There was a crooked man…….

Lavenham Suffolk 24.08.10
Yesterday, after spending the weekend in Twickenham with my delightful daughter, I made my way up northish, to spend a couple of days with a friend in Hertfordshire; in the market town of Bishop Stortford, a very quaint village with a long history (as do most villages in the UK). We have not seen each other for well over a year now and it was great to catch up on all the news and the chat went on till the witching hour (as you can imagine).
Today dawned bright and early and as a treat she decided to take me on a jaunt through the english countryside to the historic town of Lavenham in Suffolk.
Now, in my opinion having travelled to many of the English counties as well Ireland, Wales and Scotland….Suffolk is the prettiest county in England, and the United Kingdom (you are welcome to disagree ), so today was an absolute treat driving through countryside that I have not seen since June last year.
We set off ‘relatively’ early (we are women after all), and once our destination had been keyed into the tom-tom (I do not trust those things), we made our way north-east.  Somewhere along the way, at one of the very confusing round-abouts in this country which need a navigator to get around, we took an exit too soon, and the tom-tom went into a sulk and would not speak to us   We drove for ages along the M11 (which I realise probably means absolutely nothing to many of my readers ) and eventually the ‘lass’ got her sense of humour back and told us to turn left at the next exit. Hooray, we were back on track.  So to reach our destination took about an hour longer than it should have.
However, I was not complaining, as on the way we drove past fields and fields of grain, rolling hills and scattered copses of lovely green trees. Suffolk, an agricultural county, is mostly flat with soft rolling hills, and today, set against the wonderful blue summer sky filled with broiling, cumulus castles of cloud, made a picture perfect scene.
Finally after wondering if we would end up in Norfolk, we reached the turn-off for Lavenham….. our destination!   Passing first through a delightful little village of thatched roof houses, quintessential english gardens and nothing else, not even a church where we made a quick stop for photos…

quintesssential english thatched roof cottage

quintessentially english

an english country garden

and thence to Lavenham.
Lavenham, deep in the rolling landscape of Constable’s Suffolk, an historic market town; built on the success of the Wool Trade, is an absolute treasure trove of delightful architecture – some of the cottages dating as far back as 1340 (the Weavers cottage); Britain’s finest example of a Tudor market town.
As we drove into the village, on the left hand side and on it’s own little island, we passed the intricately decorative village coat-of-arms.

historic Lavenham - an ancient market town circa 1340

 These Suffolk village signboards are an absolute treat, very decorative and give an indication of the trade that established the village.  Just about every Suffolk village that I have visited in the past have these delightful coat-of-arms signboards at the edge of town.
I was open-mouthed with delight and spent the first 15 minutes or so saying ‘oh my god, oh my god’ these are gorgeous; and gorgeous they were. 

ancient and still gorgeous

 Many of the fine, timber-framed, listed houses in the medieval Tudor style are quite obviously ancient, leaning drunkenly to the side and defying gravity they remain a testament to the style of days gone by.  Crooked wooden beams held together by luck and the very ancient plaster filling.

gaily painted, leaning drunkenly - ancient Tudor houses line the streets

The houses are incredibly photogenic, jam-packed one against the other as they were in those days; unbelievable quaint, higgedly piggedly, leaning crookedly and delightfully unruly, painted different colours, their names indicating the trade of the original owners.  There is even the very quaintly named ‘The Crooked House’ of the nursery rhyme fame.

he Crooked House Lavenham

‘There was a crooked man,
Who walked a crooked mile,
He found a crooked sixpence
Upon a crooked stile.
He bought a crooked cat
Which caught a crooked mouse
And they all lived together
In a crooked little house.

Pink, white, cream and yellow paint give the village a picturesque facade, some of which lead right onto the street, mullioned panes peer out quizzically, creating an air of mystery that makes you want to peek through to discover what lies behind.
Doorframes look as if they might just fall right over, and lichen covered roofs lean dangerouly lopsided leaving you feeling as if they could suddenly collapse in on themselves.  The Swan Hotel, considered to be the ‘jewel’ in Lavenham’s crown, a magnificent rambling, sprawling collection of  rooms, has served as a hostelry since before the reign of King Henry VIII. 

