All this talk about Romany or Gorger. What makes a Gypsy? What makes a Gorger. It seems like snobbery to me from both sides. I have lived on the same travellers site for two years. I loved it. It was like being in a different world.  I was brought up in a house.
 It seemed to be accepted that my maternal grandmother was a traveller. I was brought up amongst travellers. We seemed to be friend's with all of themYet no-one actually said that we were travellers. it did seem a bit of a taboo subject. All I knew was that my nans maiden name was hedges (a gypsy name) and my grandfather whose name was Giddins left nan before I was born. It seemed as if there was some great mystery to it. I knew my nan could talk the Romany tongue. I would often ask her to teach me. She did a little. But it was as if she did not want to. She did not like it any more. I believe that it broke her heart when her husband left, and no one mentioned him or the old Romany ways. Yet she still spoke in broken Romany and kept up with the old Romany ways. They were too far embedded in her to change.

 I remember going for a walk with nan one afternoon.She loved to walk and so did I. She knew all the names of the flowers and herbs and she would point them out to me as we walked. This day we noticed some travellers in caravans on the banks in Princes Avenue in Chatham Kent. I can remember I being excited as I said "look nan Romany's." She was not happy. They're not Romany's. They're hedge crawlers she said gruffly. That was all she told me. I tried to get her to talk about the Romany ways but its as if she did not want to be reminded. So there is a little mystery surrounding who I really am. Romany or Gorger? To find out more I began to study My family history. I was thrilled to discover the Hedges were definately a Romany family and have traced them back to 1750. But I am still confused! Am I a Romany or a Gorger?