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| The card I made as an enclosure. |
ITINERARY
Oddlief's Knitting Tour of the World
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| Thanks to a color copier she had her very own Passport. |
You pack your book you were reading on 100 must-see places in your new bag and begin your adventure.Day 2: CHINA- While in China you pick up a few stitch markers in the market. They are symbols of good luck - you may need some luck...it's a long way around the world!
Day 3: MONGOLIA- You try to fit a Mongolian cashmere goat in your bag, but he bleats too much to go unnoticed. Instead you pick up some "Kathmandu" yarn made from merino wool, silk, and Mongolian cashmere.
Day 4: TIBET- Dang, where's an embroidery needle when you need one! Luckily you are in a part of the world where beautiful embroidery is everywhere. You pick up a handy little needle case with images of local gods and goddesses. They seem more serene than you feel.
Day 5: AUSTRALIA- Just to be sure you don't lose this bag, too, better get a luggage tag. Ah, this one works..."Ripping Yarns"- not only the name given to local folk tales of murder/ghosts/intrigue, but also reflective of how you feel after botching the socks you were knitting during that long plane ride. 
Day 6: (PERSIA)- OK, you can't really stop here because it no longer technically exists. Somehow, the flight attendant passes by with her Duty-Free cart and you spy in the back a bottle of vintage AVON brand perfume (my swap partner listed "any Avon product" as a like)..."Persian Wood." Your favorite- and one you haven't been able to find for years! You buy a bottle. May also come in handy in all these places where deodorant seems unknown.Day 7: NORTHERN ITALY- Travelers belly subsides and you find yourself in a land full of wonderful food. You gorge yourself like a tick for a day and pick up a box of local "Torrone" candy.
Day 8: SPAIN- Desired for centuries, real Spanish saffron. You buy a jar and debate over whether to use it to make paella or tea. (my swap partner listed saffron tea as a like also). Day 9: Fly to London, Heathrow. Rent car and drive over countryside. It's a long drive. Good thing you have some Werther's candies in the car. Park at Blackpool on the northwesternmost coast.
Day 10: Boat to ISLE OF MAN- Here you pick up a book of graph paper for drawing the cable pattern you've been designing in your head. You love it because it shows historic images of woman shearing sheep alongside the men, as well as women there spinning yarn. Perhaps these images of knitting on the Isle of Man are in the local museum. You vow to go check it out, but never make it to the museum because you are sidetracked by the beautiful countryside. No worries, you pick up a brochure for the online museum.While touring the countryside, you stop at a couple of farms and find the locals very friendly. One teaches you about the species of sheep nearly unique to the Isle of Man, known as the MANX LOGHTAN
photograph courtesy British Wool Marketing Board ©
MANX LOGHTAN sheep are a Northern short-tailed, multi-horned breed native to the Isle of Man. The word Loghtan is derived from the Manx words “lugh” (mouse) and “dhoan” (brown). Both sexes can be horned or polled (hornless), with two, four or occasionally even six horns being recorded.
The wool is moorit (red-brown) and is used mainly for the production of un-dyed woolens but is also suitable for the manufacture of tweeds.
The Manx Loghtan is listed as "at risk" by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust.
The wool is moorit (red-brown) and is used mainly for the production of un-dyed woolens but is also suitable for the manufacture of tweeds.
The Manx Loghtan is listed as "at risk" by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust.
You purchase some of the handspun yarn from this unique sheep. The family likes you and appreciates your interest in their animals. The spinner's husband decides to give you a family heirloom - an antique horse brass with the triskelion symbol emblematic of the Isle of Man. You don't know what you'll do with it (belt? Handbag buckle?), but it is such a meaningful gift that you thank him nonetheless.When it's time to leave the Isle of Man, you have just a single coin left- the nearly useless 1/2 pence. You like the "Cushag" and recognize the design as the yellow bloom of the common Ragwort long regarded as the national flower. You decide to make it into a fifth stitch marker.
Day 11: IRELAND- Ah, home- your beloved Ireland. You pick up some Bailey's Irish Cream candies and head for the Knitting store where you can finally get that pattern for Kilt Socks you've wanted for so long.
Day 12: ORKNEY ISLANDS- Only stopping briefly here. Long enough to stop in the airport gift shop and pick up a coin purse to keep all your change from shaking around the bottom of your bag. Ah, and it works perfectly for holding your notions as well!
Day 13: ICELAND- Your last stop. The natural beauty here is overwhelming and you spend the day steeping in the Blue Lagoon and marvelling over the many falls and volcanoes dotting the countryside. There sure are a lot of sheep here! What do they eat!?!? There's just enough room in your bag to fit a pair of Icelandic socks...that's the wonderful thing about buying woolens while travelling- they squish. Oh, and you could probably fit a bar of the delicious local chocolate, too - after all, there's ALWAYS room for chocolate!Day 14: HOME!!! You've done it! I hope you enjoyed your adventure :-)
