it. We were tied up just in front of a huge shopping mall that had thoroughfares to all parts of town.   We were sur...

  CROPREDY December 28 th   I seem to have a few recurring themes in my blog…food, weather and locks. Well, after more than 20 posts, not much has changed, I’m afraid. We were moored in Napton on the Hill for Christmas Day and decided to take a walk into town. We chose to start on the narrow muddy tow path that was cut very close to the water’s edge. I walked gingerly but somehow tweaked my left leg and aggravated a pulled muscle I had nursed since Munich.   We walked 3 miles to get back to the boat and I was really in misery.                                                   Sweet house in Napton on the Hill                                                    A gorgeous view along our walk in the village The nex...

      CHRISTMAS DAY NAPTON ON THE HILL     Our Christmas gift to each other is to stay put for the day to recharge after 3 very strenuous “lock loaded” boating days. I had requested David’s scrumptious cinnamon rolls for breakfast this Christmas morning and he sweetly delivered. Yum! Our day will end with calls to the kids to find out what surprises Santa may have delivered this year.                                                      I am sure this was Santa's canal boat! On the 23 rd after surviving the 21 locks the previous day, I had mentally prepared for 8 more locks on our journey on the 24 th .  However,  we somehow overlooked 4 additional locks stretched over a mile of the canal when we had mapped out our day. We left at 8:00 am, and it rained all through the first 6 locks. We pulled over to empty o...

                                                                 Happy Birthday, David       WARWICK December 22, 2022   David and I managed a belated birthday dinner at a restaurant called “The Boat” in Turner’s Green. We took a chance and ordered a martini. The last time David ordered one it came in a tumbler without olives! What’s a martini without olives? We were pleasantly surprised when they served up our martinis in a proper martini glass with two olives. Reason alone to celebrate. David’s fillet of sole and saffron risotto was the perfect selection for the birthday boy.                                                             The Boat Re...