Leaving England

Well, the project in England got as far as we had anticipated, and our last few days with Geoffrey were spent site seeing in Bath, Wales, and Devonshire, where we saw some pretty amazing scenery and museums.  During our drives getting around from here to there, daffodils flanking hedgerows were in full bloom everywhere.

Geoffrey's new hut as we left it

The Roman bath's with all of their history were amazing, and as we toured the ruins, it was most humorous to think that such famous people as Marc Antony, Caesar, and others had actually washed their dirty feet right there!  In Wales, it was especially nice to see so many small and quaint independent book stores--all loaded to the brim with beautiful books.  Apparently, England's economy is not as bad as ours, or there likely wouldn't be so many of them.  One of the shops added a fabulous little cafe inside where we had lunch (the best beef/chorizo burger  ever made)!  And let me not forget to mention the many, many, many, pub stops where we enjoyed local ales and fish n chips----YUM!

Roman Bath

Roman Bath

Wales

We arrived back in the USA in the early evening and thanks to Ken's daughter, we spent the night at her home in Seattle where we were treated to a wonderful homemade dinner.  What a nice homecoming.  Our drive from Seattle to Portland was during an extreme down pour of rain all the way, but we were hell bent to get there and see our newest granddaughter, Fiona; born just two days before we left.  What a darling little bundle of sweetness---and a nice visit with parents, Kurt and Rebecca.

We are home now, recovering from jet-lag and coping with the change in time......talk about confused sleeping patterns!  Naps are nice.  Traveling is fun, but home is where the heart is.

Life is good......

Merry Old England

Every now and again, unexpected life opportunities arise. Instead of passing them by and repeating over and over, "woulda, shoulda, coulda" one must take advantage and make it so!  As mentioned in my last post, my companion Ken is an artistic genius and was recently asked to build a hobo hut for a friend in England.  Luckily, I was asked to accompany him and help with other things and see the sights.  So, I am here living the life of a Princess, for a while.

We left for England with Ken's head going crazy with design and have now been here and at it, for two weeks. We are staying in the original 400 year old Kingscote Park House that Ken remodeled 18 years ago, and I can tell you it is a most unusual and fabulous place.  Our friend, who owns this place called Matara, has added a beautiful wedding event and wellness center to the property.  Anyone aspiring to a very memorable and tranquil experience would find this to be the place!  Check out their website at www.matara.co.uk

Over the past weekend, we had the pleasure of watching a very young and eccentric English wedding take place on this property.  I couldn't take my eyes off the hat maker bride who designed her own outfit and hand beaded shoes, along with all of the colorful decorations that they substituted for the more formal decor that the center offers.  Very enlightening to see the humor and frivolity this couple had at their celebration......made me go look in the mirror to check my age.

But, back to my original reason for blogging...."The Hobo Hut".  Here are a couple of pictures of the progress being made.  Oh, and I forgot to tell you, Ken has two very ambitious and excellent workers with him, who don't speak a word of English.  Somehow language is no barrier, body and sign language work better than the real thing!

More pictures to come later in the week.....time now for us to have some fun.

Tally ho, pip pip, and carry on!  LIFE IS GOOD