h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

That's a shame about your trip. Poor Little having to sleepwalk home! I can't remember anyone checking our passports last time we went to France - they just kind of waved us through.
Apologies for not having been in touch for a while too. The trip to Canada has been and gone - it was fantastic. I totally fell in love with Nelson - the place we visited in BC. We were staying with friends in Calgary (my ex-boyfriend and his wife) but we hired a car and drove over into BC. It is so lovely - peaceful and clean. I could just move over there now. All the Canadians we met were such lovely people. I can't remember how much I've told you but we went to look at some houses that are made by a company based in Nelson. They build them as a kit and you put them together yourself wherever you want. They are beautiful - round wooden houses. The guy who runs the company took us out to look at 2 that were being constructed and we met the owners and they told us about all their plans for how to finish them. There really are no limits to what you can do. They were so enthusiatic - a real inspiration.
When you say 'your chap' do you mean Little or do you have a grown up chap too? Travelling to Machu Picchu with a 7 year old on your own could be a bit of an adventure! It is a very long way - we were on flights for about 2 days either way and there is almost a day of travelling by bus or train to do once you get to Cusco too. If you are serious I have a couple of good guide books you could have.

No the chap isn't my little , he's a 6'2" type. We've been talking about Machu Pichu off and on, however, at present funds don't allow us to make any serious plans. Thanks for the offer of the guide books.

I did sort out my passport the other day, though. Well, at least I took the passport applications for myself and my son to the post office and paid an exorbitant sum of money. I'm told the passports should arrive in early May. Hopefully, we can reschedule the trip then.

Interestingly enough, he spent much of his childhood in round houses in what was then called Rhodesia, although I'm not certain whether the houses were made of wood. The children had their own round separate bedrooms, which were separate buildings, I'm told.

How nice that you've stayed friends with your ex-boyfriend. Nelson to me means Lancashire. Are the houses eco-type houses? I must admit it sounds great that the owners of the houses are so enthusiastic. Peaceful and clean. It would be nice to say that where I live is.

Just realised I haven't got you on my friends list - mind if I add you on?
I haven't exactly *stayed* friends with my ex - we re-found each other via the internet just over a year ago - after more than 20 years. A bit of a surreal experience! I met up with him for real last October while he was in this country and kind of invited myself over to stay with him in Calgary. Thought I'd better take my husband though - for decency's sake!
The round houses are fairly eco-friendly as they are but you can make them more so if you want to - with solar panels and heat exchangers and whatever you want really. We have a lot of research to do!

Yes, I'd be honoured, vegantoo!

And ditto! If you don't mind, I'll add you too.

Surreal experience? Yes, I can imagine it would have been. Good for you.

I've wanted a house with eco qualities for some time. I can remember Judith Hahn (remember her?) on Tomorrow's World talking about heat exchangers and how the heat from your washing up water could be turned into usuable energy for your house. I've wanted one ever since then - must be a good 20 years ago as well. Now i hear of things like reed beds and boring holes to get energy from the earth and solar panels and what have I got? A draughty Victorian house (built in 1888 it says near the front door) that still has signs of the old gas lighting and coal fires (I like coal fires, mind you!).

I was supposed to go to bed half an hour ago!

I remember Judith Hahn and the heat exchangers too! And the composting toilets. They have a reed bed system at Ryton Organic Gardens near us - and it seems to work really well. The chap at the house place in Nelson said that there are some of their houses built where the owners have geothermal bore holes (don't know if any of them have composting toilets though!) Our house here was built in 1996 - and is totally un-eco-friendly. I'd love a low-impact home. Have you ever been to the Centre for Alternative Technology?
Just off to add you to my friends list.

Geo thermal bore holes! That's what I was trying to remember. There was an eco-house featured fairly recently that they were building wiht the woman from Countdown - name escapes me at present, however she's been on on all sorts of programmes - you know, the woman who can add up really quickly!

No, I've never been to the Centre for Alternative Technology, but I would like to visit it.

Carol Vorderman. I haven't seen her housey series. I've always been interested in eco-housing - probably all that brain washing from Tomorrow's World as a young child! I have a lovely book called The Natural House - it has given me so many ideas for my dream home. You never know - maybe I'll be able to put them into practise in the not too distant future!
The CAT is well worth a visit - and you wouldn't need your passport!!

Ah, you too were brainwashed by Tomorrow's World! I've seen 'The Natural House', but not in the bookshops. I borrowed a copy from the library, however I like to take my time reading and would have liked my own copy. However, as I remember, it was a lovely book with some great ideas. I usually find that they need bathrooms or kitchens *much* bigger than what I have, however!

I think it was through The Natural House (by David Pearson isn't it? wonder if he's related to Dan the gardening man....) or maybe the Natural House Catalogue - that I first got interested in round houses - and then did a search and found the company based in Nelson - and looked at the Nelson City website - and saw how gorgeous it was - and decided to go there and take a look at both the 'city' (it's not a city - it's not even a very big town) and the houses. And that's why we want to go there. All because of the book . Incidently, I won my copy of it through a competition in Here's Health magazine - must have been over 15 years ago.

Hey, well done! My chap lived in round houses when he was a lad in what was then Rhodesia. His parents had a large one and the children had small ones, one each. When i was in Tanzania as a 19 year old, we stayed in round dormitories (one for the boys, one for the girls) on the scholarship. Round houses definitely have a character which is really nice. They have such an 'organic' feel.

Have you a link for the Nelson city website?

Yep - http://www.city.nelson.bc.ca/

And the houses are here - http://www.mandalahomes.com/
But the best pics I've found are on - http://www.nelsonvacation.kootenayinternet.com/mwaters.html

Hey - that sounds really having a little round house for each child! Sounds pretty appealing at the moment with the noise my kids are making!!!

Just had a peek at the websites. The houses do look and I see what you say about the best ones being on the last site.

Do you know, I never asked how much time he spent in his bedroom as a child?

I've spoken to him (just) and he spent a fair amount of time there. Apparently, there was a main house, bedrooms for each of the children (three), his parents, kitchen - all round - then other buildings, barns, etc, as it was a farm. As there was a lot of land around, he spent a lot of time outdoors and in the bush as well. I gather he was there from about my son's age ( seven and a half) until he was 13, when he went to sea.

He tells me it was a fairly idyllic childhood.

He went to sea at 13?!!!

Yes, he went to Naval School in Portsmouth (I think, or was it Plymouth, no I'm almost certain it was Portsmouth). He became a ship's engineer, sailing on oil ships and later on passenger cruisers.

><.

OK - sounds like he's seen a lot of the world

Yes, rather more than me, although I've felt rather 'grounded' over the last nine or so years. Hopefully, I'll be able to get around more now that I've a buddy. Booking a holiday overseas on my own with a small child has never seemed an attractive proposition. Nor have I really been able to afford it.

Happy travelling!

Oh, did I say, the passports have arrived! So, theoretically, we could go to France next weekend - providing my Aries can go too. One caveat, though, I'm told that the prices go up in May, so we may have to pay a lot more for the privilege of going. Not sure how much at the moment.