Charlotte Bronte

The moon of the first photograph returns much later in the day

Rabindranath Tagore

I couldn’t quite get the angle to frame the moon and the cathedral in the same photograph. I could have done with a bit of time but my companion would probable have got bored and impatient whilst I wandered around for the perfect angle.

The second photo shows the top of one of the trees from the first photo.

I awoke to the delightful sound of cathedral bells before we made our way downstairs for our final breakfast in Stoberry House. Some interesting conversations took place over breakfast including one involving a couple who were thinking of opening a B&B who were seeking advice from our hostess, Frances, on how best to go about getting started.

We chatted to our host, Tim, as we paid the bill and were thanked for making things easy by jotting down the drinks we had had from the honesty bar. Apparently this is unusual and not doing so can lead to some awkward conversations. We said goodbye to Frances who hoped we would be back. As we left the house we checked out a secret lounge that we hadn’t noticed before. Next time we visit this will be our lounge of choice On the car park as we were getting ready to leave we got chatting to another guest about Shropshire amongst other things.

We headed off to Stonehenge where we found that, as English Heritage members, we did not have to join the long queue. We chose to walk to the stones rather than take the shuttle bus, taking in the landscape as we made our way towards them. We took a leisurely stroll around the stones which I found quite peaceful despite the crowds. Back at the visitor centre, we shared a sandwich in the cafe and I bought a new book about Stonehenge before we made our way to The White Hart in Salisbury.

We checked in and freshened up before walking to the Haunch of Venison for dinner. This turned out to be the culinary disappointment of the weekend. The service and food quality did not match up to that of our previous visit in 2014. I finished the meal joking about taking the upside down mint from the plate that had been placed in front of us. It was only after I had eaten it that I noticed there was a rip in the foil. It left me wondering if this is why it had been placed upside down…

After this less than desirable experience we walked through the cathedral crescent, enjoying the view of the moon as it rose over the roof of the cathedral. We ended up back at the hotel where we enjoyed a drink in the hotel terrace garden whilst watching the sky turn from blue to black.

The weather has been unusually kind to us for a bank holiday weekend. This meant a trip to a garden centre to obtain some plants to fill some of the vacant spaces in our garden borders. We spent this afternoon filling the new border and some pots on the patio. We sat outside for a while in the afternoon sunshine to enjoy the new transformation. As you can see the garden is still very much a work in progress. Tomorrow we have someone coming to look at the area where our shed is. Hopefully he will be able to do the work that needs doing to demolish the existing shed and replace it with a new one.

I will leave you with a photograph that at took in the early hours of the morning before I went to bed. I am not sure where the time had gone and why I was up so late/early. But I was rewarded with this beautiful sight before I drifted off to sleep listening the birds singing their morning chorus

John Ruskin (1819 – 1900)

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