Sakura

AS you read this post, please listen to this beautiful rendition of Sakura, well-known folk song from Japan, describing the majesty of the Spring Cherry blossoms.  

Last weekend, our Cherry tree (sadly, not one which provides fruit), was at its absolute peak-beauty!

As I stood beneath its bendy branches, enjoying the pale pink hues against the blue, cloudless sky, I reflected on the utter joy of creation! How lucky I am, to see these flowers, feel this beauty and know the joy of these tiny blooms and their fleeting, transient beauty.

I thought it would be only polite to share them with you.

At the weekend, CBC and I went to Colchester.  As usual, we left it too late, we'd been to Maldon to pick up CBC's new glasses and then drove on to Colchester.

It was nice to visit somewhere different.  We ate dinner at a Vietnamese place called Elsa's.

Earlier in the day, CBC and I went to visit our newts.  We only saw a few.  Several were hiding.

Did I say that one turned up on our doorstep the previous week! I wonder what it wanted?

On Sunday, I had a madly busy day as I was covering first flute for two concerts with Orchestra of the City.  The concerts were part of the Amersham music festival.

Alas, there were engineering works on my local line, meaning, I had to use the alternative railway line. I left home at 10.30am and arrived in Amersham at the church at 13.45! 3 hours 15 to get there and to compound matters, the Jubilee line suffered from a critical failure of the signalling system which lasted at least 11 hours!!!

The concerts, one a children's concert and the other an evening concert, both went really well. I enjoyed playing first flute with this orchestra as I usually play 4th or 3rd (usually Alto flute) or even 5th flute with them! It was a real privilege.

As I knew it was going to touch and go whether I'd make it in time to avoid the rail replacement bus doom, I literally undid my shoes and collapsed my music stand as the audience were applauding and virtually knocked people flying as I attempted to leave the church  at 21.05 and cycle the mile or so to the station. A trumpeter and a fellow flautist were both running for the same train as I cycled.  I was amazed that the trumpeter arrived only 3 minutes behind me! Sadly, we missed the fast train, but got the Metropolitan line soon after, which takes double the length of time.  The trumpeter and I spent most of our hour journey feverishly researching the best way for us both to reach our destinations since the Jubilee line was unbelievably STILL not working!  I decided to take the alternative train line as I thought it would still get me home quicker than the rail replacement.  Alas, it would involve a 5 mile cycle at the other end and my bike lights had died!  Luckily, a kind man lent me his charging block and then unexpectedly, despite it being almost midnight, CBC came and picked me up so I didn't have to cycle. I thought he'd be asleep! So I got home 40minutes sooner than via the rail replacement! 

I was unbelievably tired and hungry by the time we got home after 12.  I ate some left over dinner and was in bed by 1.

I was so sleepy on Monday morning!!!!

Tomorrow, my choir have a practice with an accompanist for the choir of the year.  I hope it goes well!

I keep wondering what all the other choirs are doing for their pieces and whether I should have made different choices!  Ah well, too late to change my mind now! 

 Only a few days till the holiday!

xx

The flora and foliage of Warley Place

I shared my pictures of the beautiful daffodils of Warley Place the other day. This is an Essex Wildlife Trust site.  If you want to find it, you will need to travel from Brentwood station. It's a few miles so you can walk for about 50 minutes or drive. A bus will only take you so far.

I got a taxi from Brentwood station that cost me about £8.25 to Warley Place.  There was a volunteer tent asking for a suggested donation of £3 per person. Luckily, I scrabbled around in my purse and found the requisite amount.  

You can do a circular walk which is apparently about a mile (or a km?)

I'll share some pictures

In the rockeries and along a woodland path, there is a lot of Wild Garlic.  I was delighted to see it!

I loved this view with the different greens. You can see the woodland daffodils (not the field ones)

Here are the woodland daffodils.  So beautiful.

I spied some Turkey Fantail fungus. Not the most colourful ones I've seen but very soft and pretty.

Some beautiful Lungwort. I love the spotty leaves, the beautiful hues and the spiky sepals.

Some lingering Hellebores. i wish I had these ones in my garden. My Hellebores are more dull.

The old conservatory.

Delighted to be accompanied by this beautiful Robin.  Made me think of my Grandmother Mamgu as they lived not so far from this place.

Luscious green.

I learnt that this flower is called Scilla.

Not sure what this purple delight is but it is pretty. The leaves a gorgeous too!

Forget-Me-Nots.

Look at all that garlicky goodness!!!

The primroses remain....I think....or are they Primulas??

 Spring is the very best of seasons!

xx

Wild Garlic and Daffofils

On Saturday, CBC and I had to go to a town which is about 45 minutes drive from us to visit CBC's opticians  as his glasses have become scratched and they have his prescription and details (plus they handily contacted him telling him he needed an appointment).

I was utterly thrilled because WE ACTUALLY HAD WEEKEND PLANS! And we had a legitimate excuse to go somewhere else other than home, school or anywhere within walking distance.

