Stars. Millions of stars in a velvety black sky. I feel I can reach out and touch them. Oh and there goes a shooting star! Quick make a wish! I wish we have enjoyable weather and manage to not cause grievous harm to ourselves and others driving on the roads.
It is 4AM local time. My body clock is a bit out of whack I do manage to snooze until 6. I am a lark. The sun comes up and I am up. I slip outside and marvel at the beautiful new day. The mists are playing on the lake and the hills as the sun rises in a beautiful rosy dawn. In the distance I can hear cows and sheep. If I had brought my horse I’d run down to the stables and saddle up. I could ride forever here in any direction. My favorite time of day as it is generally all mine.
I eventually go back inside and brew a pot of coffee. This will be a local day. A day to bum around the resort, enjoy the facilities, get some items from the market and adjust to the time difference.
At 9 I go down to reception and officially register. Get hours and directions to the supermarkets.
By 10 I go rouse the night owls. It hadn’t occurred to me before but it does now. They travel so easily and adapt to the time on the left coast. It makes sense that I travel east and adjust easier than they do.
We have eggs, bread, butter and milk from our pre-order. The milk containers take both DH and I back to our childhoods. Pint bottles with aluminum covers that are delivered to the doorstep. When finished the bottles are returned. The milk here is richer and much tastier than what we can buy back home. I use it like half and half in my coffee.
There are egg cups in the china sideboard! I am tempted to make eggs that way. I haven’t had them in egg cups since I was a very little girl. My grandfather was English and we would eat them like that when I stayed with my grandparents.
I try but the boys prefer them over buttered toast. Good thing as I mash a few shells at first.
Finally everyone is washed and fed and dressed. We head to Dursley for the supermarket and I encounter my very first dreaded mini-roundabout. These don’t have islands to go around. They are painted in the streets. I freeze. Literally. My brain furiously trying to comprehend how I must drive to the left and yet make a right hand turn. Sounds easy until you realize that no one is even coming close to using this intersection like a round-about. YIKES! We make it round and find the supermarket.
As Keith promised the prices out here in the west are not absurd. Maybe 15% more than New York. We load up on essentials and with a white knuckle grip on the steering wheel head back to safety.
My nerves say stay home. So we play croquette, walk the grounds, use the pools and try to understand the rules for snooker. There is a reason this table game is not popular here in the USA.
In the afternoon we use the footpaths through the fields and walk up to the nearby town of Uley. We meet people at the pub and I discover the local brew with the distressing name of “Pig’s Ear”. Excellent stuff.
A peaceful second day. We eat a nondescript dinner, take out our tour books and debate over which days we will visit which sites.
It is 4AM local time. My body clock is a bit out of whack I do manage to snooze until 6. I am a lark. The sun comes up and I am up. I slip outside and marvel at the beautiful new day. The mists are playing on the lake and the hills as the sun rises in a beautiful rosy dawn. In the distance I can hear cows and sheep. If I had brought my horse I’d run down to the stables and saddle up. I could ride forever here in any direction. My favorite time of day as it is generally all mine.
I eventually go back inside and brew a pot of coffee. This will be a local day. A day to bum around the resort, enjoy the facilities, get some items from the market and adjust to the time difference.
At 9 I go down to reception and officially register. Get hours and directions to the supermarkets.
By 10 I go rouse the night owls. It hadn’t occurred to me before but it does now. They travel so easily and adapt to the time on the left coast. It makes sense that I travel east and adjust easier than they do.
We have eggs, bread, butter and milk from our pre-order. The milk containers take both DH and I back to our childhoods. Pint bottles with aluminum covers that are delivered to the doorstep. When finished the bottles are returned. The milk here is richer and much tastier than what we can buy back home. I use it like half and half in my coffee.
There are egg cups in the china sideboard! I am tempted to make eggs that way. I haven’t had them in egg cups since I was a very little girl. My grandfather was English and we would eat them like that when I stayed with my grandparents.
I try but the boys prefer them over buttered toast. Good thing as I mash a few shells at first.
Finally everyone is washed and fed and dressed. We head to Dursley for the supermarket and I encounter my very first dreaded mini-roundabout. These don’t have islands to go around. They are painted in the streets. I freeze. Literally. My brain furiously trying to comprehend how I must drive to the left and yet make a right hand turn. Sounds easy until you realize that no one is even coming close to using this intersection like a round-about. YIKES! We make it round and find the supermarket.
As Keith promised the prices out here in the west are not absurd. Maybe 15% more than New York. We load up on essentials and with a white knuckle grip on the steering wheel head back to safety.
My nerves say stay home. So we play croquette, walk the grounds, use the pools and try to understand the rules for snooker. There is a reason this table game is not popular here in the USA.
In the afternoon we use the footpaths through the fields and walk up to the nearby town of Uley. We meet people at the pub and I discover the local brew with the distressing name of “Pig’s Ear”. Excellent stuff.
A peaceful second day. We eat a nondescript dinner, take out our tour books and debate over which days we will visit which sites.
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