#the countryside all the more refreshed. my dogs will miss me. they always miss me. my i think i need a hug i’m distressing myself…. strange

[sonia7atm]

BRIDGERTON BOOK SERIES REVIEW.

So here it is, before I start I just wanted to say that I’m in no way shape or form an expert in english or literature for that matter. English is my third language and I’m studying science. Having said that, I have read all eight books in less than two weeks and I have a lot of opinions that I wanted to share so here they are. Obviously: SPOILERS AHEAD

The series in its entirety

The bridgerton series is probably the best written series that I have ever read. I loved the fact that it is made up of 8 books, but also the way the books are structured. In each of the books we focus on one of the siblings and their significant others, and even when the side characters are there, they are not really a main focus of the story. This means you can pick up a random Bridgerton book without having read the other ones and you would not feel like you are missing something. I really liked this because it meant that with each book you were getting to know a different sibling, thus you are never really bored and there wasn’t unnecessary drama happening with the already established couples, which is refreshing at the least.

However, it does have setbacks. In some of the books, you find that this side characters really change from the way they appear in the background or the other novels, and it can be difficult to digest at first. Another flaw that I found is with the brothers' books. When I was reading some of the books dedicated to the men of the family sometimes I found that we don’t spend enough time with them and when you finish the books you don’t have an understanding of who they are. Maybe I’m not making sense but I’ll elaborate in each book a little bit more.

But in the end, even these little flaws, I had a great time reading the books and finding out what was happening with the family.

My favourite book - AOFAG

I know some people have trouble ranking the Bridgerton books, especially, the favourite one, but I’m not one of them. I am obsessed with “An offer from a gentleman”, I love the story, I love Sophie, I love Benedith and I love Violet Bridgerton with all of my heart. This book is great from the start, even though b, the third book you know a happy ending is what the book is leading to, it still excites you and makes you wonder. AMAZING DARE I SAY.

Sophie is one of my favourite characters in all of the books. She has a strong morals system and you get really inspired by her. All of the things she goes through are horrible, but she still remains such a calm and kind individual that I cannot help but stan. HARD. She has very strong ideas and morals and she sticks with them even when they mean losing Benedict. I found this message really important and powerful because we usually see the opposite: people changing their views for their significant other, and I don’t think it's right. So, hereby I declare Sophie QUEEN of the Bridgerton clan.

Moving on to Benedict, I heard a little bit of criticism with his actions in this book and I see where they are coming from, but I don’t share them. I think Benedict is one of the brothers that suffers from a really deep female counterpart and as such his thoughts are not fully explored. In my opinion Benedict is tormented by the fact that he is the second Bridgerton and nothing more (similar to Colin and kinda Gregory really), and also by the fact that he lost the woman at the ball. On top of that, Sophie comes along and he starts falling for her and he feels guilty that he is falling for someone else, so he doesn’t fully commit to Sophie but also doesn’t really leave her. It’s a messed up situation and he doesn’t make the best decisions but I understand his actions and I support him. The only thing that really annoyed me about Benedict is that he doesn’t recognize Sophie at all. I wanted to hit him, hard, in the head, with a fucking piano.

Now the best of the best: Violet Bridgerton. She was the surprise character of this book in that prison scene. In the previous book you still see her and like her but she saves the day in this one, and I felt like I really knew her after that. She is not the typical ton mother, she really values their children’s happiness and takes everyone under her wing. She knows who she is and the importance her family has and she uses her powers for good. I gained so much respect for her. A surprise character and a great one.

To sum it up, Benedict and Sophie are perfect to each other, like this mellow entity. Two kind souls, always happy, always calm. Of course they live in the countryside, they could not live anywhere else.

Top tier books - WHWW, RMB, TVWL

WHEN HE WAS WICKED

This book wrecked me, I have to admit I was a mess, I could not deal. A tragic story with so much longing and guilt and despair, I love a drama, man this is great. I went in knowing the basics of it but I was not prepared.

The poor Francesca has the most devastating story in my opinion: she suffers from infertility, her husband dies, she doesn’t feel like she fits in her family, and when she falls in love Michael is sick, WHY?!. Throughout the book you get to see how strong she is, how strong-willed she is. We are not talking about this enough. She loves with all her heart and she suffers with all of it too. She and Michel have a really strong chemistry and it translates really well. I think she was really clever to wait and think before committing to Michael, and I see how she would need to see him in danger to really let herself fall completely. In the end, she knows what losing someone you love feels like and she doesn’t want to feel that again. I understand. Also, an important part of Francesca's journey is to realize that loving someone else doesn’t diminish her feelings for John, and I love how Michael acknowledges it. 

Michael is a really interesting character who falls in love at first sight with the wrong woman. He is fully aware of this fact and it is really good to see that he doesn’t doubt his love for her, but is instead aware of the impossibility of doing something about it. Even when he can do something about it, his respect for his cousin is always present. The guilt he feels for loving Francesca both when John was alive and after he died is so different but so well written. It’s eating him up and It is painful to read to be honest. However, I found that said guilt disappeared rather quickly after his conversation with Colin. I may be the only one but I was a little bit put off by it, and that’s why this is not my favourite book in the series.

THE VISCOUNT WHO LOVED ME 

The bees, I could talk about the bees for days after reading this one. This one has a lot of Bridgerton backstory, and it explains so much of the rest of the bunch even if not directly. So I would say not to skip it (but why would you skip any of them?).

Kate Sheffield is one of the best written characters in this series. She is complex, fierce but delicate, confident but self-conscious. I would kill for her, she deserves it. Her family dynamics are impeccable. You feel the love between these three women and the roles they have, and you get them really quickly: Edwina is the little sister, a little naive but good-hearted, Kate is the fierce older sister and Mary is the compassionate step-mother. I really enjoyed their dynamics. The introduction of Kate’s character is by presenting her goal for the season: defend her sister. When Anthony enters the pool of suitors, she obviously opposes and their back and forth shows she is very witty. But as the story goes on we get to see her insecurities and fears, in a way that it’s so in character but at the same time so different from the start. It’s amazing and I can see why she is such a fan favourite.

Anthony is a baby.We can see how Edmund’s death really scarred him, and those wounds are deep. He believes in his own demise so blindly that it is conditioning all of his decisions.He grows a lot until he is able to share them with Kate and they bond so beautifully over it. Getting to see that, was something that I loved and enjoyed so much. It makes you really connect with both of the characters and it explains so much of his behaviour, that even if he frustrates you, you can’t be mad because you understand where he comes from.

Newton is the guest star in this one and I would like to take our time to appreciate the captain of the Kanthony ship. This little dog is such a plot device, put there to cause havoc and bring Kate and Anthony together, it is so funny. He smelled Anthony and decided he wanted a new dad. Put a plan in march, probably alerted his friend, THE bee.

ROMANCING MR BRIDGERTON

The message of this book is amazing. The journey they both go through to re-know each other is beautiful. Penelope and Colin have known each other for years, and they both have a version of the other in their minds but as the story progresses they unveil hidden personality traits about each others and I love how it is acknowledge and developed into a clear message of “people are flawed and not the perfect individual you wish them to be, and that’s ok”. It is really necessary and it made me reflect on my own relationships and how I could improve them. Colin and Penelope have to be my favourite couple of the series, but, because they were because of the show and not the books, when I finished this book I was left feeling like I wanted more, and that is why it is not my favourite one.

This is the book where readers find out Penelope is Lady Whiseldown and it is a big plot line. However, this revelation is maybe halfway through the book and until then, Penelope's inner monologue doesn’t reveal anything. I would have loved to really focus on it and know from the start how she really did it but at the same time, we get to see so much of Pen’s growth anyways. She is shy and kind but when she is with someone she trusts (in this case Colin and Lady Danbury), she is full of wit and boldness. I see myself so much in these characteristics that I cannot help but make her my favourite character in the series (totally biased but it is what it is). She starts with a sense of discontent about her, she knows her fate and accepts it but, she doesn’t necessarily like it. She is trying to change the way people see her and Lady Danbury helps a lot with it. She and Colin spend a lot of the book kind of on opposite sides in part because of their own demons, she wants to prove herself and at the same time is faced with the realization that the Colin she made up in her mind is not the real one. It really makes you wonder if it’s a happy ending at the end of it, because they both have such strong points but they are so diverse. At the end, after they talk about it, their relationship is full of devotion and you feel how they are making each other focused and better. I would die for them.

Colin is such a tumultuous character and it is a stark contrast on how we get to see him in the previous and following books. He is used to putting the charm on and fooling everybody but, of course, in this book we explore his inner workings and now we know the truth. He is just a lost puppy, looking for something to do with his life, and he is so focused on this search and runnin away for his family that he doesn’t see that there is already something that he is good about: writing. His relationship with Pen is obviously key in all of this searching because it pushes his limits and makes him think. His realization, of both his vocation and his love are slow and steady. He sometimes jumps to conclusions and rushes things *ahem*the proposal*cough* but not love, and once he commits he does it fully. The “stay, stay, stay” scene is a monumental hallmark in the book. We see Colin really deciding and choosing Penelope and Lady Whistle down with all that it entails. And later on, he opens out about his jealousy over her work, but he does it when he is ready, and Pen allows him to come to her when he needs without judgement. They are so perfect it hurts. 

The lack of Eloise is an insult to my soul but we get Lady Danbury as the guest star. She is on Penelope's corner helping her navigate the ton and her relationship with Colin, as a mother figure would. I believe she at least has a big suspicion that she is LW, but I might be wrong.