We arrived and CBC headed off.  I went off to visit the new Refill room in the town and ended up buying lots of lovely things.  I then headed off to Wilko and bought some flower bulbs, seeds, gardening bits and pieces and a seed sprouter and a spray bottle.

CBC and I then stopped to pick up some food from a takeaway hut that had set up and I ate tasty breaded prawns in the market place.   We then headed off to visit Leon's Veg, a business I knew about- we met him at a village fair 2 years ago and tried his wonderful food. He usually sells his veggie and vegan cuisine at Festivals but obviously has not been able to do that this past year so he has sold takeaway portions from his garage which he has set up as a shop on Saturdays.  They cost £3.00 a portion.  We went to see him and bought 5 dishes- Risotto  Veg Rice balls, Capriana, Peanut and Cauliflower curry, Greek Veg Stew, Coconut creamed Aubergines and another dish.  He gave us a free box of Rocket Pesto also.  I left some plastic takeaway dishes with him to reuse which I had in the car.  He's such a nice man and his food is delicious- he uses foraged ingredients too and he runs foraging courses.  I told him I was sad that I hadn't managed to find any Wild Garllic in Essex and he gave me directions from his house to find a huge patch of it.

CBC reluctantly agreed to follow the directions I told him and we found our place to a Wildlife trust place which was a beautiful place to walk.

We saw Snowdrops

Primroses:

The site is on the grounds of an old estate and house.

Lots of wonderful wild foliage.

Are these the start of the Bluebells?

And Daffodils

I loved all the wonderful variety of foliage there.

And finally, here is the Wild Garlic:

Can you see how happy I look!??!  I collected a plastic tub full of it to use at home.

The Daffodils were the crowning glory

CBC has to go back and pick up his glasses next Saturday so perhaps I might collect some more Wild Garlic.

After this, we went to drop in on our friend (CBC's old house mate) to go for a walk with him.  He quickly donned his walking boots as we hovered in his driveway and we headed out.  He took us past our old house (our first married home) and led us to a country park we never knew was there despite living for two years there!  We heard Great tits and saw Jays and had a lovely time.  We bidded our friend goodbye and then went home to eat left over Thai food from Friday night.

It was a great day!

x 

Sakura

Here's a photo from Easter Sunday! I went to the morning service at Hexham Abbey and as it customary, my Mother-in-Law takes some photos of me in the Sele- the park after church!

My dress features beautiful Cherry blossom trees and is from Bernie Dexter so it was the obvious choice or a Spring photo beneath the trees.

I think I should have got a close-up too!

Here's some close-up blossom!

Spring is such a joy!

xx

Did you see the Snowdrops

Last week when visiting my Dad, he told me that the Snowdrops were out in the woodland towards the end of their garden.   The patch has grown over the years but what makes it special is that they are in one hallowed position.  They nestle beside a lofty, old tree like a beautiful, young granddaughter from a fairy tale who nestles beside her beloved Grandfather, leaning in, being read an awe-inspiring story or being bequeathed wisdom of the years.

 They exude a purity and delicacy that long lives imprinted on the memory beyond their annual demise.  I think of them as tentative steps towards Spring, paving the path for other blooms.

 Or perhaps they are bells that ring gently to wake up the bulbs and seeds in the ground below?  Bells only audible to flowers to say, "Make haste, your time is coming soon! Spring is on her way!"

 Did you see the snowdrops?

xx

Vintage

Hello there!

Hope you are well!

It's been miserable weather-wise since we've been in Northumberland, it snowed a lot on Easter Monday and it has rained pretty much non-stop since so I am very glad that we had some sun before the holiday!

On Thursday, I wore this pretty, vintage floral dress that I've had for a few years but not worn for a while due to the seam ripping on one side which my Mum fixed for me. It was nice to wear this on the final day at term!

 

I'm pleased to see the herbs beginning to grow in the raised herb bed to my left though trying to work out where I can grow some vegetables and plant my raspberry bush!!! It might be nice to have some gardening weather when we return home tomorrow! I hope that we might be able to do some gardening.

Hope you are well!

Kezzie xx

Spring colours

We keep hearing more ominous foretelling of the third Beast from the East rearing its icy head but today, it was a lot brighter for Palm Sunday and as I went to go and fill the bird feeders in the garden, I thought I'd take one or two photos of some of the Spring colours in our garden.

In the raised herb bed are a few beautiful golden trumpets of the ever-loyal daffodils, though miniature ones.

Since it is Winter, I haven't really had a chance to scrutinize aforementioned herb bed though I had noticed rosemary, lavender and sage but today, to my utter delight, I noticed chives!

 Just two delicate hyacinths a little further along, both welcome.

 And more of those ebullient daffodils.

 Hello to the bright red berries of this shrub- I hope you make a bird a tasty snack.

In our old garden, we had some of these pretty pink flowers- I hope they grow and give us an equally abundant yield.

I look forward to seeing what else gives us colour later in the year.

What is growing in your garden?

x