Out and About in Cambridge

Some scenes from around Cambridge. Punting on the River Cam.


Pimms is a very popular drink in the summer. When I took this photo, after a long bike ride, I was drinking cappuccino in a pub. As I was looking through the camera, I thought, yep, Pimms sounds good right now. Advertising works! It's Pimms time!


Megan turned me on to my first Pimms. Its a gin-like liquor, mixed with the English version of lemonade. Their lemonade is not so sweet and has some fizz to it.


It's usually served with lime, lemon and strawberries in the glass, but we didn't have that, but it was so refreshing anyway.


One of the art galleries featured this artist who covers human figures in natural objects, like pine cones, pine needles, and acorns.


Saw this package of oats in the grocery store and thought it funny. I thought the 'True Taste of Scotland" was Scotch!


One of the many shops in Cambridge.


Tatiana, Simon and Steve's adorable daughter. We had dinner at their house the first night we were there. Tatiana speaks 6 (maybe 7 she says) languages although some of them she just muddles through!


The last full day I was in Cambridge, we biked through the countryside, stopping at many (5) pubs along the way. This wasn't one of them but I did have to stop and get a pic of their sign. "Every Wednesday Pie & Pint Night". I thought, what a great idea! But I said later to friends that I think coffee would go better with pie than beer. They looked at me like I had 2 heads and said it's MEAT pie! Oh, I pictured apple.


And perhaps my favorite thatched cottage. It's in Barrington which has many thatched homes. But this one is so big and the detailing at the roofline is so nice. Also the thatched boar on top is awesome!


The hollyhocks were in full bloom. I love hollyhocks. I wish mine looked like these.


And who could resist an ice cream from the Mr. Whippy birght pink truck?


This is the coolest clock I've ever seen. It was just completed last year and is installed right across from King's College, a very prominent location. It actually a 'chronophage', which means 'time eater'. The creature on the top resembles a grasshopper or locust. It cost $1.5 million. Time is seen as a running blue LED light, the outer one is the second, then the mintue, then the hour. It depicts time getting away, stolen from us. On the hour, chains rattle as in a death toll. The front legs move forward, 'grabbing' the clock and moving it forward, emitting a loud ticking sound.




And here are Seal and I passing time, sitting alongside the pond at Robinson College, enjoying a beautiful summer day. Stolen moments, but so enjoyable. Goodbye Cambridge, until next time.

Busy in Brussels

Since Brussels was only a half hour train ride from Lille, we spent a day and night there. It's a very touristy city, with the Grand Place Square, a market square in the city center.


There are cafes and shops surrounding the square, all very beautiful. In the center is a flower and plant market.


Just around the corner is an inside 'mall' type area with an amazing glass ceiling.


But I much prefer the unusual.


While walking around the city, I saw many buildings painted in whimsical colors.












Brussels is known for it's cartooning. It's HUGE there. There's a museum, many shops and around town are these massive murals on buildings.


It was fun to turn a corner and find another one. This one is in a 'Dupont' like area of the city.


All well executed and totally fitting of the site that it's painted on.


Not sure what the 'boys boudoir' is about!


While looking for a place for dinner, we chanced upon this narrow row of eating establishments. The walkway is very narrow, with tables and chairs set up outside each restaurant. There were at least 50-60 restaurants along these few passageways, each beckoning for you to come in. "Pretty lady and gentleman, we have this table just for you!" I really don't care to be hustled into a place, but we did end up at a French place. They all seemed to have the same type of fare, mussels, paella and lobster. We got a prix fix meal of French onion soup, chicken cordon blue and of course a Belgian waffle for dessert. As we sat down I noticed a photo behind me that featured Claude Van Damme (the Muscles from Brussels!) sitting at the booth we were in.




Belgium is known for it's chocolates so of course we had to choose some. They did not disappoint! WOW!


From the train, going back to London. I've always liked these 'sawtooth' rooflines.

Frenchy Dinner

One of the nights we were in Lille, we were invite to dinner at Pasquel and Ludavine's house. Pasquel is the person who invited Houston to give the talk at the university. Pasquel picked us up at the hotel and whisked us off to her place, about a 10 minute drive.