The Swan Hotel - Lavenham

Steeped in history and charm, the interior of the hotel has wonderful, low 15th century wood-beamed ceilings, large cavernous fireplaces, inglenook fireplaces, original Medieval wall paintings, wooden staircases, winding passage-ways that twist one way and then other, with little rooms leading off and creating a rabbit-warren. The rear of the hotel was the original Wool Hall.  On an exterior side wall we discovered the sign of the Mitre and the triple feather crest of King George IV.

The Mitre & Triple Feathers crest of King George IV

Down a side street and loooking suitably ancient; Lavenham Priory, now a youth hotel.

Lavenham Priory

I could not get enough of all the delightful houses and eventually took well over 300 photos.
We visited the market square, lined with a delightful collection of houses, with names like Grannies Attic,

the house that bread built - Hovis House

Hovis, a pub ‘The Angel’, the ‘Market Keeper’s Cottage’,

The Market Keeper's Cottage

St Peter’s and St Paul’s Hall and in the centre, dominating the scene; 

The Guildhall of Corpus Christi - built circa 1530

 The Guildhall of Corpus Christi, built in about 1530. Little Hall (a wool merchants house, an example of domestic medieval architecture -

Little Hall - a wool merchants house

furnished with furniture of the period), and the Market Cross, erected 1501 in accordance with the will of William Jacob. 

The Market Cross - erected 1501

We meandered along Merchants Row a collection of Harry Potter type houses, clustered together and still in trade. 

Merchants Row - lavenham

 The High Street of the village is also lined with these delightful houses – names like Hedgehog Cottage,

Hedgehog Cottage

 Oriel Cottage, Old Rose Cottage, Box Cottage, Buthers Cottage, The Shambles and Hare Cottage amongst others.  Side roads leading off the High Street are similarly lined with gorgeous houses, also gaily painted in pastel colors of green, pink, yellow and white, lopsided and ancient.

beautiful gaily painted Tudor houses

Their wooden beams, jutting out from the structure, so ancient as to be dry as bone, cracking at the edges, pretty english gardens bright with multicoloured blooms and lovely lawns; little pockets of green. 

english country gardens

 Wooden doorways, carved with marvellous creatures; angels and phoenix, grilled peepholes the prelude to our current spy-holes, old door knockers and a bell from the HMS Bremen 1911.

the bell from HMS Bremmen 1911 - nearly 100 years old

We stopped off for lunch at the twee cafe called ‘Tickled Pink’, formely Tickle Manor, with doorways so low you have bend to walk through, tiny mullioned windows, an ancient fireplace, creaky woodden floors and wooden beamed ceiling, a gorgeous jukebox in the corner. Upstairs for the view, where we enjoyed a repast of jacket potatoes with filling and salad, a very welcome pot of tea and chocolate fudge pudding dripping with thick chocolate syrup and a squirt of fresh cream; delicious.

Tickle Manor aka Tickled Pink tea room

After lunch we went walk-about again and thence to the Norman Church of St Peter and St Paul; a magnificent church with a fabulous Norman Tower, 

St Peter & St Paul Church - Lavenham

 gargoyles and beautiful decorative carvings – the emblems of the Tudor Kings and Queens, finely etched into the walls; one of the finest parish churches in England.  Beautifully tended, emerald green lawns, interspersed with neat paths, lined with carefully sculpted ball-shaped shrubs lead towards this beautiful, albeit imposing structure. 

neat rows, ball shaped shrubs

 Ancient, time-worn granite slabs, their markings worn away by the passing of the ages and ravaged by the weather, dot the lawns – reminders of those long gone; now anonymous and largely forgotten. 

many souls are on the line..... anonymous in time

The interior of the church was no less magnificent, high-vaulted wooden ceilings, supported by  towering columns that soar heaven-ward, intricately carved wooden structures leading to side chapels, the floor strewn with marble slabs – tombs of the dead,

tombs of the dead

 and magnificent multi-coloured, intricate stained glass windows the likes of which I have not seen before, depicting the stories of Christ and scenes from the bible; breathtaking in their colourful magnificence, dominating and demanding your attention.

