Weekend Away

Hi Folks, Hubby took me on a lovely weekend away to Somerset.   We had worrisome things on our minds lately, so it was nice to have some quiet time together to rest, heal and think about what we want to do when we're old and doddery.   We were exploring with a view to an eventual house move.  It's cider country, full of apple orchards, wheat fields, beautiful lush green landscapes and has some very pretty beaches too.

near Stoke St Mary

We visited  picturesque villages and found some that ticked all our boxes: a  thriving church community, pub, 'chocolate box' cottages with thatched roof and traditional gardens like this one.  Friendly people (all of them had dogs that were also very friendly), easy distance of the beach.

Watchet

Wherever we went we were sure to chat with the locals, that was the most fun of all - people who loved their village and were proud of their community, keen to share it with us and encourage us to join them.  We found village halls open to visitors with tea and cake for sale, friendly people inside who were only too happy to answer all our questions about what it's like to live and work in their part of the country.

We stopped, for example. at Watchet, a little seaside town that was having a Sunday produce market.  Below is the tiny police station, right on the quay and in front of the market.  People were selling their cakes, sausages, crafts and garden plants.  

Watchet Police Station

 This 'Playful dog loose' (below) amused us.  We were in Dunster, visiting my granny's grave in the old churchyard.  I was amazed to find that silk cornflowers (originally from my wedding bouquet) which I had left there 25 years ago, were still blue and looking pretty! 

Dunster has an ancient yarn market at its centre and Dunster Castle is, of course, a tourist attraction, but I love it because of happy childhood memories.

Dunster Yarn Market

I found a lady in Dunster who sells her own honey, she invited me into her kitchen (pretty blue painted farmhouse table and chairs, lots of jars being filled with golden honey and a little kitchen garden full of flowers and herbs spilling out over the postage stamp sized lawn.  Her hives were in the field behind the house, along with happy donkeys.


 This is my favourite place, Porlock Weir, I have many childhood snaps of me outside these cottages, looking bored and eating ice cream!

Porlock Weir

     

I spent a lot of time staying with Granny, who lived on Porlock Hill.  We had many happy school holidays together at her cottage, where we painted and explored the woods, took a bus across Exmoor, read Lorna Doone and listened to The Archers on her radio.   I had not visited these familiar haunts for 25 years so it was both wonderful and emotional at times to see these places again and share them with hubby.

Porlock Weir

My most favourite walk with granny was from her cottage down into Porlock village, through the woods and onwards out over the fields to Porlock Weir, several miles no doubt.... the beach is pebble but quite interesting for a child who liked rock pools, crabs and seaweed.  There is a narrow metal bridge over the Weir to the beach.   The cottages here have not changed in the 50+ years I have known them and the stone wall alongside them is the perfect sunny spot to watch the boats.

Porlock Village

 Near here there are special places:  a very small circle of standing stones and also the smallest church in the UK.  Places to re-find and explore in the future perhaps.

Porlock Village

 
Over the weekend we found a perfect forever home village not too far from granny's, but I will keep it a secret as it's a just a very small twinkling of an idea at the moment.  We are returning again soon and I will take my fairy wand with me next time to make some wishes, if it's the right place I think we will see fairy dust sparkle from my wand and I will know we have found 'home'.

Today it's good to be back home, our solid home of 25 years, where both our boys were born and belong, next to the woods that we have come to think of as 'ours', a little wildlife surprise now and then (deer, kingfisher, wood pecker, owl, toads) lots of wild flowers in summer, holly and ivy for decorating the kitchen in the Winter.  It will still be home for a while yet, it isn't ready to let us go yet.... but it's good to have hopes and dreams for the future.

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