an American in Bournemouth

I came across a funny, interesting blog the other day. Terry C came to England last month and has been writing about his experiences. He's been posting once per day, and is thus easy to catch up with. No photos as yet. I've laughed out loud at some of his observations. Not a boaty blog, but Terry does go kayaking on the Stour in Christchurch:

In researching the rules of kayaking in UK, apparently you are not just able to paddle up any river, as unless there are specific exceptions, most of the rivers are "owned" by the landowners surrounding it, and there may be limits to water access. On the major rivers, such as Stour, Avon, Thames, there are fewer restrictions, but they do have "obstacles" in the way, such as locks, sluices, and weirs (not sure what that is), where you have to "portage" (get out and carry the boat on land past the obstacle).

And this is encouraging, on politeness:

As you will find, Brits are extremely polite. And nothing more exemplifies this than driving or waiting in lines (queuing up). People are patient, there is no honking, no shoving in lines, no yelling at people (unless they are drunk in or leaving the pub). It's almost surreal. You do have the odd exception, but rare.