stained glass windows

After drinking in our fill of the holy atmosphere we once again hopped into the car, set our course for home and handed our future over to the ubiquious tom-tom, she of the strident voice and absurdly ridiculous random directions.  We wove in and out, round and about going along lanes narrow and winding, lined with ten foot high hedges, a dense barrier to any sort of directional guidance.  By the third toneless instruction to ‘turn left at the next intersection’ I felt she was being mean and spiteful, taking us in a circle; when she suddenlyy gave us a new instruction – turn right!! Hooray.  I was convinced by that stage that she was in a huff and determined to take us off into the wild blue yonder in revenge for the day’s earlier misdemeanor.
We finally after a long drive through Suffolk and Hertfordshire reached home and a much needed cup of tea. A fine day and another village to add to the very long list of delightfully quaint English villages I have had the good fortune to visit.  Almost too many to mention…….I said almost!

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….a walk in the park

By all appearances spring has definitely arrived.  We have been blessed with three wonderful sunshiney days; days to be treasured as they are so rare.  Everywhere you look are blossoms galore, red, pink, white and yellow, the bushes are a blaze of colour.

spring colours

 

I took a stroll down to Hampstead Heath this afternoon to make the most of the sun and get some fresh air (been cooped up in the house since yesterday at 11:30)

sunshine on my shoulder makes me happy....

It is amazing how the sunny weather brings out the multitudes.  The grassy lawns of the park near the ponds were sprinkled with sunbathers, solitary snoozers, groups chatting, moms and dads pushing prams or yelling at kids on bikes, kites swooping gaily in the breeze, dogs running after balls, splashing in the ponds, ducks flapping and squawking, and overall an air of contentment and enjoyment; the ice-cream man doing a roaring trade.           

sunbathers, groups chatting, a day in the park

I meandered along the paths, peering through my lens, snapping here and there, capturing the sun and the mood.  Some very hardy (or mad) folk were swimming in the men’s pond (??) mad dogs and englishmen!!  

spring blossom at the ponds

I eventually reached one of the lower ponds and stopped to watch the waterfowl.   A similar multitude of birdfowl were out feeding, flapping, diving and scooting across the water; a splash of water in their wake.         

eqyptian geese

a menage-a-trois

Across the pond a swan set out; a mission on his mind.  Wings set in battle formation his breast cleaving the water before him, like a scooner at sea he plowed his way across the pond, with a beady eye on the egyptian geese.   A game (?) of tag soon ensued.  The geese flapping and running across the water, attempting to outswim the swan, to no avail.   He was not deterred when with a flourish of wings the geese lifted into the air and swooped down on the far side of the pond.                                 

a swan harrasing the egyptian geese

With sails set and determined strokes the swan was not giving up.  Soon it reached the geese who had just settled and once again he bore down with murder in mind!   The geese flew up into the air, voices raised in angry protest.  To no avail  No sooner were they settled than once again the swan bore down.

Eventually after about 10minutes of to and froing the geese gave up and with an anguished cry, spread their wings and flew off to safer waters. 

the egyptian geese finally gave up and flew off

 The swan, satisfied with intruders seen packing, he then settled his feathers and leisurely made his way to the side of the pond to feed.      

to the victor; the spoils

To the victor; the spoils.

p.s. same blog, just added the spring blooms photo

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reasons why people #travel

Travel; what is it about that word that conjures up a whole vista of possibilities?   Could you imagine what your life would be like without travel?  Is it possible to not travel?   Whatever you do and whatever your reason,  travelling is a part of most people’s lives.

For centuries now people have been travelling, not just locally, but right around the world.   The reasons over the centuries have been different and yet remain the same, just in a different context.   Our forefathers travelled.  Ancient civilizations travelled.   New world’s were discovered, different civilizations and different cultures.   Their reasons for travel were vastly different and yet remain the same; to explore and conquer.   We all travel in one way or another.

There are different reasons why people travel:

1) Many people travel because they want to see their families and friends, whether they live near or far. Invitations from families and friends, for weddings, birthdays, or any other form of celebration are a good reason to pack your bags and travel.