All-nighter books - OTWTTW, IIHK. ON THE WAY TO THE WEDDING

Gregory’s book is full of twists and turns that you just cannot put it down. Not the fact that the main female character is Lucy and not Hermoine, like Gregory thinks half of the book, just because you don’t. It is pretty clear that Lucy is our heroine so the fact that Gregory falls for her is not a twist itself because we (and Kate) already know. But in my opinion, the fact that it starts with Gregory interrupting the wedding and then it goes back and explains the backstory to you, so it is constantly leading up to it. 

Lucy is not the most interesting of the female leads but it is part of her charm. She is a normal girl, her life is already arranged, so she doesn’t feel the pressure the rest of them do, she is just enjoying herself. She doesn’t believe in love, and it is so funny how in denial she is about it, until it all explodes. 

Gregory’s life was influenced by her brothers before him and his big family but he feels so alone because of the age difference. He is trying to find his place in life and, because he saw all of his siblings fall in love he wants the same thing so badly, that he confuses desire with love. He is so precious, and must be protected at all costs.

The last few chapters are action packed, there’s an urgency in everyone's actions: Lucy, trying to save her family and Gregory, trying to save Lucy. I couldn’t figure out what was going to happen and that hooked me. The fact that the wedding actually takes place is the most shocking plot of all of the books.  

To conclude, Gregory owns my heart and I trust him with it.

IT’S IN HIS KISS

This story is another “all-nighter”, because it revolves around a mystery and the search for Gareth’s grandmother lost jewels. This quest brings Hyacinth and Gareth together, with a lot of Lady Danbury’s help. It’s really interesting to read about the felonies they commit, all of them instigated by Hyacinth, who, in my opinion, is chaos personified. 

Hyacinth is the most forward-thinking woman of this series. She is outspoken, confident, loud and apologetic. All of these traits really set her apart, because she doesn’t play by the rules of society, she does what she pleases, and she should. She is the typical little sister, a little spoiled but with a good heart. Her conversations with Violet are really touching. 

Gareth on the other side, is not in a good place with his family, and it is endearing to see how shocked he is by the Bridgerton’s closeness. He has a severe lack of self love, and sees himself as an imposter, and not worthy of Hyacinth. But when he falls, OMG, HE FALLS. His attitude towards Hyacinth’s personality is amazing because he loves her exactly as she is, and knows he will be following her orders for the rest of his life. Adorable. (He is the “That’s my wife” meme).

Lady Danbury is again the guest star and it only helps to cement her as the cool grandma that we all aspire to be. An honorable mention is Anthony getting super-duper happy that all of his sisters are married and therefore he is free (my poor guy).

However, the main issue I have with this book is that the decision of getting married is really attached to Gareth’s need to vex his father, who is a horrible person, and it makes me mad. 

Not my favourite books - TSPWL, TDAI

TO SIR PHILIP WITH LOVE

In this book Eloise decides running off to meet a possible husband is a great idea. Her brain, I can’t. Obviously the Bridgerton brothers follow her and force the two to marry anyways, although they were already falling in love when they found her. Phillip, Eloise's love interest is a loner and lives outside of the ton and I think that these traits really work with her because they are polar opposites but at the same time they fit so well. The relationship Eloise has with Amanda and Oliver is so cute, because you can see that these kids just need some attention and help navigating the world without her mother and Eloise is there for them.

However, even though I loved their storyline and I wanted to rank this higher I couldn’t. The other Bridgertons are a big part of this book and when I was thinking back on it the parts that I remember fondly the most are when Anthony, Benedict, Colin and Gregory arrive to kill talk to Philip, and then when Charles is ill and we get to see Benedict and Sophie as parents. So, I like this book because of side characters and not the main ones, even though I know there is nothing wrong with them. However, I do think the book is ok and I would recommend it nevertheless.

THE DUQUE AND I

I don’t have much to say about this book. The r*pe is completely unnecessary in my opinion. Daphne and Simon have terrible communication skills, but so do Kate and Anthony, for example, but still, the repercussions are not that severe. It is so much worse in the books and it has no consequences whatsoever. Up until that point, the enemies to secret dating to falling in love is such a classic thorpe that I usually like, but I cannot separate the two of them. In fact, I would advise to skip this one.

Hapily Ever After

Thank you to the heavens for this book. It is just a little exploration of all of the sibling’s future and an extra story for Violete.

Daphne’s story revolves around her last pregnancy. A surprise one when she is quite old. I found it really sweet and it looks like she and Simon are really happy with their life so good for them. Also, Colin and Penelope visit with all of their children so I’m obligated to like it.

The TVWLM continuation is a get together in Aubrey Hall for a Pall Mall rematch. I had so much fun reading it and getting to see all of the Bridgertons interact in a “relaxed” manner.

Sophie and Benedict’s story focuses on Posy and her search for a husband. She is lovely and I do want her happiness but getting to see Sophie and Benedict interact while actually together was a treat. I feel very blessed to see them be the balls of sunshine they both are.

Then we get to see how Eloise found out Lady Whisheldow’s identity. It was fun, and we get to see Pen and Eloise being friends, which we don’t get enough of in their respectives books. Colin and Penelope leaving the wedding early, was a gem. They are a couple of horny idiots and I love to see it. After that, we focus on Eloise again and we get to see a little bit more about Amanda and Oliver.

One of the main things about Francesca in her book is the fact that she wants a baby, and it is never resolved. In this one, we get to see how Francesca and Michael become parents and it's another heartbreaking one. We get to see how worried Violet is for her and also how Michael and Francesca talk and understand each other. They are one of the best relationships on this series, I said what I said.

In IIHK the diamonds are never found, but we find them here. It is great to know they were not missing and also a relief to know that Gareth was able to rescue the family even without them. The fact that Isabella actually finds them and proceeds to say nothing is hilarious. But when Hyacinth finds them the happiness she feels is so wholesome.

Then we get to see Gregory and Lucy’s twins be born (their 8th and 9th children). It is not an easy task and for a moment I was afraid for Lucy but it all works out in the end. It was filled with great moments but the one that I like the most is when Gregory says that Katherine gave him purpose in life, because he was meant to be a dad. I cried ngl.

And lastly, we meet Edmund. He is very present throughout the book but I was not expecting to grow so attached to him with this little story. It is divided in different stages of Violet’s life and obviously we get to see her romance with Edmund. I loved the little details, his behaviour reminded me of Gregory but he eats a lot like Colin so it is great to see where they get their traits from. The later parts, after he dies, show you how much importance Violet puts on remembering him and preserving his memory. They were truly soulmates, and it is such a shame that their time together was cut short.

[feynavaley]

50 Questions

I took this from @mandelene, thanks for the open invitation!

———

1. What is the colour of your hairbrush? Light brown. (It’s a wooden hairbrush.)

2. Name a food you never ever eat. Well... I’m quite a picky eater but I generally try everything if I’m pressed (even though I end up not liking it). I won’t eat very spicy food though, I don’t have a good tolerance for it. Another food I used to enjoy but now I can’t even stand the smell of anymore – and even less I would eat – is almond paste. (Long story short, I came up with something – maybe labyrinthitis – that made me awfully nauseous and dizzy for a few days. I would throw up any time I even just stood up, I couldn’t eat anything. But my roommate had on her desk and almond paste cake, which has a very strong smell. Since I constantly smelled it while feeling so sick, now that’s what I associate that smell and taste with.)

3. Are you typically too warm or too cold? Generally, too cold. I handle being cold better than I handle being hot, though.

4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago? Translating from English to Italian some stuff my dad needs for work. (He doesn’t understand/speak English.)

5. What is your favourite candy bar? Kinder Bueno, Tronky, and Bounty.

6. Have you ever been to a professional sports game? No.

7. What is the last thing you said out loud? “No, I haven’t seen your glasses. Are you sure you didn’t leave them upstairs?” to my mother.

8. What is your favourite ice cream? If it’s good, Pistachio. It’s very hard to get right, though. Not many ice cream parlours can prepare it well, they tend to make it too sweet.

9. What was the last thing you had to drink? Water.

10. Do you like your wallet? Yes. Actually, I have two – one is a big red one where I keep basically everything, the other is blue and small and I just put in there a few banknotes and coins and the cards I need, changing them every time. I like both of them.

11. What was the last thing you ate? Chicken breast and salad for dinner.

12. Did you buy any new clothes last weekend? Nope. I’ve been confined home for almost one month and a half. 😅

13. The last sporting event you watched? I don’t know. I’m not a fan of sports so I don’t watch anything spontaneously. I only watch something if I’m with somebody who wants to watch it, but I don’t remember when the last time was.

14. What is your favourite flavour of popcorn? Uhh... there are different flavours of popcorns? I only know one... 😅 I’m not a great fan, though.

15. Who is the last person you sent a text message to? An aunt of mine. (My mother’s youngest sister.)

16. Ever go camping? Yes and no. I’ve never gone with a tent in the wild or anything – however, my grandparents used to own a trailer that they kept in a fancy camping location/trailer park by the seaside. When I was a child, I would spend the entire three months of summer break there. I don’t know if it counts as camping, though. After growing older, my sister and I would sleep in a tent instead of the trailer (because the trailer was too small for everybody), but it was still in that fancy campsite which I don’t know how much can count.

17. Do you take vitamins? No.

18. Do you go to church every Sunday? Yes. I mean, not right now, clearly (all the Churches are closed due to Covid-19 lockdown) but I would go under normal circumstances.