Pasquel, Zoe, Ludavine. They have two daughters, (the other one was upstairs at the time of photo taking) and the girls look like twins born 2 years apart.


A parade of neighborhood cats tiptoed across the tall wall surrounding their back garden.


I was delighted to see their postcard of 'Hope'. They followed our election eagerly.


The meal started around 7:30 and didn't end until 11:30. I really do like the way the French eat, one dish at a time, but it makes it hard on the hosts, always getting up to get the next course. I'm sure we went through their entire stock of glasses, dishes and silverware. They were even in washing dishes between courses. We started out with wine (of course!) followed by the very sweet, rich wine (more like a liquor). We ate guacomole out of apertif glasses for a starter. Then came a medley of olives and cantelope with mint, accompanied by a French pate served on a crisp piece of toast. The main course was slice of pork covered in a thick, rich cream sauce (surprise!) and heavenly mashed potatoes. After all those dishes were cleared, out came four types of cheese to choose from. And all the time, French bread.


And if that wasn't enough, this feast ended with the creamiest ice creams, currants and grated dark chocolate. Then espresso. WOW! I really don't know how those French women stay so skinny. With all the pastries, cream and bread, you'd think they'd be huge. Their are even books written about how the French women are so thin. (They walk, walk, walk, eat fresh ingredients, don't hurry when eating and eat in moderation.) Gotta try that.


I kept making moves to leave, as it was approaching 11:30 and I knew they had to get up by 6:30, but Pasquel and Ludavine were quite content to just sit and talk with us. It was such a pleasant evening and it was so nice to be able to visit with these lovely women in their home. But finally we did get up to leave and I caught this scene on their street.

A Li'l Bit of Lille

We were off to France for a few days. Houston gave a talk at the university in Lille, in the north of France. It really is just a hop, skip and a jump from London. In fact it cost us more to get from Cambridge to London than it did to get from London to Lille, a mere 1 1/2 hour Eurostar train ride. My first time through the Chunnel. We got off at this lovely train station in Lille.




My sherpa, Houston directing the way.


We stayed in the old section of downtown, a beautiful city settled around 640. But on our way, we saw some fun sculptures. In one of the leaves on the right, 2 children are playing.


There is an offbeat, whimsical sense to this city (the 4th largest city in France). I saw these gnomes in many places, all uniformly giving me the finger. They were either doing that or peeing.


There was lots of graffiti in the town, in fact, I think they encourage it.


And the BIGGEST surprise of all were the dozen giant baby statues downtown. They stood maybe 25' tall, solid black with varying types of wings, scales, dinosaur-like appendages on diapered baby figures.










When I rounded the corner and saw all these babies against the backdrop of the very ancient buildings, I stopped dead in my tracks, put my luggage down and just laughed. I gotta hand it to them. I don't think this would happen in DC!


We were put up in this fabulous hotel. It's a combination of 2 old buildings, a new building and joined by a central atrium.


The walkway to our room.


Towards dinnertime, we really did look for a French restaurant, but found only Brazilian, Ethiopian, Italian, and ended up at a Moroccan restaurant. Yummy.


Our hotel was right on a canal waterway. This is the scene across the canal from our hotel.


The following day, I was left to my own devices and just meandered around the bustling city center. It doesn't look bustling yet, but I learned that I happened upon the biggest sales event of the year. It lasts an entire month and nearly everything is on sale. It was so crowded, lines to try on clothes, lines to pay, but it was fun even though I had a language problem. I swear, I am so bad at learning any language. When one of my items didn't come up as on sale, even tho I knew it was, I just sucked it up and paid the full price. Doh! That will teach me to be stupid. But everyone was nice and no one seemed in a hurry.


I don't know how my friend, Piver, snuck over to paint this wall, but it looks just like something she'd do.



I went into one store that had a mix of yarn, ribbon, feathers, beads, craft supplies and buttons, buttons, buttons. All in a tiny space of about 200 sq. ft.


I love buttons, amassing a large stash myself. But nothing compared to this. Old, new, vintage, bakelite, metal, shiny, dull, sparkly, prints, patterns, plain, and every imaginable color. WOW!