2) Some people may travel seeking love, because they want to find their soul mates, believing that there is only one person for them and if they haven’t had much luck in their area, perhaps they will be luckier elsewhere.   With millions of people around the world, there is a possibility they could find love in some other place.

3) People travel to seek employment, perhaps having been unlucky nearer to home, possibly because they want to have a different experience e.g. volunteering.   Admittedly work may be hard to come by in your hometown or country and so some people decide to work abroad because they are looking for greener pastures.  They could earn more money abroad or perhaps their expertise is not favourable where they currently reside.

4) People travel because they want to learn about other cultures, to experience the differences between their’s and other cultures.  They travel and learn because for them learning while travelling is fun.   One very popular reason for travelling to another country is to enjoy and learn about the food.

5) People travel because they enjoy writing.   They want to share relevant information about the places they visit, write articles for their readers or find information for a novel perhaps.  There is a whole industry based just on travel writing.

6) People travel because they want to explore the landscape of different countries, take photographs as souvenirs or for commercial purposes.

7)  Many businessmen travel to promote or extend a current business, or start up a new business in other countries for expansion to increase their profit margins.    Business is nothing without profit.

8) And today, more and more people are travelling for pleasure, on vacation to exotic places.  Baby Boomers are currently the driving force behind the travel industry.   Born between 1946 and 1964, many of these people are now retired or coming up to retirement.  They’ve worked hard all their lives, invested sensibly and now they want to make the most of their later years, enjoy different experiences, see different countries and perhaps even relocate to warmer climes.

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my life

What a lovely day today. I have so enjoyed connecting and chatting to friends around the world. I am so addicted to twitter and facebook and surfing the internet. I could do this all day.   It never ceases to amaze me how much information is out there, I learn something new every day.  I love following the links that people post on their updates, and find out things I never knew.  It is great to have a virtual ‘chat’ with a friend who lives in the USA and to say goodnight to someone in Sweden, reply to posts on travel forums about places I’ve been and retweet inspiring quotes.

I joined a new travel site tonight and when I was filling in the names of the places I have travelled to in the last 9 years as well as the info on areas I have lived in and travelled to in SA, I am reminded of how many places I have been to!  How lucky I am to have had the opportunity to live in the UK.  From here it is so easy to go places in Europe and the USA, and as travelling is my passion of course the more the better.  I was pleasantly surprised to note just how many places I have been to, and frankly I cant even remember many of them (will have to check back on my diaries).   Filling in the destinations was great fun, and I enjoyed the memories of each trip as I noted them down.

It also served to remind me how lucky I am to have been introduced to World Ventures and how with the opportunities it provides, I will now be able to travel even more and get to visit all the places still on my wish list.  Of course my wish list is incredibly long and I would have to live another whole lifetime just to get to them all, but with this company at least I can be sure of visiting the most of them.

I started out writing this blog this morning, but got diverted and distracted as I usually do when I get onto twitter, and so the day has gone by.  So in the interest of time….. I will simply post the following as it was when I wrote it:

“as i write I am sitting overlooking the verandah, a perfect position to watch all the activity going on.  a squirrel is nicking the bird seed (as usual), the blue tits are flitting back & forth and I noticed just now that the great tits are nest building; how exciting!  The weather is mucky and we’ve had rain off and on since the early hours.    I also noticed that the fox did’nt eat much of the food I left out last night, ignored my macaroni cheese and left it on the plate!!! how rude     oooo a chaffinch has just landed; ahh they are so pretty and I don’t often see them in the mornings.  The magpie with it’s glorious shimmering blue & pink tail feathers has been.   They always make me nervous they do, staring at me with one eye and head cocked.   This verandah is a constant source of entertainment and I am so lucky to be able to watch the birds as they go about their business, although I have noticed that there are not as many birds as usual in the garden this year.  With the warmer weather there do appear to be a few more pairs flitting about in the trees in front of the house.  Noticeable because the trees are still bare, although I have to say that there are not as many birds this spring as usual.    I have seen a pair of robins, occassionally a third.  I have seen four blue tits, 2 great tits, 1/2 chaffinch, 2 sparrows, a number of magpies and of course plenty of pigeons (which I dislike intensely).   We have had as many as 5 squirrels at a time on the verandah and they are incredibly greedy and great fun to watch. although I was absolutely dismayed to see one steal a chick from the magpie’s nest high in the tree.    The trees are starting to bud now and I noticed today that the bush at the bottom of the garden is a blaze of yellow flowers.  Of course the whole world is a blaze of yellow with the fabulous daffodils that are blooming everywhere.  They are quite my favourite flowers and brighten even the dullest of days.  A sure sign of spring, they are lovely to behold.”     

