England 2014: A Winter Chess Break by Lake Windermere

England has always held a special place in my heart. I studied there as a teen, and it was there that I learned to be more independent, to fend for myself and to cope. So at the end of January 2014, I returned to England. This time I was going for a very different reason: to play chess.

My good friend Jackie travelled with me, and the two of us spent a week at the Windermere Manor Hotel in the Lake District, at a chess theme break for blind and vision-impaired players from the Braille Chess Association. It was my first chess break, and it started something that has lasted to this day.

This trip has no voice diary. I have put it together from the photographs we took that week and from what I have written about it over the years.

How Chess Came into My Life

For a long time, chess was just a dream of mine. Back in the early 90s I bought a slim Braille booklet on the basics of the game, along with an adapted chessboard, but truth be told, I did not pay much attention to it. Then, around 2002, I met a wonderful Russian lady and chess teacher named Nadia. She encouraged me to start learning, and just before I lost most of my vision I managed to learn enough to get started.

Before chess, I was very much an outdoor sports person: ice skating, swimming and skiing. After losing my vision, I needed something to add to my hobbies, and chess became that something. I took the chess course at the Hadley School for the Blind, and soon I was playing against other blind players around the world.

People often ask me how a blind person plays chess. My board has squares that are raised and sunken to show the difference between the black and the white squares, and the white pieces have extra dots on their tops so that I can tell them apart by touch. In 2010 I wrote that I hoped to find opportunities to travel to other countries to promote chess among blind persons. Four years later, I was on my way to England to play.

Getting There by Air and Rail

Our journey took us through Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport, and from there to Manchester Airport, where we caught the train north to the Lakes. Our photographs from that day trace the whole route: the train lobby at Manchester Airport, Platform 3b, then the stations at Bolton, Preston and Kendal, and finally Windermere station, where our week began.

It was winter, of course. I still have vivid memories of the green fields of England from the days when I had some vision, but this time I was not lucky enough to reacquaint myself with those treasured fields, because it was winter time. The Lake District gave us mist and grey skies instead.

A Week at Windermere Manor

The Windermere Manor Hotel is a grand old stone house set in its own grounds, with a big lawn in front. Inside there was a bar, a drawing room and a bright conservatory where we ate and played. For years, the hotel and the Braille Chess Association had been holding these chess theme breaks there every winter, and Peter and his wife Celia had been running them for a very long time.

When I went back in 2019, I found that Windermere Manor had not really changed: still the same old welcoming place with a great ambiance, great grounds and birds to wake you up in the mornings. That is exactly how I remember it from 2014.

Across the Board

The chess was the heart of the week. One of the highlights was a simultaneous display, where Peter took on ten of us at once. I was one of his ten challengers, sitting at my own tactile board with my pieces lined up. Peter beat us all! Near the end of the week, one of the players held up the trophy as our champion.

Just as important as the games were the people. They were wonderful experiences, with warm and wonderful folks and players. Over my two visits to Windermere, in 2014 and again in 2019, I made some really great connections that have since blossomed into solid friendships, and ever since that first chess break in 2014, I have had the good fortune to stay in touch with, and play against, some super players and friends from the association.

Out and About in the Lake District

The chess breaks always included outings, so that we could get to know the area. One day we went to Hayes Garden World in Ambleside, where a tall silver sculpture of leaping dolphins stands in a fountain by the entrance. We browsed garden statues and a shop full of funny signs, including one that told us to keep calm and visit the Lake District. We did exactly that.

We also saw Lake Windermere, where sailboats sat quietly at their moorings under a heavy winter sky, and the hills rose on the far side of the water.

From Curb to Cabin

Looking back at our photographs, I can trace every link of that journey: the stop at Schiphol, the train lobby at Manchester Airport, the platforms and the stations on the way north, and the little station at Windermere.

My podcast, Curb to Cabin Canada, is about what actually happens to blind and low-vision passengers when they fly, and each episode follows one part of the air travel journey, from the curb outside the terminal to the seat in the cabin.

Looking Back

I really cannot explain it, but that week in Windermere started a trend for me. I returned to Windermere in 2019, and since 2022 I have been visiting the UK and staying with my dear friend Jilla. Chess gave me a reason to travel, and it gave me friends across the miles.

Years later, I had the pleasure of interviewing Voldi, the chairman of the Braille Chess Association, on my podcast. You can hear my interview with Voldi on Remarkable World Commentary.

My next diary takes me somewhere much warmer: St. Lucia, in the summer of 2015. Come along with me!

Next trip: St. Lucia 2015

All of my trips: Travel Diaries

Donna J. Jodhan, LLB, ACSP, MBA
Global Leader In Disability Rights, Digital Accessibility, And Inclusive Policy Reform
Turning policy into progress for people with disabilities.