And the ribbons were delightful too.



I tend to look up a lot, looking at the architecture of the buildings. Your eyes get overwhelmed with what the shops want you to see with their stuffed windows, colorful wares and big sale signs. But look up and it's arched windows, curved cornices, gables galore and sometimes a painted advertisement.


But looking at the French bread is pretty peaceful.


or into walkways


I saw quite a few flower shops. They differ from ours (except for the smell. They all seem to smell alike, the deep wet, earthy smell with a high note of fragrance) in that they have unusual arrangements.


like this ambrosial display of not-fully-opened roses, sedum and something else I can't identify. I loved the color combo too.


The alternating kinds of thyme and sedum made for a nice patchwork of sorts.


Decorative chilis, sedum and white flowers


and at the end of the day, these were my sore feet, having walked and walked miles over the cobbled walkways and streets of Lille.

Studio Touring

A customer of mine, Lea, had mentioned awhile back that she was going to buy a little cottage in England. I learned that she had indeed bought the place and was even going to maybe be there while I was in the Dales. I wasn't sure if we would overlap or not but I thought since I'm so close I'm going to try to find it. She had given me the name of the village and luckily it was small. So small that Seal and I stopped a woman walking her dog and asked if she knew of a cottage that had just sold. She mentioned this little side street so we drove over there and knocked on a door that had a for sale sign on it. A lovely woman came out, not Lea, although she is lovely too, and told us that it was probably the white one down the lane. We walked to Hartley Cottage (as the sign on the wall says). We knocked on the doort, but sadly no one was there. I gandered a peek in the window and saw a colorful felt piece of art above the sofa and knew if must be Lea's place. I wrote a note (I heart Hartley Cottage), telling Lea when we were there and to give a call if she wanted.


She did call the next day and was so sorry she missed us. Darn! By just a couple hours too. It would have been great to see her and hear about her new village. It is really just so darling. Lucky girl! We did get a pic of me pretending to go in the door.


We reluctantly left and went about our business of visiting artists on the studio tour through the Dales.


The nearby bigger village has this amazing carved stone bench in front of one of the shops.


I could not believe our luck in the pure coincidence of having the North Yorkshire Open Studio falling on the same weekend as our visit to the Dales. I had also had the good fortune to happen on this tour 2 years ago, but I was with my 2 sons and husband who didn't think it was so lucky. Two years ago it was much earlier, in May. So I really didn't think we'd hit it.
Our first artist was Andrea Hunter of Focus of Felt. I had been to her studio 2 years ago and really wanted to visit it again. she does amazing landscapes with wool, both dyed and natural colors.


Leslie and Ken Jones are a husband and wife team, working and living out of a converted 'longhouse' (like the one mentioned in an earlier post). Their home is in Stalling Busk, the wee tiny village that was near our B&B. They are the nicest couple and are both so talented. Seal and I were smitten with her paintings, were very tempted to buy one, but resisted. We did get a number of small cards though.


Their studios meandered throughout their entire house. One of the reasons this studio tour is so fun is that you get a peek at the way they live and work. There are 5 rooms upstairs and only one was a bedroom, the others are their gallery space and each had their own studios.


This is the painting of poppies that Seal nearly bought.


Leslie's pallette was as nearly as pretty as her paintings.


She told us that she gets ideas from her whimsical pottery that she's collected from around the world.


Painting is not their only talent. They also play stringed instruments during the long, dark days of winter.


I could not get me flash to work for this pic, but her kitchen is bright turquoise and so cheerful.


An all white bouquet sat quietly in the corner, shying away from all the color in the rooms.


They remodeled the barn/house but kept the original doors.




