Our England Trip Overview

 

It was a month ago that I posted our ICELAND trip overview, after which the next day we left for England!  It's been that kind of whirlwind, from which we're still catching our photographic breath.  Seriously.

Not that I'm complaining!

Our England trip, a week after Iceland, came in two distinct parts because of being hosted by two different Shutterchance friends.  Still, it was all ENGLAND, and that's what counts:

1.  With LISL in Winsley, Wiltshire, England, from May 24-June 1:

From the get-go, she's the hostess-with-the-mostess!

After her husband died 2 years ago, she moved from Bath to Winsley, 6 miles away.

It was a move from the big city (ca. 100K pop.) to a village of ca. 2K pop.

Besides Five Crowns, a new game for us, we played Qwirkle almost every day.

We're all walkers, so, of course, we took walks!

This one was from her house in Winsley to Bradford-on-Avon, 2 miles away.

The center weathervane is on Lisl's garage, a gift from friends for her 80th birthday last November.

The fish vane is of a gudgeon...a new fish for me.

Lots of impressions along the way for my Shutterchance (SC) photoblog.

These are just some of the flowers I saw on that walk.

And this is just one of the irises in bloom all along the way.

These were in Lisl's garden.

Speaking of which, she's been working on making the garden what she's used to from her past,

but her challenge is getting rid of all the rocks, she says, of which there are boatloads!

Another special walk was up in the Cotswolds where Lisl's husband's ashes were spread.

It's also where Lisl will be "spread" when it's her time, so it was very touching to feel the moment.

Surprisingly, in all the years we have visited friends in England, this was our first time there.

Unbeknownst to us, Lisl took this photo of us!

Nearby, we visited 2 long barrows (burial chambers) from approximately 5,500 years ago.

The first one (top row) no longer has the "hill" covering it, but the second one does.

When I see something like this, I know I'm not in America...or the Netherlands, for that matter!

It so happens that I call Lisl my Big Sister.  

Our fellow Shutterchancer, Chris (bottom-left), calls Astrid his Little Sister.

So to mix things up a bit, one day Chris picked us up to take us to the Steam Museum in Swindon,

32 miles from Winsley, where we were joined by his friend, Katy.

Guess where we ate lunch!!!  WAGAMAMA.  

It's one of our favorite restaurants of all time but a first for them...and they loved it.

Chris took us there because it's a photographic paradise.

I haven't even begun to work on those images for SC but what a heyday that was!

Speaking of Chris, one day he, Lisl and Astrid took a walk without me

because I was under the weather with a cold.  I slept all morning to restore myself.

But these are Astrid's photos that I put into a collage.

Once restored, I continued with the activities, this time with another SC friend, Suzanne,

with whom we met up at the Chief Trading Post in Bristol.

What a crazy, quirky place, full of ins and outs, twists and turns, all stuffed with...stuff.

It was a great place for a coffee break before we drove to Suzanne's for fish-n-chips and Qwirkle.

On the Sunday we were with Lisl, her childhood girlfriend from Ireland, living now in Wales,

came to visit Lisl so as to meet us.  How special is that!

After a fabulous roast pork lunch/dinner at the nearby pub, we walked around Winsley to work it off.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

2.  With CHAD and Norma in Rudloe/Corsham, Wiltshire, England, from June 1-4:

The day we switched home base, Chris picked us up to go meet his partner Jackie at her farm, 

from where she took us to see the Norman parish Church of St. Christopher in Ditteridge.

The front arch/porch is Saxton, which means it's older than a thousand years!

This was when the switch took place...to Chad and Norma's house...who joined us at the church.

They live just 8 miles from Lisl!

A view in the back yard from the church.

Chad and Norma, with whom we have stayed before, had also recently moved, 

so it was time to get acquainted with their new environs.

Fun fact:  Corsham has 15 resident peacocks who are free to roam the town wherever they want!

As you'd guess, we, too, went on walks.

We even stopped and waited for the train to come through the Box Tunnel after we ate at a pub.

Then one day we visited visited the Fox Talbot Museum at the Lacock Abbey in Lacock,

known as Britain's birthplace of photography.  How fitting for us photographers, of course.

Chad is one of our fellow Shutterchancers. 

I used this ceiling boss from the ceiling of the 13th century Lacock Abbey cloisters 

for my birthday greetings on June 13th:  from my heart to yours!

These are just some of the flowers seen on the grounds there.

While at Chad and Norma's we watched most of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee,

just as we would have done if we had been at home.  We loved it!

If you could sum up all the time we had with Lisl and Chad (and Norma), 

you could say it was all around great food and fellowship.  Kinda like how I picture heaven!

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Now, for the main reason why we went to England so soon after Iceland:  our Shutterchance Meetup in Oxford!  It happened while we were staying with Lisl, who, sadly, wasn't able to join us because of a funeral memorial she attended.  