19. Do you have a tan? No. And it’s very hard for me to get one, anyway. I’m as white as a person can possibly be. 😅 (I’m paler than an actual albino person I know at work. I wish I were kidding. 😓)

20. Do you prefer Chinese food over pizza? I prefer pizza. Very stereotypical, I know. 😅 (I’m talking about real Italian pizza, though.)

21. Do you drink your soda with a straw? Generally not.

22. What colour socks do you usually wear? White or black.

23. Do you ever drive above the speed limit? Depends on where I am and what the speed limit is. I respect the 50 km/h limit inside the cities and towns, but the 30 km/h that can be often found... yeah. 😅 (I’ve never met a driver who respected it, though.) If I’m out of the city and on a straight street across the countryside, I respect the 70 km/h limit but I tend to go faster if there’s a 50 km/h one. (Unless I know there’s an autovelox.) I’ve never gone above the 90 km/h limit, either – actually, I tend to go more around 80–85 km/h on those streets. I should probably also mention that I never drive much above the speed limit, though.

24. What terrifies you? Failure. Hurting or even just disappointing or upsetting other people. On the irrational side, I’m highly arachnophobic and I’m terrified of dogs.(Because I was attacked by a freaking SAINT BERNARD. Luckily, it just got my sweater, but it was completely mauled by the time somebody managed to get it back so... It also turned out I’m mildly allergic though, so me not staying around dogs is probably for the best anyway.)

25. Look to your left, what do you see? I actually don’t know how it’s called in English. I have a sloped wooden roof covering the left side of my bedroom, and I see it along with the skylight.

26. What chore do you hate most? Washing the dishes. Our sink is at a height that forces me to bend in an awkward way and makes my back ache if I have to wash more than a couple of dishes.

27. What do you think of when you hear an Australian accent? “OMG what is that person saying?? 😭” I’m not a native English speaker so strong non-standard accents always throw me off a bit, at least at first. 😅 I need a few minutes to get used to them.

28. What’s your favourite soda? Citron soda (I don’t know the brand. It was one my great-grandparents used to have in small glass bottles, it tasted amazing and was so refreshing...), Fanta, or Coke Zero. I don’t drink soda often, though.

29. Do you go in a fast food place or just hit the drive? I go in. I think there’s only one place with a drive-through in my hometown. 

30. What is your favourite number? For some reason, I’ve always liked the numbers 3 and 11. They aren’t my lucky numbers or anything, I just like them. (Actually, thinking about it, I know why I like the number 11... In German, it’s ‘elf’, and I started taking German around the period I was obsessed with LoTR... 😅)

31. Who’s the last person you talked to? My mother.

32. Favourite cut of beef? I hardly ever eat beef (I eat meat about every other day, but it’s generally chicken or turkey breast), I don’t have a preference.

33. Last song you listened to? This one. (You’re welcome.)

34. Last book you read? Fire and Blood by George R.R. Martin.

35. Favourite day of the week? Saturday.

36. Can you say the alphabet backwards? Yes, but only the Italian one (that is missing J, K, X, Y, W). I tend to mix up some letters in the English one. 😅

37. How do you like your coffee? Plain espresso.

38. Favourite pair of shoes? My ankle-height black converse.

39. The time you normally get up? Since the lockdown started, between 8:30–9. I’ve been having trouble sleeping so I’m always tired in the morning.

40. What do you prefer, sunrise or sunsets? Sunset, the colours are gorgeous. Sunrise is still beautiful and so it’s the atmosphere, but the colours tend to be fainter.

41. How many blankets on your bed? One, at the moment.

42. Describe your kitchen plates. Kind of square, white with blue and yellow stylized flowers in the corners.

43. Describe your kitchen at the moment? Quite empty. We’re due a grocery run.

44. Do you have a favourite alcoholic drink? No, I don’t like any alcoholic drink. For some reason, I don’t like the taste of alcohol. (And there’s probably something genetic here as it’s also true for my sister, my father, and other relatives from my father’s side.)

45. Do you play cards? Technically, I know a few games but I’m not really good at them and I don’t play often.

46. What colour is your car? I use my mother’s car and it’s dark blue. We also have a dark grey car (belonging to my father) but I’ve never used it because it’s very big (you can go up to 7 seats), I wouldn’t feel comfortable with driving it, let alone parking.

47. Can you change a tire? No.

48. Your favourite state? I’ve never been anywhere in the US so I can’t say.

49. Favourite job you’ve had? The current one. The pay is very low so I’ll have to leave it as soon as I find something better, but I love these children so much. 😭

50. How did you get your biggest scar? I actually don’t have any big scar... I have several small ones. The biggest one is probably on my arm, from when I leaned against the toaster to unplug it and got this long, thin burn. 😅

———

I tag anybody who feels like doing this! And please tag me back, I’d love to read your answers! 😊

[oldfashionedswiftcurse]

Like Pieces into Place

Hi hi hi,

I’m working on a new fanfic that takes place near the London countryside with Taylor and Joe (during/post-Calvin, Tom Hiddleston doesn’t exist in this lol). Please let me know if you have questions, comments, feedback, etc. Enjoy!

The lush greens and reds greeted her and her Range Rover as they barreled over the rocky driveway to her cabin. She certainly wasn’t in Nashville anymore. She wasn’t even in America. Taylor had left behind the populated city life for some time away. Although Tree had mentioned that the private cabin was located right on the outskirts of London, she hadn’t specified the immense distance between Taylor and her neighbors. Other than the beautiful ranch they passed earlier, there was little sign of life, and while it would definitely allow her to concentrate fully on her next album, it gave her little to do otherwise.

           “Tree, when you said private, I didn’t actually expect a murder cabin. Just to be clear, should I call 911 during an emergency or just accept that I will most likely be slaughtered by a serial killer?”

           “Taylor, no one is going to kill you. It’s both cute and rustic, and you did reiterate how much you wanted your privacy,” Tree echoed, and Taylor admitted defeat.

           “You’re right. I guess, if a daily phone call with Adam and utter loneliness for the other twenty three hours of the day is the path I chose, I’ll just have to deal with it.”

           “Atta girl,” Tree beckoned, rustling with her phone in the background. “By the way, you can take a break with the dramatics. The Maxes will be joining you every morning for this next week, so I think you’ll manage just fine. It’ll be a great new album.”

           Taylor chuckled, hanging up the phone. As she parked the car and carried her bags inside, she basked in the refreshing feeling of doing something alone. It had been so long since she had carried her own bag or driven herself that she was glad to be doing basic chores. After unpacking slowly and memorizing the basic layout of the cabin, Taylor changed into a gray sweatshirt and leggings and walked through the seemingly endless forest. As the wind began to blow her blonde curls into her eyes, Taylor opted to cover herself with her hood as a shield.

           It was the perfect temperature, just cool enough for the wind to leave some goosebumps on her arm, but warm enough for her breath not to leave a trace in the air around her. Taylor would describe it as the perfect level of balminess. As she continued onward, Taylor spotted the same ranch from earlier. There were distant cries of laughter, and she was relieved that she was vacationing (if that was even the right word for it) near a family. Families always made her feel warm inside, and in this particular moment, she thought back to her own childhood farm as she picked pumpkins while her brother, Austin, ran through the fields.

           The ranch was massive, but still maintained a distinctly homely quality to it. The farm area was attached to a large white Victorian home equipped with a wraparound porch and a porch swing. It was the kind of home you grew old in, accepting the peaceful transition from a bustling city to a quiet town. She wondered what Christmases were like in that house and whether or not the children shared the same memories that she did from her childhood.

           “Lucky, come back! Dad’s going to have a fit, and I won’t be able to go to the festival this weekend!”

           The sound was very distant, but as Taylor watched a tiny Australian Shepherd waddle right past her, she knew that the voice would be linked to a young child. The cherubic, blonde child appeared before her, armed with a doughnut and a long leash, and frantically raced after her dog.

           “Here, let me help,” Taylor muttered, chasing after the dog and scooping it easily into her arms as the girl clicked the leash into place. “This little guy’s got a lot of power in him, huh?”

           The girl eagerly nodded, and as Taylor placed the dog onto the ground, the girl managed to take a bite of her very pink, very frosted doughnut.

           “Thank you, Miss. If we hadn’t caught him in time, he’d be gone forever, and Dad would never let me get another pet! This is Lucky, and I’m Madilyn. We live just down the path there,” she said, extending a hand to Taylor and then deciding against it due to her frosted fingers. “Are you living out in that cabin? Dad said it was about time we got a new neighbor.”

           “I am. Hi, my name’s Taylor,” she said gleefully, sliding her hood down. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Madilyn. And you too, Lucky, rebellious as you may be.”

           And as Taylor smiled at the excited puppy, Madilyn’s jaw dropped.

           “You’re…this can’t be real. Maybe I hit a boulder and fell off a cliff or something because…well, I don’t know if anyone’s ever told you before, but you look an awful lot like…”

           “Taylor Swift?” The pop sensation teased, but as Maddie’s cheeks grew pink with embarrassment or awe or a series of different emotions, Taylor couldn’t help herself. “That would be me.”

           She shrugged, and Maddie looked on in amazement.

           “Do you mind?” Maddie glanced inquisitively, reaching for her phone.

           Taylor acquiesced immediately, smiling brightly for the selfie. Her smile was authentic, unblemished by the city facades and too-bright paparazzi lights.

           “If you don’t mind me asking,” the girl interrupted politely, “what are you doing…here? My friend from school, Elizabeth, never wants to play here, and her mom’s only in banking. I can’t imagine an actual pop legend wanting to spend time around here when you could be surrounded by crowds and cameras!”

