As mentioned in my previous post, the journey from my home town Ludwigsburg to Ripon takes a full day and is spent using various means of transport from buses and trains to planes. Altogether, on the 21st of March it took us almost precisely 9 hours - everything went well, and we did not have any significant delays.
When the 36 bus from Harrogate pulls into Ripon, it feels very much like coming home, and even more so when we arrive at "our" cottage 10 or 15 minutes later - we've been staying here for quite a few years in a row now, and will keep this up for as long as our kind and friendly landlady will have us.
Here are a few pictures of Matchbox Cottage (of course you've seen it all before). There is a new settee in the living room, a window has been replaced in the ground floor bedroom, and the heating system is now completely independent from the main building.
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| The new settee - much bigger, and very comfy. |
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| Fresh daffodils on the dining table, put there for us by our lovely landlady. |
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| The ground floor bedroom (my sister's). |
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| I sleep upstairs. We each have our own en-suite shower rooms. |
We had been sitting all day long (except for the times we spent standing in various queues - part of the parcel when you travel by plane) and were happy to take a detour to the Cathedral on our walk to the supermarket for some basics.
Ripon Cathedral is a remarkable building, and this first walk by it in the dusk was only to whet our appetite for more to come.
Speaking of which - more to come about my Yorkshire Holiday over the next days and possibly weeks, as I'll be back working tomorrow and won't have as much time to blog as I'd like to. And now, it is time to wind down for the night; I can tell it has been a long day, plus we have "lost" two hours - one by switching to summer time, and another one by travelling to a different time zone.
Good night!
It's good that all went well on the journey to Ripon. I am looking forward to this year's Yorkshire tales - the mud wrestling competition, drinking pints of Yorkshire ale in every Ripon pub, the heavy metal concert and of course the grand day out at Lightwater Valley theme park.
ReplyDeleteHow did you guess?!
DeleteApart from all that, there was a posh champagne afternoon tea, a piano concert, a meeting with the first female Hornblower and a Mystery Wednesday!
I've been wondering about your Yorkshire holiday and can't wait to hear all about it!
ReplyDeleteThat cottage is simply lovely. The daffodils on the table, the pretty lamps and bed covers, the simplicity and coziness of the rooms...just perfection! :) The cathedral is magnificent.
The cottage is perfect for us, inside and out! Its location is ideal - only a 5-minute walk to the market square and bus stops, and yet it is very quiet at night.
DeleteSo glad to hear that you arrived after the long journey and found your matchbox cottage so welcoming again. I look forward to hearing more about what you did, but take your time! I do like that little cottage and daffodils on the table are the finishing touch to make it homelike.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kristi! Yes, Sue is like that, a landlady who makes her guests really feel at home.
DeleteI do love that cottage so much. The daffs on the table, such a welcoming sight for you. The cathedral looks lovely in that light. x
ReplyDeleteWe do, too, Kay! We were lucky to have good weather already on that first quick walk around and catch the cathedral in that light.
DeleteI just love that you do this. I know how much it means to you, and I'm sure it means the world to your mother-in-law. The cottage is adorable.
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