I was surfing the UK news tonight and noticed this article  which of course immediately caught my eye, most particularly because I had remarked earlier on that I had not seen many birds in the garden this year.

and now since it is actually tomorrow, I had better go to bed before the sun comes up

Enjoy your day guys, wishing you a good one.

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just life

…how funny life can sometimes be.   I had a very productive afternoon springcleaning my daughter’s flat in return for a bed at night for a few days (not a requirement; I offered).    Whilst whizzing (ok so maybe not whizzing) but while manipulating the hoover (actually it’s a morphy richards POD), round the flat upstairs and down, I had time to reflect on life.

Like how did I get to this place.  I don’t mean London as such but to the place in my life.   Here I am almost 55 & I have no home of my own, I don’t own a car, I have no furniture and all my possessions are in storage!  Is that a good or a bad thing?

A few years ago (blimey it really is almost 3years ago), I embarked on a helter-skelter journey of personal development. At one of the courses I did we had to list our five highest values.  My top value is freedom, my 2nd travel and so on.    My absolute passion is to travel.   Be careful what you wish for….

I work as a Carer for the Aged and in that capacity I get to travel round the UK, sometimes to larger cities like Cambridge, or Oxford, (see my previous blogs), other times to tiny little villages that don’t even have a Postoffice or grocer.   Now although that sounds great and I get to see some fabulous, interesting and quintessential places, and although I am travelling, this is not quite what I had in mind!

I tend to get jobs in far-flung places like Newton-Ferrers or some tiny village in Norfolk, or a farm in the depths of Kent where I can’t even get phone reception never mind internet, and yet I am travelling, living my passion; albeit my highest value is constantly challenged.

How does the law-of-attraction work like that?   A few months ago I saw a fabulous house in an estate agents window in Highgate, and secured a portfolio of the house, saying to my daughter: “I am going to live in that house”.   Now I have a job that I start on Monday in Highgate on the estate, but not in the house I admired.   All well and good you might say, except I get to live in someone else’s house on the estate….not my own.  So how does that work then?

I have read a lot about the LOA and listened to ‘The Secret’ dozens of times (literally), and yet it still baffles me.  If I say ask for £1million to be in my bank account by a particular date….that doesn’t happen.  So how is it that when I said one of my highest values was travel, do I get to travel and yet not in a way that I would like.

Is there something I am missing? Some ‘secret’, some point?    I find it exceptionally frustrating, that although to be honest I do love what I do, expecially when I get to care for someone really nice, I find my highest value is constantly challenged: freedom.

Yet if I look at the other side of the coin, I have no overheads in terms of mortgages, council taxes, bills, no transport problems/frustrations and it takes me maybe 2minutes to ‘walk’ to work….ie leave my room and walk to the next, it would appear that I do have freedom of a sorts, yet again, not the sort of freedom I would prefer.

During these personal development courses we are instructed to write down what we want, to be specific and itemise the list carefully.  Is that really what it takes?   Is that what people really do? 

Anyways, so that’s it.  Just wondering!

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Back in London 04.01.10

One of the things I love most about being away from London, is coming back.   I never get tired of the view of the Thames as the train crosses the bridge!   My heart always gives a little leap of joy, and no matter what the weather, be it grey or raining or sunny, it always looks just beautiful.

Coming back to London means a lot of things to me.

It means seeing my daughter again, getting a warm hug, enjoying time with her catching up on news.   We get to enjoy a visit to our favourite coffee shops a) Starbucks for coffee and b) Costas for hot chocolate. yummy

Also, if I am in town long enough, I get to spend an hour or so with one or two of my friends, which is never enough and the time flies by too quickly.

