Vlogs & Reading!
Sometimes I take travel tours on YouTube as I wonder about other lands. I recently visited Zurich and Interlaken, Switzerland on walking and scenic vlogs as I was in search of Tina’s garden quite like Alice Walker’s book, In Search of My Mother’s Garden. We miss Tina Turner, dearly.
But then I thought, huh. Why not go further and do better? I finished a three-book Wildflower Lock series by Hannah Lynn and in the third book, Blue Skies Over Wildflower Lock, Daisy May, who inherited a narrowboat from her grandfather, takes the boat out on a wild ride. She ends up on the Thames River and she has a few near-misses. She even sees a boat dangling in one of the big locks with children on board!
I was doubly intrigued because one of my dear Twitter author-friends, Val Poore lives on a boat in The Netherlands. Her many books and blogs talk about her courageous voyages to places like France and Belgium where she and her partner navigate the canals. Thus, I have learned about terms like mooring, locks and towpaths and she pointedly adds fantastic photographs of her ventures to enhance the reader’s experience.
Saying all of that to say, I looked at vlogs on YouTube about traveling on the Thames to mirror Daisy’s ride on her new boat, September Rose. I watched a few videos of people steering their narrowboats on the Thames River and I came across this lovely British couple, Tony and Jan. They have posted quite a few of their travels and sometimes they talk and at other times they allow the viewer to enjoy the scenery while soft music plays in the background. We see Jan opening manual locks as Tony steers through and we see them go through enormous locks which look scary. It is awesome to see the ingenuity and genius of the architects and engineers.
I am now reading An Italian Island Summer by Sue Moorcroft. I decided to follow suit and take vlogs and video tours of the places mentioned in the novel. Ursula is from Dublin and Alfino was living in Barcelona at the opening of the book. They are both headed to a place in Sicily. I went on YouTube and I took a walking tour of Dublin, Ireland and added one to Barcelona, Spain. Then I spent even more time enjoying the narrow streets and beauty of Sicily.
Taking these vlogs have not only enhanced my knowledge of new places, but it has added to my visualization as I read and follow these characters’ lives. I can better see Alfino and Ursula walking down the small streets of Sicily as they head to a pub to meet friends. I think that I will keep it up. It is a great additive and it makes me feel tres riche!
Lynn M.
September 29, 2024
