8th May 2022

 

Dear All,

Last Sunday afternoon we travelled to darkest Luton to visit Sveta from Moldova who was visiting her eldest daughter Aliona. When we first visited Moldova she had hardly left Burlacu and slaved away raising her family of 7 and tending tunnels and fields of potatoes and vines. However, at some stage she and her husband decided they needed to buy a house in Cahul, the nearest town for the children to live in while completing their further education. Sergei went to Russia to drive a lorry a few times and Sveta went to the US as a nanny seven times. She is extremely energetic and now has married daughters in England, France, USA and Moldova. Son-in-Law Victor is a carpenter and works all over the country. Their flat is to say the least basic!

 

Phil, Kate, Sveta, Victor, Eliasec & Aliona

 

Trip to Knapwell Woods on Tuesday with Arthur to see bluebells also numerous oxlips.

 

 Kate, Arthur & bluebells

 

Oxlips

John Law arrived on Tuesday, Terry and Phil from CEEM came for meal and John stayed overnight. He had been staying with one daughter in Lincolnshire and set up shop in Wetherspoons in Huntingdon Tuesday afternoon while various folks visited including his other daughter who had not been in contact for four years.

 

 Kate & John

 

After John left Wednesday morning returning to Turkey, Kate and I did a recce for next week’s walk starting at Wyton and taking in the Hemingfords, St Ives and Houghton. We then called in on Margery Johnson’s 90^th birthday garden party. This left a little time to celebrate Kate’s 75^th!

  

Cathy & Margery

 

Houghton Mill

 

On Thursday the walk started at Potton and took in Sandy RSPB, Biggleswade Common and Sutton. It was dry and sunny with the trees showing early leaves, plenty of flowers and several fields of OSR. At the pub one young lad prepared and served food for 24 of us on his own.

 

 

Potton Old Railway Station

  

Break on Biggleswade Common

 

 

Sandy RSPB

 

3mm of rain this week which was not enough but better than nothing. I have planted out the first sweet corn and sowed winter brassicas, melons and more lettuce.

 

Andy completed the round Isle of Wight walk 106 km in 16 hours 26 minutes with a break in the middle and finished high up in the rankings for his category. Ben departed for Norway and Sweden yesterday culminating in the Copenhagen marathon next weekend.

We watched Over’s last football match yesterday losing 1 v 0 to West Wratting.

love

Mike & Kate