           “First of all, your friend, Elizabeth, doesn’t seem like she gave this place much of a try.  You should never have to convince or beg people to spend time with you in your home, especially if you have a puppy as cute as Lucky. Second of all, the fame and attention…it can be too much too often. It’s nice to distance yourself sometimes, which is exactly why I’m here in this wonderful setting as you so quaintly put it,” Taylor responded, and the girl’s wide, green eyes looked back in great doubt.

           “I’m only eight,” the girl replied succinctly, and Taylor wondered why she even tried. “I’m not sure I can quaintly put anything.”

           At that age, friendships still carried the appearance of continuity, and of course a girl just about to enter tweenhood was still tricked by the allure of fame. It was a disillusioning realization one could only come to after spending years and years in the spotlight.

           “MADDIE! MADILYN?!” A deep voice bellowed, and Maddie instantly glanced backward and then back to Taylor.

           “Is it okay if I invite some friends over tomorrow to meet you? They would die if they knew you were here!” The girl uttered, reaching once more for her phone.

           When she noticed the huge glops of frosting made by her fingers during the selfie, she hesitated and wiped her fingers on her bright red leggings.

           “I’d actually appreciate it if you kept my presence here a secret, Maddie,” Taylor muttered, and the girl’s head shot back in resignation.

           “Are you kidding? This could change my life!”

           “I’d be pretty upset if one of my friends broke my trust like that, Madilyn. I hope we can be friends.”

           Maddie’s shoulders fell in defeat, but she smiled back.

           “Tell you what, I won’t tell anyone about you if you don’t tell my dad that I almost lost Lucky. I really want Lucky to have a brother or sister, and both Dad and Granny Lu always vote me down, and it’d be a tremendous help…”

           At that moment, her sentence was cut short by the appearance of a broad-shouldered, blonde man.

           “Madilyn, how many times have I told you not to stray too far from the ranch? I knew getting a dog was a bad idea, but somehow, I let you convince me anyway.”

           He froze when he spotted the two blondes before him.

           “There you are! Madilyn Alwyn, when I say that dinner will be ready in fifteen minutes, I don’t mean that we’ll wait for the princess’ grand arrival whenever she feels like stepping into the kitchen.”

           He glanced over at Taylor quizzically, then back to his daughter.

           “Now, I expect to see Lucky all washed up and you sitting at the dinner table in approximately ten minutes,” he said unflinchingly, and the blonde child shrugged apologetically at Taylor and then raced away with Lucky in tow.

           “I apologize to you if she kept you. I’m Joe, Joe Alwyn, I own the ranch just down there. And that was Maddie. She’s eight, and while I’m glad she can finally walk without a diaper or a stroller, I must confess it has proven to be a struggle to find her anywhere,” he said breathily, and the rapid inhale-exhale pattern of his chest acknowledged that he had been pretty frantic in his search for his daughter.

           “Taylor. It’s nice to meet you. She’s really a pleasure, and she does have a way with people,” she teased, extending her hand.

           Joe reciprocated the action, and the sleeve of his dark blue flannel brushed against her hand when their hands locked together.

           “She didn’t try to sell you anything, did she? I’d check your pockets too for valuables. I’d say she ranges from savvy saleswoman to common grifter depending on the day.”

           Taylor chuckled before noticing that their hands had not separated. They both glanced down, returning their respective hands back to the side of their bodies.

           “She did not try to sell me anything, I promise. She did say something about a huge blowout party tomorrow though, something about unicorns and carnival rides,” she teased.

           He rolled his blue eyes, chuckling himself. His ice-blue eyes crinkled when he laughed, a habit Taylor wondered whether or not he was aware of.

           “She got it from her mum, I swear,” he said, his bright gaze growing slightly grim. “So how long are you planning to stay around here?”

           “A few weeks, at least. I’m a musician, and I’m planning to write a bit of music while here,” she said, gesturing to the copse of trees surrounding them.

           “If you ever need someone to play a saxophone,” he whispered, gauging from her wide eyes that this plan would never come to fruition, “I’m always available. I was a pretty skilled sax player in my day.”

           “I will definitely take you up on that offer if I find myself in need of a…saxophone,” she joked, slipping her hands in her pockets. “It was nice to meet you, Joe Alwyn.”

           “You won’t be taking me up on that offer, I assume,” Joe said, scratching the back of his neck goodheartedly. “I may have slightly over exaggerated my saxophone playing abilities.

           Taylor shook her head, smiling at the ground.

           “But if you keep Lucky around, I will make every effort to see him. That Maddie is pretty special too.”

           Joe grinned back at her, and they separated with a quick wave. Taylor made her way back to her cabin just in time for her to respond to a few texts from close family and friends. She spotted a quick text from Adam and checked her hair quickly to make sure she was prepared for their scheduled Facetime call. One glance at the text, and Taylor knew it was bad news.

           Sry babe, didn’t register the time change between Sydney and London. we’ll figure this out. xxx adam

           She exhaled in defeat, throwing her hair into a loose ponytail. Tonight, she would soak in a long, hot bath and squeeze in some writing time. There were many ideas swirling around her head, and as she slipped into a restful sleep in the bath, her mind kept thinking of ways to incorporate a saxophone into her next album.

[sweetcatmintea]

Lemon and Ginger and All That

@hannahs-creations very kindly provided a random four word prompt to make into a drabble. Thanks for the prompt! Sorry it took a hot minute to write <u<;; 

I hope you enjoy this little scene ^u^ Feedback is appreciated!

Prompt:  vitality, manage, fluster and gleefully

Words: 1768

Characters: Marcos, Whitney, Freddy (Briefly), and Mella

          Chaotic didn’t cover the state of the 6pm Café. Freddy’s promotion idea went over so well last fortnight, people were practically lining up to see what they’d do to the menu this time. The apple and elder-flower brew did not disappoint. Perfectly refreshing in the warming days of early spring, with a gentle aroma that transported you to the countryside, apple picking with your gran. Light, crumbly, pastries and tiny finger sandwiches sold almost as quickly as they were prepared. Every time a happy customer left, two more would arrive. That may be a little dramatic. It certainly felt like facing the hydra of the food industry at least. Marcos and Freddy were run off their feet greeting customers, taking orders, brewing tea, selling dry blends, answering questions, transporting food, and trying to squeeze in spot cleans. Uncle Antonio hopped between the register and the kitchen, saving Leroy from the flood of demands.

          What terrible timing for Whitney to have to skip out. Although she complained about it, she lived for the busy days like today. She loved to get lost in the hustle, while still managing to find a sense of order and co-ordinating the boys. Marcos had never seen anyone more determined not to take a sick day. When the first thing Whitney did that morning was bolt to the bathroom to re-evaluate dinner, it was clear there was no avoiding it. Regardless of how it went down, the result was the same. Whitney was stuck at home while the boys played the service edition of the floor is lava. (Or would that be the customers?)

          Marcos’ mind was a blur of orders and customers, but he didn’t let himself lose track of time. As soon as the hour ticked over, he tagged out. Of course, he checked that Freddy and Uncle Antonio could manage without him first. Not wasting a second more of his lunch break, he slipped into the backroom, tore off his uniform, replacing it with a change of clothes he’d prepared earlier, and was gone.

          The walk to their house was made significantly faster by running. Marcos was at the painted off-white door in record time. The plan to catch his breath while he fiddled with his pockets looking for his key met a hitch when he couldn’t locate it. Briefly panicking that he’d left it at the café, Marcos tried to calculate how long it would take to run back to get it, would that take too long? It didn’t fall out while he was running did it?? He’d have to go and find it before someone else did. Should he just risk waking Whitney and asking her to let him in? Ah but she won’t get better if she’s no- wait a minute. There it is. False alarm. Fishing the key out of the depths of its fabric prison, Marcos let himself in as quietly as possible. If he was careful, he should be able to avoid the creaky floorboards.

          “I cab ‘ear ‘ou.”

          Never mind. He followed Whitney’s raspy croak to the living room, still mindful to tread lightly. She was huddled on the couch, cocooned with blankets and half draped over the arm of the chair. Mella, taking the role of mother hen, sprawled over Whitney’s tracksuit clad legs, incubating her just in case folding herself into cotton origami wasn’t enough. Fever was obvious, painted over Whitney’s sweaty face, interrupted occasionally by loose strands of hair. She hadn’t even bothered to tie it back. Even in illness, she was an over-achiever.

          “Were you asleep?” He tired to keep his voice soft despite its gravelly texture. Judging by the way the radio was on, but turned down to its lowest possible volume, she probably had a headache. He wondered briefly if she was resenting her rabbit hearing at the moment.

          Whitney shook her head, waving his worries off. “I was ju- uh- aacho!” Another balled up tissue in the over-stuffed bin. “I was jus’ dyin’g apparendly. No, I was listenig do the mid-day stories. Whab are ‘ou doin’g ‘ere?” Mella whined and wiggled closer to Whitney’s flushed face. She was supposed to be resting!

          Marcos shrugged. “I got you some tea. Give me a second, I’ll make it for you. It’s called, uh, ‘Vitalitea’ and it’s got lemon and ginger and all that. Should hopefully make you feel better.” It couldn’t make her any worse at least. Red eyes and streaming nose, it was almost painful to see her so far from her bubbly self.

          Whitney had always been good at reading people. Just because she was unwell didn’t mean she couldn’t see the crease setting into Marcos’ forehead. He was always so busy worrying about others. The demand he not pity her fell away to the realisation of what he’d said.

          “You cabe back jusd ‘o bake tea?”

