A Proper English Garden.

I finally got a phone call from Vytas to say they had arrived at Kentisbury but they were going to Tescos first to pick up food for the week. I drove into Barnstaple to collect Romas then we called in at Sommerfields to check out the late bargains before driving out to Kentisbury. The sudden downpour and the high temperatures caused small clouds to form dramatically in the Muddiford Valley and I managed to find a vantage point to photograph them and the evening landscapes.

I drive this way to work and every morning I see this wonderful view across Bideford Bay to Hartland Point.

The mist in the valley almost looked as if the hills were on fire.

The evening light gave a beautiful depth to the colours and dramatic shadows. As we stood on a slight rise enjoying the scenery and listening to the sound of birds and sheep we suddenly became aware of the sounds of live rock music drifting over the hills. Somebody was having a party on that lovely evening.

We headed off to Kentisbury Grange to wait for Vytas. I've been there a few times before but never further than the car park but the site warden came out and invited us to have a walk around while we waited. This is the main lawn where Vytas and his fellow karate club members will be doing Karate and Aikido (and meditation) for a whole week. He's been a keen member of the karate club since he started university 5 years ago and is now a brown belt. I remember on our initial visit to Leicester Uni, showing him all the clubs advertised in the student union building and suggesting that this was a good time to follow a new interest. When I went to uni I took up pistol shooting, it was something different, but I didn't keep it up despite Peter's interest in guns.

Wandering aroung the grounds at Kentisbury are various fowl, this magnificent leghorn was escorting a couple of pretty hens. Usually the peacocks stand right infront of the cars but I didn't catch sight of them. We finally caught up with Vytas and arrived home for a roast dinner 2 hours later than planned, Peter was not pleased. We watched some of Glastonbury on the tv. One of the children from my class has gone there with his dad so I kept looking for them in the crowd shots. I'm quite jealous that a 5 year old gets to go and I've never had the chance. The peace and quiet of our valley was disturbed until the small hours by a disco being held in the barn right next to our house. I can understand that we weren't invited as it was for the local hunt and Sarah knows my views on hunting but I would have thought a courtesy call to say it was on would have been in order. Even with the windows shut, (on a really hot night) we could hear the music through the double glazing. It was still going strong at 1.00 but my knockout tablets sent me to sleep then.

Today we've been over to a colleague's house to celebrate her Ruby wedding anniversary. She has an immaculate garden with the most wonderful views to the sea and across to Wales.

Can you imagine having a view like this from your sitting room windows ?

It doesn't show up on this picture but the Gower Peninsula is clearly visible on the horizon. The garden is spotless, not a weed in sight, with beautiful roses everywhere. I'm really ashamed of my own garden, there are so many areas that need tidying up. Lots of colleagues came, with children and 2 tiny babies, the food was wonderful, lots of excellent nibbles. Champagne, strawberries and cake completed the refreshments. It was just a shame that there was light rain for part of the time. The children didn't mind and spent most of their time running around the vast garden.

Now that's a proper English garden. I was going to go out and do some late weeding but Linas and Romas are out there target shooting (airsoft) so instead I'm going to watch Status Quo at Glastonbury with the volume right up.