Sovereign orange and black

Walking through the humid hot houses we were surrounded by stunning colour and movement.

Yellows, greens and blues fluttered past.

But it was the sovereign orange and black colours of the Monarch butterflies that really captured our attention.

These butterflies were everywhere.

Butterfly World at Studley Grange in Wiltshire.

Signs of Cirencester

We enjoyed a wonderful outing to the beautiful Cotswolds market town of Cirencester in the county of Gloucestershire. 

This is truly a picturesque town with so much to see and to please the eye.  Disappointingly we were only able to spend a couple of hours here, so this will be somewhere to visit again.

Tiffin Tea Rooms

A civilised afternoon out in the Georgian town of Alresford in Hampshire, with lunch at Tiffin Tea Rooms.

This gorgeous tea room with its delicate cream and blue china inspired decoration is a pretty little…

…escape for home-baked cakes (just like your mother made) and award-winning speciality teas or even homemade lemon aid.  (I can highly recommend the Chocolate cake.)

The tea rooms has been awarded The Tea Guild’s Award of Excellence three years in a row (2010, 2011 & 2012), so this is a definite destination for the tea drinking connoisseur.

Coffee day

A lazy day of  frequenting coffee shops.

First stop was Viva in Dorking.   A wonderfully modern restaurant on West Street, where we enjoyed a morning coffee.  Disappointingly we had already had breakfast, because the food looked fantastic.

After a failed expedition to Ripley for “afternoon tea”, we ended up in the ubiquitous Costa.

New lavender seedlings

With the briefest of sunshine today, I have finally managed to plant my new lavender seedlings out in their container. 

I have longed for lavender in my garden for many years.  Probably yearning back to my childhood when there was lavender in my Dads’s garden.  So when my very kind friend Michelle was offering some of her seedlings, I really couldn’t resist.

On reflection

What do you reflect on? 
Your life, your loves, your work, your performance or maybe your appearance?

I am really looking forward to another week off before the start of the new academic year.  Time to stop and take stock before I launch myself head long into another year.   Time to breath and enjoy time at home.  Time to reflect on the year gone by and to think about what I would like to achieve in 2012-2013!

 

I have my eye on you

I am watching your every move. I see what you do and where you go. You are never out of my sight.

This beautiful and graceful creature was on display at RHS Wisely as part of a Birds of Prey exhibition.

What a difference a day makes

Isn’t it funny how quickly things can change?  A couple of days ago the heavens opened, the rains came without warning and we had to dash for cover.  The only shelter we needed to-day was from the blazing sunshine on Chinthurst Hill. 

With virtually no-one around, it was so peaceful wandering around the folly which sits on the summit of the hill. 

The only sounds that interrupted the stillness was that of a bird of prey hovering on the air thermals above us and the calls of dog walk trying to get their “faithful” friend to return to their side.

Hardy souls

As the rain came down we dashed for shelter towards Winchester Cathedral‘s Refectory. We stopped for a moment underneath the archway between the Cathedral shop and the Refectory and caught sight of these hardy souls still enjoying their lunch outside.

Still standing

The remains of the medieval St Catherine’s Chapel still stands proud on a hill in Artington on the outskirts of Guildford. It has weathered the storms of history, and although it is no longer in used as a Chapel, it is now a popular place to visit along with its sister church St Martha’s on the Hill.

Seeing this magnificent building which has lasted through the centuries, it got me thinking about what I will build (metaphorically) in my life that will leave a legacy. Will I create something that will weather the storms of life?