          “No. I’ll get you some lunch too.” He wandered off to the kitchen to get started, entirely missing the touched shock he left her in. According to his calculations, he was still on track even after stalling to get into the house. The majority of making food was just waiting for the tea to brew. It took next to no time to make a sandwich or boil water. While the tea was brewing, he grabbed a brush and a hair tie, returning to the sick bunny.

          Seeing her face a tiny bit more flushed made his stomach twist. Was it really okay for her to stay here alone?

          “Can you sit up? I’ll put your hair up since I’m here.”

          Whitney sighed dramatically but wiggled her way to a sitting(ish) position, much to Mella’s disapproval. “Leab me here to die. I’b not lon’g for thid worlb.”

          “Nah, I think we’ll save ya Cottontail. You know Freddy and me’ll be lost without ya at the café.” He chuckled, combing the brush through her long, long, hair. She tried not to think about how his breath tickled her ear, sending tingles down her spine.

          “I tolb ‘ou nod do call be that.” She huffed. Her mock anger easy to see through. It she’d really wanted him to stop, he would have done so immediately. “You’re righbt tho. You do neeb me. Who else can stob Fred’dy frob gleefully bestering beople on dates?”

          “He’s not even here and you’re picking on ‘im?”

          “I’b allobed to. It’s by twind given righbt.”

          “Can’t argue with that.” Marcos’ hands worked quickly, twisting the strands into a roughly uniform braid. Whitney may have preferred a bun, but that just wasn’t in his skill set yet. As he worked, his own auburn curls wiggled loose. The ponytail must’ve come undone on his way over. He probably should just cut the shaggy mane, but he liked the feeling of it brushing his skin.

          Whitney released her arm from the blanket burrito to playfully tug a strand. “You’re kinba a bess. Whab did ‘ou do, rub the whole bay?”

          “Yup.”

          His steady gaze caught her off guard. “Waib, really?” Whitney’s pink cheeks shifted much closer to a shade of red, causing Marcos’ brow to furrow. It didn’t help that she only seemed to heat up more when he pressed his hand to her forehead. She must’ve been really unwell, even her usually pale rabbit ears were tinted rose.

          “Hold on. I think your tea should be ready.” He vanished back into the kitchen, retying his hair as he went.

          The butterflies in Whitney’s brain were certainly just sickness making her dizzy. Nothing else. Mella stared at her. Judgementally. It wasn’t her fault her dumb heart was fluttering. Her pop rock pulse was obviously not her buzzing with giddiness. Of course she didn’t have a crush on Marcos. It didn’t matter how thoughtful he was, or how he made her feel special and appreciated with no ulterior motive. His gentle presence was just a part of him being Marcos. Falling for that would just be… well, it would be… Okay. She couldn’t lie to herself. Frog toes. It wasn’t the plague she’d managed to contract that made her face glow when he touched her. His concerned expression flashed across her mind. The tiny tilt of his scruffy eyebrows, the amber that almost glowed against the dark lines that always seemed to line his eyes, the way he looked at her. Oh dear, she melted into a goopy mess. Stars Above, she had Feelings for the scraggly hare. She had to compose herself. Pondering whether he felt something for her too would have to wait until he was gone. Working herself into a fluster was less than ideal. Upon the realisation, Mella smiled at her, in the way dogs do. If Whitney didn’t know better, she’d think Mella could read her mind. Why was she being so cocky? As if she figured it out first! Whitney’s mental rambling was interrupted by Marcos bringing in her lunch.

          “Here. I put honey in the tea. It’s s’posed to be good for sore throats? Mum used to do that for me, honey and milk I mean. Should help you too.” His ears twitched self-consciously. Sure it was common knowledge that honey was a good soother, but he still felt the need to explain himself. Maybe because Whitney almost always preferred not to sweeten her teas and he hadn’t forgotten that. Whitney smiled, still too pink for his liking, thanked him and took a sip, evaporating his worries.

          “There’s some medicine if you need it, and a bottle of water for later, y’know, so you don’t have to get up again… I’ve gotta head now or I’ll be late back. You gonna be okay?”

          “I’b a big girl, I’ll be okay.” She took another sip. “Than’gs fo’ this. I abbreciate ib.”

          “Not a problem. Just focus on betting better.”

          “Oh byeah, before you go, there’s somb faze wibes in by roob. Take theb with you to geb rib ob the sweat. You brobably smbell.” To make certain she wasn’t being overly sincere, she poked her tongue at him.

          “’course I do. I’m healthy so I can still breathe through my nose.” Marcos grabbed the wipes and darted out of the door before he had to face her faux fury.

          It took a sprint, but he made it back to the café with just enough time to clean up and get re-dressed. He was tired as anything and had forgotten about his own lunch in the process of it all, but still found a spring in his step for the rest of the day. It was nice to think he might’ve made her feel a little better.

 ----------

Taglist

@inkovert and @snobbysnekboi

[theseventhhex]

The Japanese House Interview

Amber Bain

The Japanese House has finally released her debut album ‘Good at Falling’. Produced by The Japanese House (aka Amber Bain), BJ Burton (Low, Bon Iver, Francis and the Lights) and The 1975’s George Daniel, ‘Good at Falling’ follows four acclaimed EPs. ‘Good at Falling’ began as demos recorded by Bain on her laptop in her room in London, and was finished in studios across Wisconsin, Brussels and Oxford, by Bain, BJ Burton and George Daniel. The result is an album that draws from Bain’s life in a way her work never has before - a more personal, vulnerable and yet confident body of work. The hugely anticipated full-length is a swirling and intoxicating mix of ambient electro-pop / indie… We talk to the delightful Amber Bain about self-doubt, being sober onstage and her dog…

TSH: With your excellent album, ‘Good at Falling’, you’re looking into narratives to do with relationships and how they end. What led you to this direction?

Amber: I guess I felt compelled to write about relationships that I’d encountered and been involved within. I mean you write about what you know or what has happened to you specifically, so I decided to write about the changes that a relationship goes through. Also, the end of a relationship happened to me during the process of writing this record so it was embedded within me. This theme is actually going to be way more prominent on the next album than this current one because most of the songs were written before this relationship ended.

TSH: It was also important for you to touch on the challenges that you’ve had with OCD and anxiety too...

Amber: Absolutely. It’s important to be honest about things like mental health. I mean we all deal with grief and mental health issues, so talking about it makes it a lot easier. Part of the pain with mental health problems is this false self-created idea that it’s only you that deals with it and that no one else will understand you. However, once you talk about it, you realise every single person in the fucking world deals with mental health and your problems become so much smaller - it’s not this huge thing that you’re facing alone. Mental health and anxiety are very common things we all have to deal with and it’s always a good idea to let it out.

TSH: Does self-doubt still occur for you when you’re about to release music?

Amber: In ways, yes. You know, I never feel like a record is complete until I’ve literally released it. Until it’s online, it’s not really finished in my eyes. Also, like most artists I always feel like there are things that I’d maybe changeover, but that’s always the case for most creative choices. It’s just good to eventually let your music go. To be honest I’m already thinking about the next record. I certainly don’t want to take another two years to write another album.

TSH: This time around you focused on making the lyrics more truthful, rather than making them character based songs. Was this switch up an organic choice?

Amber: It’s always a difficult decision to know if something is a conscious choice or not. I often dwell on whether to go with my first ideas or not, however, the initial stages of writing are not really up to me in terms of what I‘m writing about - things just happen and unfold naturally. But yeah, being blatant with lyrics was who I’ve become as a person over the last few years, and this ended up being reflected in my lyrics.

TSH: What was it like being located in Wisconsin with producer BJ Burton as you fleshed out this record with more time to yourself?

Amber: Yeah, it was great. I had a lot of time for self-reflection and yoga because there was so much alone time for me. Being by myself is not something that I do very often; I’m usually always with people, especially on tour - I’m never alone. When I was home not long ago I was in a relationship with my girlfriend and I was never alone then either. So having six weeks alone in America was very rare for me. I found it hard and weird at times, but I mostly just used the time for self-reflection.

TSH: What do you recall about the process in bringing together the song ‘Lilo’?

Amber: It was so natural and it squeezed out of me. For me, this song represents having no set method to my creativity and I just let it happen. Also, this song is a more honest representation of my feelings and myself, rather than being fake or contrived.

TSH: Did you decide early on to bookend the album with ‘I Saw You in a Dream’?

Amber: No, I actually didn’t. I don’t really think about the sequencing until quite far into the process. I just knew that I wanted this song on the record because it’s one of the most important songs to me personally. It’s probably the song that moves me and that I connect to most.

TSH: How was your recent US winter tour?

Amber: I’ve toured the US numerous times now and it’s always a lot of fun. This recent winter tour was different because I was playing songs from the new album which nobody had heard and therefore it was a new and refreshing experience for me. It was also quite weird for me because I was not drinking, which is a new thing for me because before that I never really played a show sober...

TSH: How did this make you feel?

Amber: To be honest, it feels far better overall. I feel drunk off the crowd’s energy. Also, being sober means you’re far more susceptible to the crowd and it makes me more able to judge what I need to do. When you’re drunk you wander around like an intoxicated person and hope that the audience feed off your vibes. In ways this new approach may be harder, but it’s so much more rewarding.

TSH: Do you value your time off being spent with your dog?

Amber: Ha! Yes. I have a dog that I love waking every day. It does freak me out at times caring for him, but I have some sort of peace in the sense that I know that I’ve adopted him and that I’m giving him a nicer life than he was having previously. I can sustain having him and we bring each other so much joy, but I do miss him on when I’m tour - it’s a horrible feeling. When I’m on the road he stays with my dad and is cared for so much. He’s often having a holiday in the countryside when I go on tour. He has a city and a country life, ha!

