The soul is made of love and must ever strive to return to love. Therefore, it can never find rest nor happiness in other things. It must lose itself in love. By its very nature it must seek God, who is love.
Mechthild of Magdeburg
10 Comments CherryPie on May 22nd 2016
Our weekend away was a garden break package which allowed free entrance to Abbey House Gardens and Westonbirt Arboretum. We awoke to find that there had been another downpour overnight which led to the morning air being rather chilly. When we had finished breakfast the sky brightened up so we went for a walk around Malmesbury before visiting Abbey House Gardens. The gardens were glorious after the recent rainfall which had brought out the vibrant colours of the leaves and flowers.
Whilst I was taking photographs near to the river which flows through the garden a gentleman started up a conversation with me…
Him: Do you think you have managed to get some good photographs?
Me: I think I might have.
Him: I bet they will be put on your computer never to be seen again!
Me: I will probably put them on the internet so everyone can see them.
Him: (after a slight stunned pause) That is very grown up of you.
He then disappeared chatting to his companions.
Following the lovely walk around Abbey House Gardens the plan was to go to Westonbirt Arboretum. On arrival it was time for a spot of lunch sitting outside in the sunshine looking at the unusual living roof garden that covers the top of the main cafe.
After lunch there was a short walk to the old aboretum which is the longer of the two walks. The sky suddenly turned a lot darker and I heard a loud rumbling noise. I was beginning to think it was time for a change of plan because there are lots of exposed places with no shelter on the walk.
Me (to Mr C): That sounds like thunder
Reply: Yes
Me: And we are going into the middle of a forest when there is going to be a storm???
No Reply: (carrying on walking)
Me: Can you just stop for a minute please!
No Reply: (but stopped walking)
Me: I don’t really want to go any further if it is going to rain because I don’t want to get soaked.
Reply: It isn’t going to rain I can’t feel rain in the air.
Famous last words (or rather, wishful thinking), 10 seconds later the first drops of rain fell and there was a hasty retreat back to the covered shop and cafe area, where we lingered for some time.
Eventually we decided to give up the idea of visiting the arboretum and just as we drove outside the gates the sun came out! It was the point of no return so we made our way back to Malmesbury and visited the Abbey, which now functions as the Parish Church. Whilst we were in the abbey, youngsters were practicing singing for a service which was in celebration of they youth pastor who was leaving for pastures new. It was all very joyful and uplifting.
For dinner we tried out the hotel Bistro where we found the food to be delicious. After dinner we retired to the small hotel bar area which consisted of two two-seater settees and a few bar stools. Instead of sitting on the same settee as me Mr C decided to sit (next to me) on the other settee. After a while we were joined by another guest who chose to sit by me and as he sat down Mr C wandered off.
I got chatting to the other guest who was touring the area on his own. We discussed what we had been doing that day and it transpired that we had both visited the abbey. He produced a book on cathedrals that he had bought from the abbey shop and gave it to me to look at. By the time Mr C returned we were deep in conversation and Mr C was a bit left behind.
7th June 2009
14 Comments CherryPie on May 21st 2016
We set off on our journey later than we intended, partly due to the inclement weather. Along the way we spotted an ideal cafe for lunch, but the mornings downpour had turned the parking area into a field of mud! This meant we had to abandon the idea of lunch there, it also involved some off-road driving, across a field in order to get back to the main road.
We continued on our journey and ended up at the National Trust property Snowshill Manor for lunch. The cafe had a nice ambiance and the food was delicious. By the time we had finished eating it had stopped raining, allowing me to take pictures of the garden before entering the house. I found Snowshill Manor with its eclectic collections quite fascinating.
After visiting the Manor we made our way to Malmesbury and The Old Bell where we were staying for the weekend. When we entered the room we found that there was a rather unhappy looking bear in residence…
Mr C suprised me by producing a bottle of Lustau Sherry from his packing case. We enjoyed a glass whilst we got ready to dine in the hotel restaurant. The food was delicious and we had a nice relaxing evening.
6th June 2009
16 Comments CherryPie on May 19th 2016
It has been my intention for quite some time to post diary blogs (from my notebooks) on holidays that I had not written about in this way. My older notes are more brief than my current notes, so the ‘historical’ holiday journeys I share with you will be less detailed.
*Phew*, I hear you say 
Tomorrow I will start with our anniversary weekend away in Malmesbury 2009.
8 Comments CherryPie on May 18th 2016
…before the weather turned
This was yesterday evenings meal which we quickly assembled after a pre dinner visit to deliver a birthday gift. A perfect dish to enjoy on the patio before the sun went down.
The weather has now become cooler and rainy…
6 Comments CherryPie on May 17th 2016
Yesterday we undertook a day trip to visit my Aunt who lives in Manchester. There was a time when we always used the same tried and tested route to her house. That was until I purchased a new SatNav last year and tested it out on a visit to my Aunt. The SatNav took us on a completely different, but very enjoyable route past Jodrell Bank and the Manchester City Stadium and as we neared her house it bypassed all the narrow Coronation Street type roads that we were used to travelling along.
At the point of choosing a destination the new SatNav always picks the best route to fit your selected criteria. This means that the routes are subject to change. Yesterday was no different… As we were driving along the Live Traffic feature identified a route that was three minutes quicker and asked if we wanted to choose it. We chose the new route, which took us down a tree lined lane which was especially beautiful with the sun shining through the leaves and branches. As we turned a corner in the lane we came across a flock of sheep being herded down the lane. The SatNav works well with Live Traffic information but not so well with predicting a mobile sheep block
On the way home we were expecting the SatNav to take us through the Cheshire countryside past Jodrell bank which would have been delightful in the evening sunshine. But no the SatNav had other ideas and took us back by our own tried and tested route…
10 Comments CherryPie on May 16th 2016
Over all the mountaintops is peace. In all treetops you perceive scarcely a breath. The little birds in the forest are silent. Wait then; soon, you too, will have peace.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
8 Comments CherryPie on May 15th 2016
