I wondered when you were due back to old blighty! God, that has flown by! Your photos are ace, I love the one of walking to the ferry, it brought back memories of the crazy mad outlook to life and me nearly falling into 20ft of water with a backpack on climbing over bloody ferries!! ha ha! You both look like seasoned travellers! Enjoy the last bit m'dears love karen xxx
Tina Howard
Hi GirlsJust a short note to say hello, hope all is well and you have been relaxing on the beach in the sunshine. Well you explorers your travelling days are nearly over hope you are enjoying the last few weeks. I am back to work, nothing changed just have to knuckle down and get on with it. Carole went back on Easter Monday, we did manage to get Nan in the wheel chair again and went for a nice walk over the Heath, and she said she enjoyed it when she got back but getting her in wasn’t easy. Spoke to Mary they had a great holiday and all went well, knitting next week after the Easter break. Well kids bye for now all my love looking forward to seeing you Tina xxxxxxxxx
Tina Howard
Hello English Ladies
Had a laugh about your April 1st email, glad to hear all is still going well, sounds like you have found a very relaxing place and gathering energy ready to return to the UK and work again.
Well back from my riding experience, had a great time the horses were fantastic and the riding was amazing one minute riding in the river the next galloping up very steep hillsides and then my dream cantering along the beach. I met some very nice people and also some very strange ones but will tell you all about it when you get home. I took some photo’s but not as many as I would have liked as it was a bit difficult to organise when on horse back. There was only one slight problem I had a fall, wait for it, not from the horse but in a bar, slipped hurt my angle and right hip on Wednesday night (not drunk). I tried to ride on Thursday but it was so painful so I decided to come home a day early as I was very frustrated not being able to joint in. Never mind it is feeling a bit better now so I hope I will be able to ride on Sunday. All is well here, have received your postcards which are great, it is very hard to imagine that the pictures on the front are real life would look a bit strange in St Peters Street! Well will say goodbye for now, as usual take care and make the most of your last few weeks, love you lots Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Mary Wheater
Mrs and Mrs Miggings,
I have to be honest I write this under the influence of alcohlooooooooooo. Woops there goes my bloomers. I am thinking of you lovely little Lucynda and Emma and hope to see your lovely little hands and feet very some when you use them to visit me in St Albans. It will be a pleasure to make you a nice cup of tea and ask you loads of questions about where the hell you have been you dirty little stop outs. You use this place like a hotel and it is not accetable quite frankly.
Love you
Mary x
Karen Skidmore
Hi Lady Howard, traveller extraordinaire, quite the Francis Drake :o) !! I think you are very brave m'lady-hoorah! I too was brave and went it alone for weeks and weeks and felt very grown up and adventurous because of it and I found I met heaps more people and was only alone if I wanted to be alone and I made a good mate in the Cook Islands who was also being independent woman! Which Island?? Ko PhiPhi side or Ko Samui side? I'm very jealous, I can't wait to hear all your adventures, you're missing nowt here!! Love you! Love Kaza xxxxxxxxxxxx
Maryrose
Hello, Lucynda! I'm writing via this as I don't appear to have your email address. It's very brave and highly admirable of you to be travelling alone. It is conformation that you are a changed woman! How has it been so far? I hope you're well and happy. Will you send me your email address so I can write to you away from the public eye! lots and lots of love, Maryrose xxxxxxxxxx
Tina Howard
Hi Girls
Hope you are both well, I can see that you are the photo?s are fantastic I find it hard to believe that you are actually there and that the people I see are really you two. It all looks so amazing, the people, the places, you have been having a fantastic journey and what about those elephants! The look very well cared for but very large. The time you have been away has gone very quickly are you thinking of extending your trip to maybe India or will you be ready to come back to good old England in another few weeks? Well I will be off to Spain to my Andulsian horses next week, have bought another pair of jodhpurs in case there should be any splitting of the pants. Jane has sold me her old digital camera so I hope I get some good shots but I don?t think they will be up to your standard. The girls are off to the West Indies on Saturday, can?t wait to hear the stories when they get back. We are all fine, a bit of news we have got Nan a wheelchair, she seems to have accepted it but we have only been out once as the weather turned cold this week and we have had some snow. I think she will be Ok and as Carole is coming while I am away maybe they will go down the town or maybe to the lake, we will see. Carole has been having problems with her internet but she wanted me to tell you that if anybody asked you to bring anything back you must say know because a friend of Damians did and the package contained drugs and he is in prison. You know how dramatic your Aunty is. Well hope to hear or get a message soon so bye for now and all my love to you both, keep safe love Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Tina Howar
Saturday am
Hi Girls
Hope you are still relaxing in the sunshine, all we seem to have at the moment is rain, rain and more rain. I expect you will have moved on by the time you read this blog, you seem to be doing some fantastic things, it all sounds wonderful and the photo’s were great.