Carol Tyler's studio was in Hawes, a central village in the Dales. Hawes was bustling the day we were there. In fact, all the villages were really busy. The markets are open on Saturdays and I guess that brings the villagers out for their errands. Anyway, Carol's studio was in her small house at the end of a row of stone cottages. Two cats (one hers, Tuppence, and one a neighbor's, Marmaduke) were out front rolling on the cobblestones, waiting for a tummy rub. Carol said she recognized me (!) and I remembered that she had been in an old church in another village during the tour 2 years ago. She had bought this house in those 2 years and it was nearly done with the renovation, so she opened it up for the tour. Her studio space was upstairs, full of light. Her artwork is abstract and has very subtle coloring, very soft and appealing. Just like her, except for the abstract part.We went to a few more studios, 12 in all. One was Winifred Hodge. She does swooping paintings of the Dales, but I wanted to visit just for her name. She sounds like Miss Marple's best friend.


Another marvelous thing about the tour is that you can see artist's gardens. They are always perfect, no weeds and so full of perennials, they are bursting in color. The grass is cut so short, it's just a pure green stubble. Angela Keeble's studio was a perfect example of this. Her house was in the small village of Bainbridge, near where we stayed. It faced the village green, but walking around the house one came to this beautiful tiered garden, 'green rooms' that led down to a stone wall that stopped just above the River Bain. (Yes, there's a one lane bridge that goes over it!) We spent a bit of time out there before going in, so long, that she offered us coffee and biscuits. We finally made it into her studio and kept gasping at the color in her paintings. Both Seal and I paint (I just dabble mostly) so we are in awe when someone can achieve the right juxtapostion of color, shape and design.


And this is the painting that Seal bought. It's about 36" x 36"! Crazy girl.


And here she is happy and content by the river.


Imagine our surprise when we came into Bainbridge on Sunday after driving through this sleepy hamlet at least 6 times and seeing no one and then to have hundreds of people on the village green for the annual Beamish Auto Rally. These old autos zip across the Dales to meet up in Bainbridge, have a big picnic and looksee, then drive on. We got there just as they were setting up, the proud owners showing off their motor cars and the crowd of passersby oogling the cars. It was the most magnificent day, the sun high, the sky clear and warm temps in the 70's after being cool and breezy for days. All the convertibles had their tops down.


Vintage motorcycles were also part of the display.


Having grown up around cars (my dad was a car dealer, an honest one!), I'm always still intrigued by antique cars. I love their chrome, the 'bubbliness' of them with their rounded shapes, the leather interiors and the big steering wheels.


This one doesn't appear to be too comfortable for driving.


I especially like old trucks. This locksmith truck caught my fancy.





I meant to get a pic of the man who was driving this rig. He looked all 'locksmithy' with his long coat and driving hat.


And at the end of a long day of seeing some awesome art (and some truly BAD #*it!) we made it to a pub for wine and dinner. This Shandy is really for Sara. She'll get it.

The Dales Part Deux

Ahhhh! My favorite area of England. For some reason, this place just captures me and holds me in awe. I love the green fields, the yellow expanse of buttercups (a very good year I hear), the small country roads barely a car width wide, and of course the wee stone villages tucked away in the valleys.


After going through a village of about 60 people, winding up and over hills and dales down this road, passing 2 farms, we came to our B&B for the night.


Blean House is a 'longhouse', once a long barn with the farm animals living on the bottom and the farmers living in the top. The animals kept the farmers somewhat warm. But now it is two homes, divided in half. Our hosts, Pat and Peter moved there two years ago, rehabbed the place and now have two bedrooms for a B&B.


A typical English garden flanks the front and the back has a large yard, enclosed by a stone wall of course, and a stunning view of the Dales beyond.


The view from the front. Another little garden with table and chairs.




This is Peter, our host. A cheerful guy for sure.


They are up on a high hill that overlooks this lake. It's a private lake with each farmer owning a bit of the lake whose land reaches it.



Another farm down below.


From the backyard.


The old carriage house, now a garage.


And the resident hens, who lay the eggs for our delicious breakfast.


This rooster lives just down the road and comes to visit the hens daily.


This pic is for Ann who will get it.


I took an early morning walk down the lane to the small village of Stalling Busk. Only about 5 houses and 4 miles from the main road. It used to be a large farm with the workers living in the houses, but now is inhabited by artists and a jam preserve business.


Most of the farmers get around on their 4-wheelers. One Border Collie was riding on board and the other running alongside. The running dog came up to me and I told him he had work to do so he'd better get on.