Being in London means visiting my storage unit to offload stuff I acquired from the last trip and recycling my clothes.  I get awfully bored wearing the same stuff for 2-4 weeks in a row.  Visiting my storgae unit, is like going shopping at a 2nd-hand charity shop, except I don’t have to pay for the stuff coz I already own it.

I get to go see a movie again, if there is time.  I get to see Buckingham Palace or the London Eye or the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.  I always, if I am leaving from Charing Cross on my next trip, make a stop at Trafalgar Square and say hello to Nelson.

I love to watch the changing seasons with a fresh eye and to my delight, on this return – I got to see a light dusting of snow everywhere.   That also means it is bleedin cold and I nearly froze between the station and home last night.

My daughter and son-in-law treated me to a great, late Xmas dinner and my daughter (bless her) went all out with a marvellous spread for her (95%) vegetarian Mom (not that I am a veggie myself ).  We had a lovely cassis that went straight to my head and I got all silly and giggly as I do when imbibing.

They had loads of pressies for me and it was lots of fun ripping the paper off to reveal the contents, one of which was a pair of wellies!!!    I have so wanted a pair of wellies since Feb 09 when we had all that snow.   My daughter is a very thoughtful gift buyer!!!   My son-in-law attempted to teach me how to play the new game they got for Xmas from a friend, which is a Playstation Dance UK set.  But, since I have 2 left feet and no hand/foot eye co-ordination whatsoever (I would be a real challenge for the Strictly Come Dancing lot), we were in hysterics at my attempts to put my feet where they were meant to be.  I scored a very hopeless tally.   A fun evening had by all.

This morning it is up and about to catch up on appointments, meet my chica for lunch and in the evening catch up on new developments and training with WorldVentures.   Apparently there is new information and I am looking forward to meeting up with other members.

Then it’s off again tomorrow!

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How hot does it get?

Average number of sunny hours in a January day:

Algarve:           6

Tunis:               5

Cyprus:            5

The Gambia:        9

Dubai:              8

Egypt:               8

Sharm El Sheik:   8

Cape Town:            11

Mombasa:            9

Maldives:            8

Mauritius:            8

Phuket:      9

Orlando:            7

Barbados:            9

St. Lucia:            9

Tenerife:            6

Fiji:                   7

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14.11.09 57.4717N and 4.2254W

Facts about Inverness (courtesy of wikipedia):

The name Inverness is Gaelic and translates as ‘mouth of the river Ness’.

Situated at 57.4717N and 4.2254W.

Inverness (Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Nis) is a city in northern Scotland and it is promoted as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland.

The city lies near the site of the eighteenth century Battle of Culloden and at the beginning of the Great Glen, where the River Ness enters the Inverness/Moray Firth making it a natural hub for various transport links.   It is the northernmost city in the United Kingdom.   A settlement was established by the sixth century AD with the first royal charter being granted by King David I in the twelfth century.

Inverness was one of the chief strongholds of the Picts, and in AD 565 was visited by St Columba with the intention of converting the Pictish king Brude, who is supposed to have resided in the vitrified fort on Craig Phadrig, on the western edge of the city. A 93 oz (2.6 kg) silver chain dating to 500-800 was found just to the south at Torvean.

click here and scroll down for a map of Inverness/Scotland

The 14.11.09 approached both rapidly and slowly and it was with excitement and anticipation that we woke on Saturday and set off on our journey up north.  This is the farthest north we, my offspring and I have ever been – 57.4717N and 4.2254W!!!   Brilliant.

CJ reached Victoria station before I did and very naughtily filmed me walking across the concourse!   We took the Gatwick Express since it was almost £2 cheaper than by regular train.   Go figure.

Check in at Easyjet was chop-chop and with time to spare we went to MacDonald’s for a Happy Meal for a happy CJ

and a chocolate milkshake for me.

This is the first time wev’e travelled with Easyjet and although the flight is the same as any other cheap airline, I was totally unimpressed with the fact that they left our luggage out in the rain and when we arrived at our destination our clothes were wet.  Even more so since CJ was forced to check her bag at a cost of £18 because the bag was literally a zip width to wide for the onboard luggage sizer.

