Walthamstow Wetlands

Shortly after I went to Walthamstow Marshes, I discovered that the Walthamstow Wetlands lie just to the north. They looked quite extensive on the map, so I put them on my "to do" list.

The first map shows the general area, with Walthamstow Marshes, and Markfield Beam Engine and Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum, which are all places I have visited.

This map shows a close up of the Walthamstow reservoirs -

I went in the main, northern entrance, shown as Walthamstow Wetlands on the above map. A boardwalk runs alongside a small branch of the River Lea to the 1894 Engine House, now a cafe. The building used to house the steam engine which pumped water through the reservoirs.

The railway line runs right behind the building -

I then walked along East Warwick Reservoir to the old Coppermill. There is a grassy pedestrian path at high level alongside the reservoir, and a lower path for cycling and jogging alongside the Coppermill Stream.

The wetlands are a popular place for bird watching, but all the birds were too far away to see easily. There are bird hides but these are currently closed due to the Covid-19 restrictions. The old coppermill is also closed -

See more on Walthamstow Wetlands page. 

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Woodpecker eating grapes 2020

 Four years ago in 2016 I posted a video of a woodpecker eating grapes. Now I have another similar video, again showing a green woodpecker eating grapes. It is interesting to see that the bird is quite well camouflaged against the leaves -

Various websites say that the green woodpeckers eat ants : the RSPB says they eat "ants, ants and more ants". The Woodland Trust says "The green woodpecker’s diet is dominated by ants. It catches the insects by probing the ground with its powerful beak and sucking them up with its long, sticky tongue. Other invertebrates may be taken occasionally."; the Wildlife Trust says "Look out for it hopping about your lawn, searching for ants and invertebrates to eat."; Garden Birds "feed on insects, such as ants, beetles and caterpillars". None of the websites mention the green woodpecker eating fruit.

I'm not sure if this one is between juvenile and adult as it seems to have some spots, and is possibly a female as I think it has a black moustache (males have a black moustache with a red centre). 

from Garden Birds

Video of the Green Woodpecker eating grapes

Squirrels eating corncobs

 Two videos of grey squirrels in London eating corncobs.

The first was taken in Oct 2016. The morning sun illuminates the squirrel -

The 2nd was taken in Sept 2020 -

Lido di Jesolo over 60 years

Lido di Jesolo is a seaside resort town in the Metropolitan City of Venice, Italy and is on the Adriatic Sea. It has a 15 km long beach.

I first went there in 1964. We stayed for 2 weeks and did various tours, such as to Venice and the Dolomites. My next visit was a day trip in 1987 and my most recent visit was also a day trip, in 2020.

Nowadays the entire length of beach is totally lined with hotels. Each hotel surrounding the beach has its own private section of beach with tables, umbrellas and sun loungers for that hotel only. When I visited in mid Oct 2020, which was the year of the Covid-19 pandemic, all the hotels were closed, and the beach was free of tables and chairs. And there were only a couple of beach cafes open.

In 1964 we stayed at the Hotel Principe Palace. It was founded in 1947 and undergone major renovations over the years. On my visit in 2020 I went to look at the hotel. 

Mum & I on the balcony 1964

Relaxing outside the hotel 1964

2020

The beach is composed of yellow Dolomitic sand. The Dolomites are a mountain range located in northeastern Italy. They form part of the Southern Limestone Alps. They extend from the River Adige in the west to the Piave Valley in the east. The northern and southern borders are defined by the Puster Valley and the Sugana Valley. I saw the River Adige in Verona, it is the second longest river in Italy, after the Po. Map of the Dolomites and the River Adige in Verona -

And looking at the Dolomites from Venice in 2020 -

The beach at Lido di Jesolo -

Looking at the above 2 photos, there are trees and large gaps between hotels. Now, there are far more hotels with little space between them.

1987

There is now a paved walkway between the beach and the hotels. The empty beach in Oct 2020 -

See my blog on Venice. 

Venice over 60 years

 I've been lucky enough to have gone on foreign holidays ever since I was born. In my early years we generally went to Italy. I guess that was the "in" place in the 60s. And ever since I could write, I kept a holiday diary and still have those diaries. 

Having recently been to Venice in Oct 2020, which was my 5th time, I decided to dig out my old photos for comparison. The earliest photos are from a holiday to Italy in 1960 - we went to Rimini, Florence, Padua and Venice.

My next visit was in 1964 but there are no photos of Venice, possibly as we just did a day trip from Lido di Jesolo. Then 1978, but the photo colours are now terrible. The 1987 photos are better.

1960 - This was possibly my only time on a gondola. That's little me at the back, with mum, and dad is at the front of the boat -

And the gondolas in 2020, they now cost €80 for 30 minutes

St Marks Square -

1960

1960

1978

2020

Note the abundance of pigeons in 1960 and 1978, but none in 2020. Feeding of pigeons was banned in 2008. But the pigeons were still there 10 years later. See more on pigeons of Venice and the historical reason they were there. 

Similar views from 1978 and 2020 -

2020 was the year of the worldwide Covid-19 outbreak so there were a lot less visitors to Venice than normal. 

View from Accademia bridge of the Grand Canal in 1978 and 2020, looking towards Basilica de Santa Maria Salute -

And a closer view of the basilica -

Photos of a similar view of San Giorgio Maggiore taken in 1960 and 1978 -

This is a 1987 photo, I don't remember seeing any cats or phone boxes in 2020 !

In 1964 we did a lagoon tour. We went from Lido di Jesolo to Punta Sabbioni then took a motor boat to Murano and visited a glass factory, then onto Burano where we went to a lace factory. Next to Torcello where we visited the church (Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta). The last island we visited was St Francesco del Deserto. It is said that in the abbey St Francis of Assisi retired in a mystical contemplation. In 2020 I went to the first 3 islands, but not to St Francesco del Deserto as there is no public boat there. 2020 photos -

Murano

Murano

Burano

Burano leaning tower

Devil's Bridge, Torcello

Santa Maria Assunta, Torcello

My next blog is on Lido di Jesolo, where I have been three times over almost 60 years.

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