A fragrant, pretty wildflower that was in bloom all over the countryside. It might be cowslip.


Many of these stone barns dot the landscape. They are spaced about 1/8 mile apart in the fields.


Some need a little help staying together.



I love the texture, the rusty pieces, the colors of these old structures. I passed five of these barns in just my short walk. I made it back just in time for breakfast!

Moors to Dales, Lovin' Yorkshire

After Robin Hood's Bay Seal and I scooted through the Yorkshire Moors. There is one main road that circles around the area (about 100 miles around), with the terrain looking rather flat or a bit rolly. But once off that road, you go down very steep (25%) grades to the valleys below.


We had some onlookers while we were maneuvering these tiny backroads, occasionally having to turn around (9-point turn!).


We should really invent a sheep that eats thistle and stinging nettles, two plants that this country has WAY too many of.


A tad breezy up on the moors!


Every village was cuter than the last one. I was really proud of myself for driving on the left. I got used to it pretty fast and with Seal helping ("Stay left! Stay left!") I was soon zipping around corners, parallel parking and even softly cussing at Brit drivers to hurry it up!


In one of these valleys is Rivaulx Abbey. I'd been here 2 years ago and wanted to show Seal. We didn't go in, just walked down the road a bit to look.


The tiny village surrounds the abbey and this Historical Trust site is right in their back yard. Ho hum. They probably find it annoying with all the tourists coming through.


We ate lunch in this farm shop along the way. There are many of these places in England. They grow their own produce, raise their own meat and sell right on the property. There is also a cafe in the loft and tables right by the cattle. It did smell 'barny' which doesn't bother me but I could see that some folks wouldn't want to eat their apple pie by cow pies.


The structure is a very long barn made of stone. I've seen many of these turned into homes.


I thought the displays of produce so enticing. Kale, onions, leeks, cauliflower.


Gooseberries and strawberries...mmmmm




Didn't have a chance to try the Magnet Ales but I sure did like the sign.


We took a twisty turny road, down, down, down to this little railroad depot. I guess it's a town as it was on the map but it consists only of the depot, an artist's studio and a B&B. After looking around a bit, we continued on but ended up in a thick forest and after taking a number of roads, decided it best to turn around and head back the way we had come. Good thing too. We didn't have a very good map but did have "Miss Mapple", our GPS. She kept recalculating but we overrode her and turned around. When we did get to look at a more detailed map, it seems we would have come to a dead end.


Happy train!






Always polite.


A few more sights along the way....


There are so many little stands in front of people's homes. Usually it's plants or flowers. I thought this one was so cute. I may put up one in front of my house in Barnesville. One summer, about 15 years ago, I had an abundance of zinnia flowers. I cut many bouquets and put them in a large bucket out front, with a little 'honesty' box for money. The boys were young then and thought it so much fun to lift up the top of the box and retreive the money.


Just a little castle ruin in a village. La de da. We were walking from the car park to the market and passed it on the way.


This is one of those very steep roads. It's about to drop off and I wanted to see how steep it was before driving over what seemed like a cliff. It was ok, but a wee bit scary when other cars were coming up. Pulling over was a challenge, especially trying not to hit the sheep. This particular sheep was laying in the road when we came by the first time and was still in the same place on our return an hour later.

Gotta Knit!

Of course I can't travel without my knitting. I had my projects picked out, yarn dyed and dried, patterns printed, yarn wound, needles arranged and all neatly packed in individual bags way before I had my clothes packed. Maybe that's why I almost forgot my passport! Yikes! I really almost forgot it. The only reason I remembered it was because when I went to do on-line check in, they asked for my passport number. Holy crap! Luckily it was in the file cabinet under 'Passports'. Whew!


But I did remember my 4 knitting projects. This is a new mitten pattern I'm designing. No design yet, just basic knitting and will add something to the top and probably a ruffle on the cuff. They're knit with my Salsa in the color Fruit Sorbet.


