June | 2021 | My Retirement Journey

With the relaxing of the coronavirus lock down we have been emboldened to travel further afield to see friends and relatives. At the end of last month we went to Nottingham and Edinburgh and last week we visited friends in Eye, Suffolk. It had been over a year since we had seen these old friends and over two years since our last visit to Suffolk. There was much to catch up on.

*Unexpectedly Spectacular View At Diss, Just North Of Eye*

Once again, we had great Suffolk weather. That showed off to best effect the improvements to our friends’ house and outbuildings, which had continued up to the lock down last year, and the private allotments that they have recently purchased and taken fuller control of.

*The Entrance To, And The Developing Harvest Of, Our Friend’s Allotments*

These allotments are tremendous; they are colourful, well-tended and, judging from the health of the vegetables on show, fertile and not by savaged by deer or badgers. I am particularly jealous of this last point having seen all my Jerusalem artichokes on my own tiny allotment plot excavated and eaten by relentless badgers in recent weeks.

Since our last visit to the Eye allotments, the wife in the couple has extended her animal husbandry alongside the vegetables, flower beds and an orchard cum meadow. There are now pigs in addition to the squad of chickens and a grumpy, blind duck.

There has already been a cycle of acquiring pigs, feeding them up and sending them to slaughter that the current pair Oxford Sandy and Blacks/Gloucester Old Spot crosses are blissfully unaware of. Given how friendly and enthusiastic for life that they are, I’m not sure I could bear the emotion of farming pigs in this way but I have to say that the pork we had at dinner on the first night of our stay was delicious!

Eye itself is a pretty town in which the wife in the couple seems to know everyone. The town is a good size with a market and a nice range of independent shops. It is surrounded by a mix of chicken factories and old airfields that are starting to be homes for small businesses. One such is Bruha Brewing which we were able to visit (following my first and rather precarious cycle ride for several years) to sample their very satisfying craft beer.

The town is also surrounded by arable farms criss-crossed by lanes and footpaths and we took ample opportunity afforded by the sunny weather to get our steps up to normal levels after the long drive to Suffolk. There was time, too, to visit Wyken Hall Gardens and have a lovely lunch (again) at its restaurant, The Leaping Hare. We have a lot of shared history with our Suffolk friends and it was great to catch up in such relaxed and attractive surroundings.

Then, this week, we had a visit from my best man (BM) who is another long standing friend from university. Again, the formula of a pub visit, walking and a nice meal was a good, solid backdrop for a great mutual sharing of recent events and life developments. BM’s life rarely seems dull and a recent hip replacement and impending retirement added to the normal interest. If he doesn’t move on to a new job after all, perhaps we will be able to catch up more often.

*Some Big Fields In Gloucestershire Too!*

*And We Have Sandy And Black Pigs In Gloucestershire Too!*

Long-Suffering Wife (LSW) and I are starting to enjoy and plan more trips and visits as Covid lockdowns are eased to allow them. Last month, for the first time for me in ages, we visited LSW’s aunt, cousin and his wife for dinner. It was an evening enlivened by their dog amusingly pinching a third of the quiche (the rest that he left for us was lush!) and a spectacular view of a sunset over the Severn valley from their house.

Now we are starting to schedule trips to Ireland, London, Scotland, Bath plus dates for local get-togethers with local village friends and neighbours. Normality in retirement is returning.

There is an additional geographic centre of gravity in my life: Edinburgh.

Eldest Son (ES) and his partner moved to Edinburgh from our flat in London in the New Year. They have settled there and are due to have a baby there in November. Last weekend, following relaxation of coronavirus restrictions over the last few weeks in both England and Scotland, we got to visit them and to see the city.

Their flat is in the heart of New Town. This central area is the epitome of the town planning and developments that have given Edinburgh the moniker of ‘Athens of the North’. Like a few other residential areas of Edinburgh, it is grandly Georgian with broad, airy streets. It has well preserved, tall terraced buildings with colonnades and porticos redolent of Greek architecture, secluded communal gardens and, seemingly, a vista of a monument or an imposing public building at the end of every street.

*Dundas Street, Edinburgh. ES’s New Home*

In ES’s partner we had a host who has lived in or near Edinburgh almost all her life so we had an excellent guide to the subtle differences between the different parts of the City. The famous Princes Street has some great views of the castle and the Royal Mile is distinctive, but we preferred the adjacent, less crowded areas that were dominated by bustling, small independent cafes and shops rather than tired chains with their overblown price discount hoardings.

ES’s flat is on the third floor of their building and the stairs are going to be challenging during his partner’s late pregnancy and, then, when the baby arrives. So, as we walked around the city, we were considering the possible location of their next flat. However, Long-Suffering Wife (LSW) and I also found ourselves peeking at estate agents windows and thinking about our possible future move – for at least part of each year – to Edinburgh.

*Looking Over The Water of Leith, Edinburgh*

There are many steps to negotiate before any such move – not least some firm decisions from Middle and Youngest Son on where they are going to settle since we want to be close and accessible to them all.

We also need to come to terms with the colder and greyer weather in this ‘Athens of the North’. We were fortunate that the weather was dry and sunny but we also experienced a misty haar that came in from the North Sea every morning to fill and darken the imposing streets. That gave us a helpful taste of the climatic difference between Gloucestershire and East Scotland. We are lucky to have options like Edinburgh as a place to live to think about but the weather has to be a consideration.

*Calton Hill, Edinburgh In A Morning Haar*

We met ES’s partner’s parents while we were in Edinburgh and it was lovely to meet them at last. They gave us a sample of the warm local hospitality and excellent restaurant quality. Then on our final night in Edinburgh we went with ES and his partner to Timberyard which was one of the best restaurants we have ever been to.

*Timberyard, Edinburgh (Pic Courtesy Square Meal)*

It was a memorable and lovely city visit – all the better for the delayed gratification caused by coronavirus.

On the way up to Edinburgh we took a detour to visit my Mum and to have lunch with my Dad in Nottingham. Mum’s care home has, of course, been considerate but restrictive on visits until recently out of respect for the pandemic. Although my Dad has been visiting Mum increasingly frequently, this was the first time I had seen her for a year. Mum is frailer now following a bout of coronavirus but it was great and fulfilling to see them both.

After Nottingham, we stayed overnight in York in a very comfortable Scandinavian-influenced boutique hotel with a Viking name (Jorvik House) that LSW had sought out. We had the time and the sunny weather to take in the main central sites and to have a relaxing drink or two overlooking the river.

*York Minster And Other Buildings Of York*

We also indulged in a stop off on our way back home from Edinburgh. The Tebay Services Hotel was very functionally comfortable and convenient. Happily, we had time to slip off the beaten path home down the M6 with a visit to Orton Fells near Appleby and the town itself. While walking by the river there, by very lucky chance, we followed the sound of a distant PA system and stumbled upon a very impressive harness horse race event. We got to it just in time to see the big race and came away from the town exhilarated by a new, vibrant, energy-filled experience.

*Unexpected Harness Racing At Appleby-in-Westmorland*

LSW and I have been lucky to have escaped the worst disruptions that this blasted pandemic has thrown at us all. Nonetheless, travel to see friends and family has been curtailed and, now those restrictions are relaxing, we are planning more trips like that to Nottingham, York, Appleby and Edinburgh last weekend.

This week will be spent catching up with local village matters (including preparing for and manning of our local Climate Action Network stall tomorrow), personal administration and essential gardening. Then we are off again – this time to see friends in Suffolk and a very different ambience to the ‘Athens of the North’.

My Retirement Journey

I've Retired! What Next?

Month: June 2021

Old Friends

Edinburgh: Athens of the North