TSH: You also squeeze in a few films when you can manage to watch them too?

Amber: Yeah, I saw Bohemian Rhapsody recently, and it was amazing. I was actually talking to my friends about how cool it is now to see more movies featuring lesbian relationships, which is a really positive thing. When I was younger there were literally like two films with gay girl scenes. Now, there are loads, and it’s so cool to see. I actually watched Disobedience on a plane, which wasn’t a good idea because it was a very intense sexual film and I was trying to not to gasp with excitement during the sex scenes.

TSH: Are your future preferences with your music to simply be bolder and more ambitious?

Amber: Those are two factors I want to employ, for sure. Overall, I just want to ensure that I don’t put out the same shit over and over again. I need to challenge myself and show that I can be diverse. It’s a constant battle to release classically good music or strange music that sounds like nothing else. I kind of argue with myself sometimes about what’s more important: writing a good song and not giving a fuck about the production, or choosing the other side of it and making the production like nothing else. I guess my goal is to merge those two things as much as possible… it’s hard to do, but I’m hopeful of doing so.

The Japanese House - “Lilo”

The Japanese House - “Maybe You're the Reason”

Good at Falling

[globalsource-blog]

Welcome to Global Source! Rotterdam ---> Berlin part 1

First things first, welcome to my new blog! Please excuse the lack of bells and whistles (I haven’t yet got the hang of Tumblr) - I promise to make up for it with content that’ll blow your socks into next week. The premise is that this will serve as a platform for writing and photos from yours truly, as well as sharing some other stuff that I think is cool. Let me set out my stall nice and clearly: I like travel, the great outdoors, food, music, and languages – not to the exclusion of anything else, but if an inquisitive hostage-taker put a gun to my head and told me to spit out some interests, those are probably what would come out first. If you’re looking for “inspirational” (read: wet and pretentious) quotes in overdone typeface or monochrome photographs of people looking wistfully out of windows, then this blog is not for you, but I’m sure you’ll have a great time on the rest of Tumblr. Here I will post: travel diaries, veggie and vegan recipes, photography (my own and by others) and maybe the odd poem / artwork / whatever I feel like because IT’S MY BLOG AND I AM IN CHARGE.

That’s me in a speedboat. Let’s imagine we’re all getting into the speedboat together; now imagine that this blog is the speedboat, and it’s gonna take us to brilliant places we’ve never seen, and we’re all gonna have a wicked fun time.  

With that said and done, let’s jump straight in to the first post of what will hopefully be a long and glorious parade of internet masterworks, each winning several of the highest possible awards for blog posts about tofu curry and roadside bike repairs. As some readers will already know, earlier this month myself and two good friends set out on what was perhaps not the ride of a lifetime, but certainly the biggest ride of all our lives so far. The plan was to cycle from Hook of Holland (about 30km west of Rotterdam) to Berlin. This post is part one of three that I will write about the trip in the next few days. If you look up the journey right now, then Google Maps will probably tell you it’s about 760km. This is what Donald Trump’s press team would call ‘alternative facts’. Unless one were to spend the entire journey watching themselves as a blue dot on their phone screen, micromanaging every turning and checking for the latest traffic updates, travelling right across two countries over eight days of cycling along the exact route chosen by Google is not feasible, even assuming you could keep your phone charged and that Google did not try to send you down non-existent bike paths through 50km-wide swamps (yes, this really happened – details later).

So then, we knew we had a long way to go, and that due to several factors (mostly but not limited to our lack of a map) it would probably be even longer than that. We also knew that wild camping (we had two tents with us which we stayed in every night) is illegal in Germany, and that we were passing straight through several national parks and wildlife reserves filled with deer and wild boar as well as (presumably) some heavily-armed German hunters who would know the land and move invisibly with silent and efficient footsteps through the forest twilight looking for animals (or lawbreaking English campers) to ambush. However, knowledge is power, and as well as knowing what we were up against, we knew that Berlin sits pretty much due east of Nordhorn (we had printed out enough Google Maps to get us to this town on the Dutch/German border), that cheap and wonderful supermarkets with similar names were everywhere, and that in a fix you can use a railcard to do most things a knife can do (although this does not work in reverse; this blog does not endorse using knives for discounted train tickets). With the sweaty and sensible Stan Sands and the always-up-for-it Arthur Delamare by my side, I feared nothing.

While originally the plan had been to cycle from Amsterdam to Berlin, this had to change due to the ferries from Hull to Amsterdam being made out of solid silver and powered by burning bank notes (the only possible explanation for the cost of tickets, besides perhaps that Amsterdam is already so saturated with bicycles that it now tries to deter further encroachment by pricing the cyclists away to the south). However, given that Stan has already been to Amsterdam so many times he accidentally came second in their most recent mayoral elections, a slight change of plans and route was no big deal. In fact, to begin with this trip was not even intended to be for charity; we ended up raising around £900 for Médecins Sans Frontières, but at the outset our only motive for cycling through the Netherlands and most of Germany was good times on the road (and having an excuse to eat many, many, many pastries). Raising money for MSF didn’t change this dynamic in the slightest, but it was a nice motivator to think that every kilometre we ticked off had helped do some small amount of good in the world. 

Having travelled down to Harwich (apparently it’s near Ipswich) on the train from Manchester on Friday the 31st of March, punctuated with a short and sunny cycle through London to switch trains, we took the overnight Stena Line after getting a final shop done at the local Morrison’s. Lots of couscous, chopped tomatoes, soy sauce and some other essentials, and we were ready to eat like kings every night off the little Trangia camp stove that would be our pack-up kitchen for the next eight days. We topped the food bag up with all the salt, pepper and sugar packets we could carry back to our cabin following a thorough exploration of the ship, a big sturdy girl whose name I forget but straight and smooth she took us to the start line. The Dutch sky was grey and unsettled as we disembarked, as though it somehow knew that here, arriving bleary-eyed on April Fool’s day, were three grade-A fools about to blaze a trail of burnt rubber and missed turnings right across the country to the German border, leaving no baked goods uneaten along the way. As we set out into the drizzle towards Rotterdam with about €6.20 in change between us (there’d been no euros at two post offices in Manchester) we put money worries firmly to the side and settled into a vigorous wake-up stretch that brought us into the city nicely refreshed and warm despite the rain. At the central train station we changed our sterling into euros, had a good look at our soggy print-out map, and set out into the great Dutch unknown, heading east with smiling faces and wobbling less with each rotation of the pedals.

Our first day’s cycle started to shape up nicely as we went through and out of Rotterdam. The sun started to peek through the clouds as we navigated the city’s many bike lanes, through beautiful streets of town houses and past plenty of green spaces. Calm and proficient cyclists were everywhere, and the respect shown to them and us by drivers was unheard of in comparison to UK roads. Leaving the city we came through beautiful neighbourhoods whose houses all faced directly onto the grassy banks of the small canals on either side of the road. After a stretch of increasingly green countryside, we came to the town of Gouda, and made sandwiches with the famous local cheese, eating lunch on a man-made beach next to a canal (turns out there’s a lot of them in Holland). After lunch we pushed on towards Utrecht, a city whose architecture impressed us all and where I saw more bikes locked up in one place than I’ve ever seen in my life, including the megacities of China. 

However, despite its modern skyline and eco-friendly commuter culture, Utrecht hides a terrible secret. In its western suburbs, by another beautiful tree-lined canal faced by stylish apartments, lives a creature that knows no fear and has a taste for human shins… Her name… Miss Oink. Yes, on the very first day on the road, before we even crossed the border into wild boar country, in little old Holland, Stan was chomped on the leg by a tame pig on a lead, for having the cheek not to hand over his apple. Being taken for a walk, looking for all the world like an ugly pink dog, Miss Oink got an apple core from me and a grape from Arthur, leaving Stan to choose between his apple and his trousers. Like Eve in the garden of Eden, he chose the fruit, and his joggers have the holes to prove it.  

We left Utrecht with not much further to go to our chosen camping spot. Already over 100km along the way, by the time we got to the small woodland park called Kleine Switzerland we were ready for a good meal and bed. A couple of beers each and a few pans full of spicy couscous stew next to our two brand-new matching Vango tents was exactly what the doctor ordered ; after some stove-side chat we all settled down into a well-earned night’s rest looking forward to the days ahead.

////////////////////// End of part 1 //////////////////

Will they make it to the border? What terrible monsters await them in the forests of Germany? Will Stan fall in love and elope with a tall and beautiful Dutch girl? Find out in the next post, online in the next few days.