Project number 2 is the Picot Eyelet Socks. Knitting them with Salsa in my semi-solid turquoise color. I jump from the mitts to the socks and will maybe be able to finish them. I thought I would get a lot more knitting time riding to the Dales but Houston didn't go along so I had to drive. No knitting time for me. But Seal was knitting my 'Going to the Barn Handwarmers' actually finished them in time for me to wear them. Thanks!


This doubled-over edge gave me so much trouble. I ripped it out twice and finally just made do with a bit of a twist to it. Pooh!


Here's my darling needle holder. I got it at the Sheep and Wool Fest and love it. It's very handy for traveling.


Sometimes I can be organized.


And here's some hopefuls. A wavy scarf with Briar Patch (color) Salsa...


and some involved patterning handwarmers out of my Sock Hop in the Bordeaux color. I should take these along on our jaunt this Wednesday to France. I plan on sitting in the old city of Lille, drinking coffee, eating a pastry, watching people and knitting.

Off to Robin Hood's Bay

Seal and I rented a car to take us the 3 1/2 hours up north to the Yorkshire Moors and Yorkshire Dales. We turned that 3-1/2 hour trip into a nearly 7-hour trip, due to stopping along the way and taking pics, eating at a pub, and pulling in to any shop that might sell jewelry. But we made it to one of my favorite places I've ever been, Robin Hood's Bay, perched right above the North Sea. This was my third visit here and not my last I hope. I was here 2 years ago with two of my sons and they said this was their favorite spot too. I would love to spend a week here, painting, writing, reading, knitting and meandering along the cobblestone streets.


This is the view from the road leading down to the nearby villages of RHB. The houses are all stone and the rooftops red tile.


We got to our B&B, The Villa, had a quick glass of wine (OK, 3 glasses of wine!), then walked down the very steep hill to the main part of the village. Earlier in the week Houston had bought me a couple walking sticks to use as a cane and I must say, they came in very handy. I was moving very slowly, but every day got better and better. We were lucky enough to be on this trip on the longest days of the year so by the time we started down to get something to eat, the light was low, the moon up, the cliffs falling into the sea below and it was so achingly beautiful, we could cry.


The Bay Hotel is right on the water, with just a simple cobbled boat ramp between it and the water. There are fishing boats tied right up front, the fisherman in from a day on the water, eager for a beer.


Just above the ramp, across from the pub, is a rounded stone building with windows facing the sea. This bay was a major pirate place and these windows were used for a lookout for pirates. arghhh!


We rested our eyes on this sea shore scene, with the low light scattering pastel colors on the water.


With the tide low, there were rock outcroppings peeking up, filled with pockets of water.


After a delicious dinner, we walked back up the hill to our place of rest for the night. Passing this pub, with it's colorful lights, we almost ducked in for a nightcap.


We made it past though. But it was tempting!


This is the row of B&B's at the top of the hill. These were mainly built around the mid-1800's, catering to people coming for a respite from the cities. The first people to settle Robin Hood's Bay came around 1535, and some of the descendants still live here.


The next morning, after a full English breakfast, we walked down to the old part of town again. I can't get enough of the tiny, twisty walkways and the cute cottages built helter skelter along the cliffside.


But first a stop for our morning ice cream. It was SOOOO creamy, no low fat stuff here! It's made locally from the cows we saw grazing the thick grass when we were coming in.


We sauntered up, around, down, through, between and all over the pathways leading from one cute passageway to the next.


Cottage doors are painted brightly, offsetting the ubiquitous brown of the stone.


Even the rooftops offered a graphic picture of shapes and colors.


We'd come around a corner and go "ohhhhh cute!" or "ahhhhhh adorable!" It really is like a theme park of cuteness. But it's the real deal.





To make a place stand out from one to the next, the doors were either painted a bright color or studded with iron.


Even the pillow out drying in the sun, complemented the scarlet of the bench and trim.


Little courtyards across from the front doors afforded the family a quiet place to relax if they didn't have a back yard.


I meant to ask what these nets are used for. Kids brought them down to the water but they seemed to lightweight to use for fish. I wanted some of the nets though, they were in such happy colors.


