My mum and stepdad used to have a boat on the Norfolk Broads, so the Broads hold many happy memories for me. For those who don't know, the Norfolk Broads are interlinking lakes and rivers in Norfolk - at the northern end of South-East England. We had many happy Sundays and holidays on the Broads and, inevitably, there are some stories attached...
When I was fifteen, I had a French girl to stay for a fortnight and we took her for a long weekend on the Broads. Her English was good, but of course there were some difficult moments... One went like this:Her: Linda, have you got a fanny-ole?
Me: (unable to believe my ears) A what?
Her: A fanny-ole.
Me: (wondering how the heck to answer) What?
Her: A fanny-ole.
Me: A wha...
Mum: (butting in exasperatedly and trying not to laugh) Linda! A FLANNEL!
Me: (unable to function due to hysterics) ...
Another episode of LIFE ON THE BROADS went like this:
It is fully dark, at the end of an idyllic Sunday spent with my grandmother (Nana) on the boat.
Mum: Wait on the boat until we come back to help you off, Mum.
Nana: I can manage.
SPLASH!
(Nana is now in the water, trapped dangerously between the boat and the dock)
Mum: (panicking, gets stepdad to haul her out with help of a boathook.) Mum, you're soaked! Take your clothes off and wrap up in this blanket.
Nana: Don't fuss. I'm not wet. (Stubbornly sits in back of car in her dripping clothes all the way home)
And also...
Several years later, my husband, Barry, and I drove to the Broads to meet my mum and stepdad for a day on the water. Mum and I were on the boat, unpacking the food for the day. Step-dad and Barry were in the dinghy (for some reason). There was a kerfuffle of raised voices:
Stepdad: Noooo, Barry! Wait 'til we're closer.
Barry: (one foot on the boat and one in the dinghy, which is drifting away from the boat) Whaaaaaaaa!
SPLASH!
Me: (looking through window) Oh my God, Barry's fallen in!
Mum: (dropping the bag she was unpacking) Oh he hasn't! Wait! Let me get the Camcorder!
Here's Mum at the mooring in the late 80s:
Happy days! Enjoy the pics of one of the most charming parts of South East England :-)
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| Our first boat was similar to this |
Wroxham |
Thanks for visiting :-)
5 comments:
That's a holiday I would have loved to have taken :-)
Never heard of the broads. Fantastic pictures.
And fanny does have a different meaning in the UK vs the US. It trips us up over there sometimes. :))
Your Nana sounds awesome.
Great stories and pictures. "I'll get the camcorder" is a great line for family emergencies :-)
Whew...glad I learned what a fanny hole is :)
Great memories,
Happy A-Z April!
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