Rehearsals for the whole group today; technical run through after breakfast and dress rehearsal after lunch.
After supper we gave the performance. The audience of three were slightly surprised to find themselves playing the parts of King James’s entourage…
But all went well, if not perfectly, and we cleared up in record time as a welcome glass of wine was awaiting us in the bar.
There were a number of artificial pot plants in the ballroom, which came in very handy!
Back to back rehearsals for most of us today, but I managed to sneak down to the beach for my lunch.
It was very pleasant sitting in the sun watching the passers by, the surfers, a few swimmers and lots of seagulls.
After an uneventful journey by train to Bournemouth yesterday, Pastime’s Spring School began with a glass of bucks fizz and an introduction to Stuart Masques.
This morning, rehearsals began in earnest. The dancers were in the ballroom – reasonably enough – and we singers and musician gathered in one of our rooms. After coffee, I wasn’t needed so I went for a walk, heading downhill towards the pier.
Along the fence by the esplanade were some amusing artworks.
There was also a moving memorial to Jon Egging, a Red Arrows pilot who lost his life in the Bournemouth air show in 2011.
There had been a land slip by the lift, so the whole area was fenced off.
I found a pleasant park to have my lunch, where the wind wasn’t quite so biting.
I had seen signs referring to the Bournemouth goats and expected some more artwork, but no! They were actual goats.
Then back to the hotel by a rather circuitous route – I kept overshooting…
Ready for a warming cup of tea and some more rehearsals.
The rain eventually passed so I took the opportunity to take Rocco on a final walk through the Polstead footpaths this afternoon.
Dollops Wood was its usual lovely self:
The on to Polstead village and the pond:
And past the church on the hill:
And then reached the path along the River Box valley, with the classic trees along the riverbank:
We then crossed over the river and Rocco had a chance to have a swim. Then it was the climb back up the hill following a really nice footpath that I don’t think I’d used before:
The next footpath crossed a ploughed field, and unusually I had to use the compass on the phone to find the correct direction as no one had walked it since!
Then through the lovely woods above Scotland Place:
A lovely walk, mostly in the sunshine!
It’s been a while since we visited High Woods Country Park, so we took advantage of a break in the weather today.
The visitor centre isn’t as interesting as it used to be – really just a shop now.
We followed the 3 mile “Yellow Route” around the park; quite a nice mixture of woodland and open walking:
Rocco enjoyed his sticks of course.
We stopped off in Kersey on the way back today. It’s a pretty village with a ford running through the middle of it:
We wandered up the hill to the church:
and were rewarded with a nice view of the village:
The church was surprisingly interesting inside; obviously as much a community centre as a place of worship:
We had been to Lavenham Guild Hall before, but as Steve was content to look after Rocco, we decided to go in again (shame about the scaffolding!):
There were a lot more items on display than last time we visited:
A number of contraptions to do with textile production – a key industry in this area several hundred years ago. I think we’d seen the loom before, in any event I didn’t photograph it:
There were a large number of dyed samples. I particularly liked this embroidered piece with the names of the dyes on it. There was some cute knitted bunting in the entrance hall, duly labelled, which I could’ve sworn I took a picture of…
There were a number of other pieces of art dotted about. It wasn’t always clear which was the art and which were the artifacts, but I liked this woven wall hanging.
There were various wood carvings among the pieces, including this rather wet collection of spoons and bowls in the garden. Random!
We had a day out in Hadleigh today. First stop was The Cock, a pub in the backstreets with lots of beer but no food. Next stop The George; fewer beers but the kitchen was closed.
Third time lucky was The Kings Head, only 3 beers but did food! A nice pub and very dog friendly.
After lunch, we had a stroll through the town and along the Hadleigh Riverside Walk:
A lovely day!
We’re back staying near Polstead. Sunday Lunch was a short walk through the woods to the local pub, The Cock:
Followed by a slightly longer walk back to our cottage at Sprotts Farm:
Rocco was around, but more interested in his stick than getting his photo taken…
Yet another early start, but I did have time for a short walk to say goodbye to the Rhine:
Our coach to Cologne started off with a ferry crossing across the Rhine:
We were delayed by roadworks and only just made it to Cologne station on time for our train to Brussels:
Much nicer in a 1st class seat on the train than on a coach!
We arrived at Brussels only 15 minutes late (quite good for German Railways at the moment) but didn’t have time for our usual beer before our Eurostar back to London (which was also 45 minutes late).
Nevertheless, a good holiday!