Our proprietor of the Villa, Jane. She was so sweet to us, even let us use her computer for the entire evening so we could locate a place to stay in the Dales. We had a full English breakfast (of course!) along with 2 other couples who had just finished the Coast to Coast trail. The C to C trail is a 194 mile long path that leads from St. Bees on the Irish Sea to Robin Hood's Bay on the North Sea. When one hikes it, they are supposed to grab a pebble from one sea and throw it into the other sea. Our table mates had their pebbles to throw in after breakfast. Or they put their feet in both seas.


Regretfully leaving the Villa. But the Dales beckon!

Pahties!!!

Houston surprised me with a a little birthday bash in our flat the other night. He'd invited some of our friends here and we had a great time. (except that right before the party I twisted my knee and now can't walk very well). But I sat there on a chair in the middle of the room and everyone came over and wished me well.


Houston had Waitrose (it's like Whole Foods) cater the party and they delivered boxes of canapes and this beautiful chocolate cake.


Marcus is from Germany, teaching here in Cambridge.


Dan (Switzerland) and Laura (Austrailia) are here working and doing research.


Alejandro (Italy) and Simon (South Africa) are working with Houston in the chemical engineering department. It seems most everyone who came is from somewhere else, except a few folks from Cambridge who I failed to get a pic of.


It's May Ball week (the end of the school term and reason to celebrate) there are fireworks every night. I pretended they were celebrating my birthday. I great way to end a delightful day.


Then the next evening we went out to a neighboring village, Barton, to have an alfresco dinner with Gaby and Clemens and their two adorable children. It was a beautiful summer evening with flowing wine and great company.


I brought cheesy American presents to Leopold and Josephine. Leopold (4) took about 2 minutes to transform the monster guy to a forklift. It would have taken me most of the evening.


And Josephine (6) got a little pony thing with a tiny bucket and brush.


By 10:00 it was bedtime. Since we are so far north and it's nearly the longest day of the year, it doesn't get dark until nearly 11:00. It's hard to get kids to bed in the daylight. Good night!

Night at the Pub Granta

After biking all day, we decided to walk down to the Granta pub for a drink. It's along the Granta River where one can take a punt boat or canoe out and slowly paddle down the river.




As the night proceeded, the light was laying on various colors on the brick building over the river.





Good times. Oh yeah, that's Seal. Why is SHE here?! Here's what happened. I left on Friday for England, calling Seal one last time on my way to the airport to say goodbye. She wished me a good trip and to have lots of fun. So, I get to the airport a bit late and it was REALLY busy. Got through security ok, then made my way to the gate. It was packed. I saw Seal walking towards me at the gate and I wondered why she had gone through security to say goodbye to me. Nothing made sense to me and I couldn't quite figure it out. I asked her what she was doing at the gate and she said "Did I want company?" To England? Yep, my dear husband thought it'd be a great surprise for her to come to Cambridge to celebrate my birthday. She got a ticket just a week ago and when I saw her, I was totally in shock, then just started crying and hugging her. What a scene I made! Soooooo, she's here for 10 days and we're having so much fun. Good times!!!!

Biking Birthday

Yesterday was my birthday and we spent it biking from village to village through the beautiful English countryside. I took Megan (who is a friend from Maryland living here for a year) and Seal through fields, farms and foliage, over hill and dale, to have lunch at a centuries-old pub in Barrington.


Starting out was easy going on the trail leaving Cambridge.


But going through the thicket and hedgerows was a bit more challenging. We had to duck low while biking or get knocked off the bike by a low hanging branch. Critter holes were abundant and one time a groundhog skittered down its hole before my bike bounced over the opening.


Then it was uphill a long path between a rape field and a wheat field.


This poppy field was gorgeous, glowing red-orange in the afternoon light.


Stopping at the village of Comberton.


And finally made it to the Royal Oak in Barrington where we had the most delicious lunch.




I had prawn and crawfish ciabatti with Marie Rose sauce. And the biggest chips (fries) I've ever seen! Mmmmmmm! It's good we were biking!


More of the sights on the way. Every village has the cutest houses. They are all so well tended and the gardens so charming.


Our bikes taking a rest.


And this one is for Mo, our Barnesville postmaster. Her folks are British so I know she'd appreciate this one.