It was an all-day trip by 3 different trains, coming and going, with Chris, who orchestrated the entire travel, thankfully.

There were only 12 of us this year, 9 of which are SC bloggers. 

Normally our meetups have been at least twice as big, but it made this one extra cozy.

After a delightful walking tour of the Oxford campus, we all stopped at a pub 

to have a drink/toast to say good-bye, until the next time!

Astrid and I come from these people we have grown to love, having met each other virtually

on our Shutterchance photoblog back in 2007, and then, against all odds, getting married in 2010.

These are the friends who love and support us, as we do them.

Does life get any better?

For Chad and Norma: The Dutch Experience

So, while I try to finish processing the last of my Malta pics, I have two quickie posts this week to keep myself current on Life as we know it in our neck of the woods.  After all, Life does go on, doesn't it!

It so happens that we had dear visitors from England last week, stopping by on their long camper-van trip from England, by ferry across the Little Pond, and then into Germany.  Lucky for us, we got to be with them Monday evening and all day Tuesday.

First, a reminder that we have several English friends due to our Shutterchance photoblog, of which I've been a member for 10 years and Astrid for 9 (that's where Astrid and I met, remember!).  Over the years we have made many trips there to visit real people, making virtual reality...well, a reality.

Chad and his buddy, Chris, visited us in September of 2013, 3 years ago.  But this was the first time Chad's wife Norma was here.  We had spent time with them in their own cottage back in June of 2014...so this was a bit of a payback.

On both Facebook and Shutterchance I posted this snapshot collage of their short visit.

But I want to put a bit more flesh on the skeleton, to do it justice!

We have a camper parking lot nearby on the Merwede river, where they docked for two nights.

Since they arrived at 6:30 p.m. in Gorinchem, we wasted no time to greet them 

and spend a couple hours "partying" with them (as Norma said).

In the top-right image you can see their view back to where we live near the Big Church.

The next day was full but leisurely.

First we did our citadel walk, to get the lay of our land.

We even looked back at their camper across our outer harbor from the citadel (bottom-right).

Then we drove out into the polder to eat pannenkoeken at our favorite restaurant...

WHICH WASN'T OPEN FOR LUNCH THAT DAY!

So we punted and found one near Kinderdijk, which is where we wanted to end up that afternoon.

By now you should know this place inside and out.

We can't help it.  We want to take everyone there!

Yup.  Kinderdijk and her 19 windmills.

At 30 km. away, it's a no-brainer for us.

Back home, we had some munchies and more great conversation before bidding our friends adieu.

It was a short and sweet visit...but so much better than nothing.

So, this is for you, Chad and Norma.

THANK YOU for dropping by on your way to Germany!

For Chad and Norma: The Cottage

Returning to our May England trip (midst the craziness now of the Brazil World Cup and another Dutch win!), it's Chad and Norma's turn...with whom we stayed for 2 days.

It's hard to know where to begin but where they live is worth an entire post, all on its own.  Tell me if you're thinking of Better Homes and Gardens by the time you get through this!

This is why they call it The Cottage.

Front or back, it just oozes with charm...from 1346.

Yes, you heard me.  Can you imagine living in a house that old?

What's your favorite room inside your house?

Okay, so let's start with the kitchen, which is totally remodeled.

Tell me those knick-knacks in every corner aren't adorable.

And a dish or cup for every possible scenario!
(Remember, the English love their tea!)

This is where Norma is the QUEEN...and she loves it.

I think Food or Kitchen is probably her middle name.

You could say she eats it up.

 And so did we!  The dining room is right off the kitchen and is so cozy.

 

 But she is also an artist and has her own studio on the top floor.

You could say she eats that up, too.

 Everywhere you go, The Touch is there.  See what I mean?

This is in the family room....

...where lots of figuring out and explaining happened.

Did I mention that Chad is one of our Shutterchance bloggers...and he is a CRAZY artist!

And oh yes, they have 3 kids and 13 grandchildren.

Speaking of crazy...I went CRAZY over all the windows.

These are from the kitchen alone!

But all over the house, the windows totally charmed me.

See what I mean?

Now, come back outside and eat breakfast with us.

It's while sitting around food that we enjoy such good company.

Have you noticed that?
(BTW, Chad and Norma have been sweethearts since their teens!)

Lucky for us, the weather was nice enough for a lunch as well....

(Chad remembered we both like Magners Irish cider)

...and for a Happy Hour up on the hillside, where the conversations continued.

See what I mean about Better Homes and Gardens!

Even with the "obligatory" cats to entertain us!

 Everyone is welcome at this fabulous home.  Trust me.

Well...almost everyone.  We were ever so lucky for such a grand tour for two days!

Next up:  the things we did with Chad and Norma (besides eat and talk)!