P.S. If you enjoyed this post but still haven’t donated, our JustGiving page is still live:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/standelakersey

[chrysaliseuro2019]

On the Road Again

After a pleasant three days in Kiato we decided to head to the medieval town of Dimitsana. A couple of hours drive though would be quite a focussed one as we were heading for the mountains. Some around the 1500-2000 metre mark. Plenty of hills and switchbacks which was as it turned out. We had a slow start being night owls so left our apartment around 11.00am. First thing was a top up of petrol. This was a bit of a fright as price around $2.60/litre. Luckily we have an economic car. Of course that's just the going price and nothing you can do about it if you want the flexibility of the car. We had two choices of route, one via freeway and the other local roads. Opted for the local roads. Pretty soon we were heading upwards and occasionally downwards then back up again. Prolific numbers of olive trees, plenty of vineyards and sleepy hollow villages that appeared uninhabited. The odd larger town which always seemed characterful with its cafes which invariably had several older gents sitting outside watching the world go by, chewing the fat and thinking heaven knows what. One of the things that seems to characterise Greece is older men and more occasionally older women clustered outside cafes and tavernas or just sitting on their porches, balconies and in their gardens - watching and chatting. From early in the morning till late at night. As you approach they watch you. If you nod to them or say Yassas (hello) they will respond but rarely do they instigate. It's all very inscrutable. I want to know what they are thinking. It's disappointing really that language is such a barrier especially in more domestic destinations such as Kiato where English speaking is rare and certainly my Greek vocabulary doesn't get beyond hello and thank you - ooh I forgot souvlaki. I suppose hello me old souvlaki would not go down too well but it would be great to break the ice, sit down and have a natter about what's troubling them. I'm guessing that taxes, the price of fags (there's still a lot of smoking here, perhaps a little less tax paying), global warming might be high up there. It's a pretty small world. Anyway we pressed on on our journey through some pretty dramatic countryside through the mountains with fantastic views on all sides. We noticed when we came to towns that the Greek version of the "Pink Batt" policy must be in place. Everywhere there seemed to be brand new iridescent red roofs being put up. These contrasted with the old stone walls supporting them but presumably are the most effective way to preserve old buildings. Around 1.30 we fancied lunch and stopped off at a small town (Kandila) to look for refreshments. We missed the main turning in towards town so followed our nose via the only other turning down some very windy and narrow streets to reach the town proper. Why take the easy route? This place was sleepy hollow. As ever temperature 30+. We parked up in front of a taverna but there seemed to be another 3-4 in town. Who is patronising them? As there were two men and a dog there? We went into one where they could give us a meal but it sounded more than we wanted - the chicken stew that I think the owners were having for lunch/ dinner. Someone was summoned out of the local mini market to speak English to us and explain this. All very convivial. The suggestion was to head to the coffee bar down the road which should be able to deliver a toasted sandwich which we were after. Wasn't far and it seemed more like a taverna though again no English so we were back to square one. Plenty of efforts to explain what we were after but the solution was to call someone up who spoke English, put Liz on the phone and then toasted cheese and tomato toasted sandwich was communicated to our new hosts with much knowledgeable nodding. Tactical error we asked for two. When they arrived they would have fed the Prussian army for two days. Did the trick though and we sat outside in the shade gazing down the tranquil street with a couple of cokes. I had brought a couple of kangaroo design ink stamps the sort that kids press onto their arm and we donated one to the delightful little girl who was daughter of the landlady. It was all pretty pleasant and they donated a couple of cokes to us as a thank you. Nothing too much but just one of those nice and slightly amusing touch bases with complete strangers which these environments encourage. We pressed on to Dimitsana through more dramatic and very green high country arriving around 3.00pm. We had no other plans for the day other than to chill a bit and check out Dimitsana but first prob was to find the hotel we had booked, the "Enastron". Google told us which laneway it was in so we parked up and Liz went looking. No luck. I foraged a bit too. No luck. Up some steps at the top of a narrow lane an unusual incident was happening. Some tourists (English or Aussie we weren't sure) had driven their car over the top step of a series of steps. The front was now wedged over that step resting on its axle. Several guys were attempting to lift the front two wheels back over the step while one guy sat in the driver's seat and revved in reverse madly. To assist they placed several large rocks against the steps to aid the process of the front wheels going back up. Problem was once they started revving and reversing the front wheel crushed some of the rocks and sent them flying and Liz was very lucky to not have one hit her. It landed within a couple of metres and was probably 20 cms long and quite dense. Would have caused some damage if it hit her. Luckily for the tourists the lads got the car back over the step and even more lucky no casualties. We still couldn't find the hotel but after asking some locals they indicated that it was right where Liz had been watching the car incident in fact the flying rock was virtually outside the front door. Problem was the sign was in Greek so she had wandered past several times without being able to identify it. This is a 3 room hotel so though 24 hour front desk availability it's not manned 24 hours (not much point with 3 guests) and a note was pinned to the door with a number to call. 10 mins later we were in. Charming and very urbane host Dimitri who welcomed us very generously. Delightful place. Score 9.8 out of 10 on Booking.com, great host, great room with a balcony and good bathroom and surprisingly reasonable. We settled down, had showers and chilled for a while and then headed out to look around town and have a refreshing drink - much needed. Town is small and seems mostly cafes and tavernas with a few knick knack shops. It's perched high with great views and the architecture is quite old being a medieval though that seems like yesterday in this part of the world with Ancient Greek history pervasive. We walked to the top of town through some very narrow laneways and views, very picturesque. A number of churches and plenty of other attractive buildings. I also liked the soccer pitch which we could see at a distance perched at least 1500 metres up. Have to say though that the surface looked like gravel from afar which Liz confirmed a day or so later. Not inviting to fall over on and the goalies must concede a lot of goals or spend their days covered in gravel rash or dress up like Michelin man which is not really conducive to shot stopping. Finally time for a drink and we stopped at a local taverna at a table outside. A few tourists in town but when we arrived at the pub we seemed to be the only non Greek speakers. Certainly out the front facing the street our co-patrons were all locals. This meant that a variety of people pulled up in their cars or trucks/Utes and carried on conversations from the driver's seat with others sitting at tables out front. One minute we had a view up the street the next there was a smelly ute in front of us. All part of the local colour. They might get a coffee to take away or park up and join in. In due course the local priest rolled up in his robes, a very dapper and handsome guy who also spoke pretty good English though he was more interested in chatting to his parishioners. The priest seemed to be on the coffee, nothing alcoholic. After a pleasant hour it was time for dinner. Our host had recommended a restaurant which overlooked one side of the valley and we headed there. Menu was classic Greek with plenty of meat. We settled for the lamb chops and Greek salad and sampled various wines - rose, red, white. All pretty ordinary. Poor Liz is struggling to find much she can drink apart from the one vodka and tonic before she has to up stumps in case of migraine and many tavernas don't stock vodka and of those that do some may not stock tonic. Even I, with, shall we say, my more accommodating, alright, less discerning palate am struggling with the local plonk. How do they like this stuff? The white is pretty sweet and the rose and red have been well "rough". Now, we haven't gone for the bottles of wine given Liz can't drink more than one glass so it's been wine by the glass ie house wine - but still. Anyway food has been fantastic. Lamb chops were voluminous in number and we just had a half serve. Liz was in her element, the chops were picked up there was finger licking and not a skerrick left on the bone at the end. I was more circumspect in my Pommie way and cut bits off here and tentatively but demolished large quantities of bread and Greek salad with some gusto, if I say so myself. You can take the girl and boy out of their respective countries but you can't necessarily change their preferences. Headed home and watched England lose another World Cup semi final. This time to the USA at the women's World Cup. Very painful though fantastic game. It was a travel and lay day really but we really enjoyed the nondescriptness of it laced with the Greek way of doing things.

[jelmpi]

I had been reading up about the best cycling routes in the area and found one that peaked my interest merely because it started almost next to my house: The Comber Greenway! Now the greenway used to be an old steam train that connected Comber and Belfast! This railway once was extremely important as it helped to evacuate thousands of people to the countryside during the Second World War. The railway was closed soon after the war, in 1950 to be exact. As the railway withered, it slowly became one with nature. It took quite long to find a new use for the railway and a conversion of the railway into a walkway finally started in the early 2000’s. In 2008 they reopened the path to comber, naming it the Comber Greenway! This path is now full of green and home to various wildlife and it is frequently used by cyclists because it is a traffic free path!

I really enjoyed cycling it, especially as this was the only sunny day we had had in over a week. I made sure to even check the weather forecast before leaving my house and that did not prove any good for the coming week: Return of snow! So today had to be enjoyed!

It must have been a bit more than an hour when I reached Comber! A lovely little village with streets from 6 directions all leading to the centre of town: The Statue of Major-General Sir Rollo Gillespie. I have tried to take a few pictures of the town just to show what it looked like and how it felt, to me of course, quite cosy in a sense! I also attempted multiple panoramas but with traffic constantly on the move, it has not been very successful.

There was something which I did not know: Castle Espie was very close to Comber! In my enthusiasm, I could only think of one thing: “Might as well go see it now that I have come this far!” Now, castle Espie is not famous for its ancient building. In fact, the castle has been long gone! The area is famous for its beautiful natural landscapes and some extraordinary wildlife. It is even a stopover site for almost the whole population of Nearctic geese! Can you believe that?!

As always there had to be something stopping me in my tracks. Want to know what it was this time? The Castle Espie site closes at 17:00….. You may wonder: what time did you get there? I arrived there at 16:58… Well isn’t that just FAN-tastic. Unfortunate as it was, I was not going to let it stop me! I am not a huge fan of using Google Maps because I usually love exploring without a map! That to me is the true thrill of exploring. Mapping undiscovered areas ( for myself as an individual of course ) and going on a true adventure. But! In this case, I did as I had to see just how on the edge of Northern-Ireland I actually was. And that showed me a very small road just up ahead which would not let me trespass the grounds but take me right next to it! Happy me was on his way for some truly special views!

    An amazing view and a fascinating tower on a hill site in the far back

  Love this Panorama

  I found a house on the edge. It had no neighbours for more than 200 meters but had such a tremendous view of the bay. The area it had for its “garden” was vast and I had to share this with someone. So I called my mom. I gave her an update of where I was but even more: of what I was seeing. I described it in full detail and told her that if she ever dreamed of a countryside house by the sea, she needed not luck any further.