I have been off all week doing some cleaning up and jobs around the house all very boring. Went riding on Tuesday with another girl that was great and also have been skating, off there again today. Another adjustment to my life I am now in the world of contact lens, went to collect them on Monday and am wearing them a little each day, a bit of a problem getting them in and out but just need more practice I guess. I am not sure if I will wear them all the time but they will be great for skating and riding, at present I do not wear my glasses in case I fall and smash them in my face; that would not be a pretty sight! Now for the big one I have booked a holiday, I am going to stud farm just outside Malaga a place called Mijas. It is run by an English women, she breeds horses and also does riding holidays, with tuition and hacks including riding on the beach. It’s not a singles holiday but after speaking to her on the phone I feel I will be OK. I am staying in a hotel in Mijas and they will come and pick me up each day and have breakfast with them, also they arrange a couple of evening trips out, a bit scary but I am really looking forward to it. Aunty Carole is coming to stay with Nan and Simon is having a week off to look after Tyson, I think I have covered all bases, just have to tell Nan today.
Well had better go and get ready now, doing Nan’s hair before going skating. All my love to you both, keep safe. Love Tina xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Philippa Rees
Great vegetable sculptures! I'm still jealous.........xx
Tina Howard
Saturday 8am
Hi Girls
Hope all is well with you and are enjoying Hue, the warm weather and more tranquil way of life sounds great. The time seems to be going quickly it doesn’t seem possible that it is March next week and then another 14 days and you will be with the Elephants. How are you feeling about that?
Things much the same here everyone is fine. I am now on holiday for a week as I have to use all my outstanding days by 31st March. I decided to stay at home, do some jobs, go skating and riding and try to take things easy for a change. On Monday I am going to see about contact lenses as I find it a bit difficult with the skating, I don’t wear my specs in case I fall over and then I cannot see to get into the locker to get my shoes without my glasses. They are going to give me a free trial to see how I get on, not sure I will be able to see to get them in and out!
Knitters are fine had a lovely day at Tate Modern, Jane has had some decorating done, it all looks lovely. They will soon be off to the Caribbean for their trip; I expect there will be some great tales from this adventure.
I have been looking at riding holidays, just for a week, in the Spain as I still have another week to use up. It feels a bit scary but I feel I have to make the effort and do something for myself, I am sure I would really enjoy it once I got there. Look what you have done my brave girl! Carole said she would come to be with Nanny and Simon might be able to get some days off we will see. You said about coming to Thailand, I am not sure how to put this into words, but I feel this is your trip and I should keep out of it, I hope you understand what I mean.
Well girls bye for now, must get on, off to my new upgraded class at skating. As always keep safe and all the love in the world.
Tina XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Guy
Good morning Vietnam!
Glad you are having an experience of a lifetime rather than the drudge of day to day uk life.
keep up the fun
guy
Philippa Rees
I'm very impressed with all this blogging business, i wouldn't have had a clue how to set that up! Sounds like you're having a really interesting time-I'm so jealous of both of you working with Doris, and as I have probably said before...fantastic photos, really liked the cartoon caterpillar, not so keen on the spider, eeeek! My Thai holiday feels like a lifetime ago now, so it's great to get your pics to remind me that there's another world out there......xxxx