This is something I've been meaning to blog about for some time but since most of my memory seems to have gone on vacation these days I kept forgetting.On my travels when I was one of those people with something to do all day, I often drove past this tree somewhere between Bellingham and Belsay. I think its near Cornhills Farm? Unfortunately its on a bit of a tricky bend so I never got close enough to count the pairs of footwear hanging from its branches.
I have tried online to discover the reason there is a tree with shoes and boots hanging from it at that particular place but can only find information on the more famous ones in places like Armstrong Park in Newcastle. Here and the reason for them is that students (many of whom live in that part of the city) would throw their shoes into the ree to celebrate passing exams.
Wiki has lots of suggestions of why shoes are hung in trees or on power lines, and also other parts of the world where this happens. Shoe Tossing they call it! If anyone can add to this information Id love to read your comments
I do remember seeing a pair of 'Clackers' hanging from the power lines over my primary school but I think that was purely the fact that someone got a little excited while playing and swung them into the heavens maybe to avoid severe bruising to the wrists rather than some celebration or fertility ritual.
Interesting!I've often wondered why you only see odd shoes lying at the side of a road. I mean exactly how does someone loose one shoe!!!There's the one-legged person option???I'm struggling.
ReplyDeleteHehe, have no idea about shoes, but in New Zealand, in the South Island, there is a fence where people hang their old Bras.
ReplyDeleteSnowdrop, I remember when my eldest was about 10, he wanted a new pair of school shoes but as there was nothing wrong with the ones he had I said no. Then strangely, a few days later he said he had lost a shoe after PE, and came home with the other. It wasnt in lost property, couldnt be found. A couple of weeks later I happened to be walking along the road that he used to walk to school and saw a lonely little black shoe in the gutter. Three guesses who's shoe it was? Seems he had just thrown it away in order to get new ones. So maybe thats the answer!Merinz, Now come on, you cant just tell us that and not provide more information on why bra's are hung on a fence. Bird Feeders????
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