However, excitement reigned supreme as we boarded and finally took off, 25 minutes late.   We were off to the Highlands of Scotland, Inverness and final destination was the Great Glen Water Park, situated on Loch Oich (which we did not know beforehand).

The flight was bumpy but uneventful and flying over England was a treat as always.   The countryside is so beautiful and I never tire of seeing it from the air.   A great expanse of blue sky and great big tumbles of wonderful white clouds accompanied our flight, providing fantastic photo opportunities.

With no idea what to expect we suddenly flew over the highlands!

and practically climbed out the window with excitement.   The view was stupendous.   Great open stretches of mountain and wilderness, huge lakes that spread for miles.    The sun shone down and touched on a mountaintop providing a glimpse of the splendour to come.

Scotland; land of legends, castles, humble crofts, high mountains and tranquil lochs, battlefields echoing to the cries of long ago and remote glens home to towering firs and magnificent golden eagles.

Touchdown was uneventful, no rain but threatening.   Collected our luggage, which was soaked!   A complaint coming up here!   Then over to Avis to collect our hire car.  I have decided to write up a checklist of things to look out for and questions to ask for future reference.

It was starting to drizzle again, so in the rain I checked the car over thoroughly, remembering the lesson from Ireland.   By the time I had checked for little bumps and scratches my hands were frozen and my sleeves soaked.

By now the light was fading and losing no time we set off, first stop Tesco, just 2 miles down the road for supplies.   We had fun whizzing round the store (which was massive and jam-packed with goodies) picking and choosing yummy things to eat and drink, mindful of our budgets.   By the time we emerged it was dark!!!  Now for the fun bit – finding our way through a foreign town in the dark.   Fortunately CJ had printed a fairly detailed map of the area and we made good progress to the A82 (I think) and then on to our destination.

At that time I had no idea how far the Great Glen Park was from Inverness and had considered taking a cab there!   Fortunately I had hired a car!   It was 54miles from the airport!   I had no idea.   We drove and drove, the rain falling steadily and with absolutely no idea where the place was, we anxiously scanned the map for landmarks.

1.5 hours later we finally arrived, just before 7pm and we had made the check-in deadline with 10 minutes to spare.  By now pitch-dark we had not an inkling of the beauty and magnificence awaiting us.   The A-frame cabins are darling and we made ourselves right at home.   The first thing that went on was the heating, as it was quite freezing cold.

Hunting around the cabin it took ages for us to find all the switches to activate the various appliances, and the only one we could not find was the switch for the hot water!   The following day we enquired at the office and the handyman came along to show us where it was – right behind the box of oats I had placed on the counter!!! Go figure.

Then a toss-up on who would get the double bed!  CJ won for the first 4 nights since she was only staying till Wednesday, so that was fair enough.  Then time to unpack, hang clothes up to dry and have supper!   We had bought a pizza for convenience and popped it into the oven.   Hahahaha, we ended up with – a burnt pizza for supper!  The oven settings were unfamiliar and we set it too high.  It tasted just fine actually and nicely crunchy round the edges

Relaxing and watching TV, Strictly Come Dancing was on and not to be missed, followed by X-Factor, we settled in for the week, cosy and comfortable.   Later that evening just after getting into bed, I had a summons from CJ to quickly get my jacket and shoes on and come outside.   I duly complied and stepping out back behind the cabin I lifted my eyes to the heavens and gasped.   A blanket of stars covered the night sky, brightly twinkling and sparkling in the night sky.   I am reminded once again of the fact that because we are creatures of the daytime, we miss out on this glorious spectacle every night.

We shivered and giggled, somewhat nervous that we were so close to the forest, literally feet away, it was dark and eerie and every rustle had us squeaking with fright. With wolves and ghosts in mind, and things that go bump in the night, I did not last long when finally my nerve broke and we skedaddled back inside, laughing and giggling fit to bust.

We had no idea what was awaiting our eyes on the morrow.   And so to bed, I slept like the proverbial baby.  Utter peace and quiet.   Bliss.

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