I continued my way down trailing a small path towards the sea. I got to the end of it and found myself gazing at nothing but water. The wind threw itself into my face. I had longed for this moment for quite a bit. It reminded me of France, where I used to walk my old dog ( Good old Pummeltje ) along the rocks of the forest and onto the beach where both my dog and I would literally stick our heads into the wind and enjoy it to the fullest. The funny thing about my noble four-footed friend is that you could totally see him enjoy that moment, probably even more than me! I miss my dog to have those moments with but I was lucky that the wind and the feeling of that deserted beach at least made me relive that fond memory.

I climbed up to a higher point of the beach and walked all the way to the edge of what I will call: the wall of the beach. This wall stretched out into the water but with the low tide just made it feel even more special. On this wall, a very lonely tree was posted. With its leaves shed, it branches felt naked but nonetheless provided all kinds of funny metaphors which I had pas through my head. I could not help but take two pictures, one with and one without the lovely tree. I sat down on the edge and ate my homemade sandwich while I enjoyed my view. The view, the serenity and the wind completely calmed me and my endless flow of thoughts down. Ow if it could only remain like this.

After about 40 mins the sun started to set and I really had to go home. I cycled all the way back again and came home tired and fulfilled. I was happy with another productive weekend, felt incredibly refreshed and was ready for whatever was to come next. For tomorrow that would, however, be an endless horde of work…

With Tree

Without Tree

    Every weekend a day out! 25th: Comber Greenway! I had been reading up about the best cycling routes in the area and found one that peaked my interest merely because it started almost next to my house: The Comber Greenway!

[zillowcondo]

My Discoveries in the Devon Countryside

“We have all a better guide in ourselves, if we would attend to it, than any other person can be.” – Jane Austen’s Fanny in Mansfield Park (1814)

Before I ventured on my way to England, first to London and then on to the Devon countryside, at the end of last month, I came across Jane Austen’s quote above. Unbeknownst to me, my trip would unfold very much as though Austen’s quote was a prescription of what was to come.

I cannot recall when I first dreamt of visiting the English countryside. And while I have since my studying abroad in Angers, France, been a Francophile, the Anglophile in me has been steady, reserved, but always ever-present if only in the background.

The moment the Great Western Railroad train emerged from London and into the green rolling hills of southwest England I saw what I doubted to be real until I saw it with my own eyes: peaceful grandeur void of harsh landscapes and offering simple vignettes of a quieter life.

And then after acquiring my rental car, it was driving for the first time on my own in a foreign country as I shared more about in episode #185, that I saw even more intimately the farms, quaint towns of two or three thousand and stone lined roads and fields.

What I discovered about the countryside and about myself surpassed expectation and gave (and still is giving) me great pause.

1. Make the journey comfortable: Choose first class rail tickets in advance

For the two hour journey from London to Exeter, I chose a month in advance first class tickets. At less than £50 each way, I enjoyed free lunch, snacks, tea and a very quiet car with ample room, a table to work upon and comfortable, large seating. While I know choosing this option wouldn’t be a regular choice if traveling frequently, for a long excursion, it was a lovely choice that I highly recommend.

2. Give yourself as many tools to be successful as possible in unknown situations

First, while I grew up driving a stick-shift and quite frankly, miss it in my current car, I chose an automatic when given the choice since I was already going to be driving on the other side of the vehicle and the road. As well, the car with the automatic transmission had a navigation system installed. Two choices I am very glad I made to reduce unnecessary stress.

3. Let go of time

I was constantly pinching myself. My eyes as well as all of my senses were dancing from one beautiful observation to the next. Nothing seemed too insignificant. The stone graduating wall outside my cottage truly delighted me (seen below).

4. Be a traveler rather than a tourist

While I did visit the Victoria & Albert Museum while in London, my primary objective was to enjoy the everydays in England. And so I did. Upon arriving at my cottage, I inquired with the owner as to where to pick groceries for the evening which she happily shared. She also gave me information about a couple of weekly markets to visit while I was staying in the area as well as a few other boutiques and shops. I took note.

Each morning I would awake, enjoy my breakfast, take a walk either outside my cottage along the stone lined shore (as seen below – my cottage was just up on the left of the farm you see in the picture) or head to a nearby beach at Woolacombe (also seen below in the second picture) to stretch my legs. Then it was an opportunity to explore the nearby towns or visit the markets and pick up local produce for dinner or work on a project or read or nap or do whatever inspired me. Then dinner in my cottage, snuggling in listening to the “mizzle” smatter against the windows, followed by a long, luxurious soak in the soaking tub (be sure to check out the post on Friday to view this most magnificent detail of the cottage).

~Woolacombe beach on a windy, misty November day (it was truly lovely)~

5. Give yourself time to soak everything in

Without a rigid schedule, I gave myself time to appreciate all the newness as well as history around me. While I would have loved far more time, I used the time I had to appreciate as much as I could, to make sense of what captured my eye and take note in my journal.

Of course, much tea was consumed, and the cottage was well stocked with a variety of options along with teaspoons, trays, teapots and many different sizes of teacups.

6. Listen to your inner yearnings

I was drawn to Devon to be near the ocean, to the specific cottage I chose to be able to see the ocean when I woke up, to walk along it each day. There is a calming nature for my mind when I stroll along the sand or along and have sight of it while I mosey along the edge of a cliff – my mind is present, yesterday and tomorrow are put aside and I am just there, full of more gratitude and dismissing all realities of time. Ideas dance, dreams feel more tangible and the power of Mother Nature evokes great reverence for all that has occurred thus far as my perspective grows.

7. Choose a place you would want to call home

I was recently reading Mathilde Thomas’s book about French beauty and she shared something that I found refreshing and relatable. She commented how, based on her experience, unlike Americans, French families escape to a holiday cottage or getaway and refrain from making any plans. Rather they luxuriate about the house, relax, enjoy, shop at the local market and enjoy a casual, but jovial meal each evening.

As I will share in more detail on Friday (here is the link if you’re visiting on December 15th or later), upon discovering the cottage I ended up staying in, I planned my getaway around its availablity as it was the house I wanted to spend my holiday in relaxing, unwinding and soaking in the large tub.

8. Seek out details or items to bring home with you that speak to your experience

The only two “souvenirs” I brought home with me were not items that I sought out, but ones I came across while exploring one of the markets I visited and one of the nearby towns city center: a £2 mini butter-yellow teapot and a £3 tea cup and saucer (seen below).

~left: my kitchen counter in my cottage and local treats from the owner which greeted me when I arrived (the apple juice was sublime); right: the view of the Bristol Channel from my cottage back porch~

9. Visit the local markets

As I mentioned in #4, visiting the markets for local produce was something I sought out, and upon doing so had lovely conversations with locals (one inquired if I was from New York which made me smile and yet another taught me how to pronounce Barnstaple correctly – his patience was greatly appreciated).

~Barnstaple’s daily market~

10. Converse with the locals

As mentioned in #9, ask questions, show interest and be open to learning.

  11. Listen to what speaks to you; follow the inspiration’s direction

Visiting the English countryside has always been an interest of mine. As to why, I cannot pinpoint a precise reason except to say, it spoke to me. As an English major in college who chose to focus heavily on British literature and in my minor courses, British history, my fascination only deepened. And while I, like most English speakers, most likely travel to England and the United Kingdom partially because we can speak the language for the most part, being able to converse without having to construct a sentence thus limiting my ability to absorb the moment and converse deeply was a significant bonus that I didn’t fully appreciate the last time I visited London.

From running into spaniel pup after spaniel pup on nearly every walk I found myself, discovering the country’s love for dogs to be akin to my own, delighting in the observance of Parliament’s discussion on the budget presented by the treasurer alongside the Prime Minister, and having a good cup of tea wherever I found myself, I began to realize my Anglophile nature is far stronger than I give it due.

12. Slow down and pack your wellies

As someone who grew up in the country able to wander about on 20 acres of wide open spaces and Mother Nature nearly everywhere I gazed, being back on a farm (that was far larger than what I knew), pulling on my boots to go about my business outside and simply wandering about in the fields felt like home. Having the chance to take a walk with the owner through the pastures with her dogs, I felt a kinship I have not felt in some time with the daily routine of stepping outside, no leashes required and land aplenty.

In all sincerity, thank you to my British readers who reached out while I was traveling in the country, said hello and shared with me where they from with regards to Devon. Your warmth and invitations made me feel most welcome. I am in all seriousness taking a long look at England as a future destination to live for a long-term basis once I attain a visa and would be open to receiving any and all advice and recommendations you have about . . . well, anything.

Now some TSLL readers may be saying, what about France? And I will quickly assuage your fears, France will always have a special place in my heart. In fact, simply knowing I was so close to the Gallic land made me even more eager to hop the channel, but I will save that for this summer (more details on that trip to be shared in the coming months). And I couldn’t imagine a more lovely combination than living in England and having France so near to visit when able, more frequently than not, could you?

Until life’s journey reveals more of her answers, I will trust in Jane Austen’s words from Persuasion, “Time will explain.” Of that, if the past is any indication, it most certainly will, so long as we each stay attentive, observant and reveling in the journey as we travel along.

Be sure to stop by the blog on Friday for a detailed post on the cottage I stayed in, how to rent it or one similar to it throughout the English countryside. As well, the big reveal of the new addition to the simply luxurious life destination will be shared on Friday, much of which was inspired by my stay in Devon.

~View more posts from the Archives of Shannon’s Journey here.

My Discoveries in the Devon Countryside published first on http://ift.tt/2pewpEF