We do get out and about quite a bit when we‘re here in Ripon, and meet with friends and family, loving every minute of it all. But a quieter day is welcome every now and then, and Sunday (26 July) was such a day.
An artisan market held on the market square had been announced for that day, and after breakfast we had a look round. It was small and many of the stalls offered pretty much the same things; for instance, there were at least three with hand-crafted jewellery, two with stuff for dogs and other pets, three with baked goods and/or cheeses. Nothing we wanted or needed for ourselves or as souvenirs for people back home. We did get an assortment of quiches, though, to have that evening for our tea.
We walked over to the Cathedral once more, this time mainly browsing the gift shop. Lunch at Oliver‘s Pantry followed, and it started to rain a little just as we were sitting at our table by an upstairs window with a good view of the street. Almost as soon as it had begun, the sprinkle of rain ended.
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| Kirkgate, Ripon, om Sunday afternoon |
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| My husband sent me this photo from a walk that morning. Kay will love it especially! |
Back at the cottage, we followed our trusted pattern of a rest and coffee/tea on the bench in front of the house afterwards.
I went to see Mary for an hour, and upon my return, my sister and I took a little walk around the neighbourhood, just to the cemetery and back. It was mild at 21C and sunny but very windy, and we soon returned to the cottage for a cosy evening, eating our quiches with salad while watching an old episode of Midsomer Murders.
Just catching up with your Ripon posts. So many lovely pictures that tell me you had pretty sublime weather this year. Sorry you didn't make it to Saltaire... or indeed Haworth! I was just thinking - would you take OK to Ripon one day or will it remain just a special place for you and your sister? It is as if Ripon and the surrounding area has become a familiar place in which you rediscover yourself every summer - a kind of therapy.
ReplyDeleteRipon and seeing the family and friends there still means a lot to me. So far, it‘s been something my sister and I do together once a year, while I go on hiking holidays with O.K. twice a year.
DeleteThe weather really has been great for us, but I do know the lack of rain isn‘t good.
It sounds like the perfect day. The weather has been just right and it's lovely to revisit familiar haunts and meet old friends.
ReplyDeleteYes, that‘s the charm of returning year after year.
DeleteSomehow, I missed yesterday's post. Thanks for sharing so many wonderful photos of places I will never see. You and your sister have such a nice time together when you make your annual visit.
ReplyDeleteWe do, Ellen! Thank you.
DeleteIt is nice to have a quiet day during a holiday. Your days have been busy so I am sure you were ready for the quiet one. I note that you are referring to O.K. as "my husband" now in all the posts where he is mentioned. I miss seeing the name O.K. but I guess you are just exercising the new term for a while, like giving it an outing. Rachel
ReplyDeleteI love to say and write „my husband“ instead of „my boyfriend“ or „O.K.“ - I am still very much in my happy bubble, less than 3 months since our wedding.
DeleteYes, the quieter day was welcome.
That does sound cozy! What books did you get at the charity shop?
ReplyDeleteThis year, I bought a total of five paperbacks, some at charity shops, others at book shops:
DeleteAlan Titchmarsh, The Haunting (Charity Shop)
Carys Bray, The Museum of You (Charity)
Andrew Martin, Yorkshire There and Back (Toppings, York; non-fiction)
Jean-François Marmion, The Psychology of Stupidity (Little Ripon Bookshop; non-fiction, birthday present for a friend)
Lucy Mangan, Bookworm (The Little Ripon Bookshop; non-fiction)
Kirkgate, Ripon. Sunday Blissful Sunday.
ReplyDeleteOliver's Pantry Menu looks promising. Salmon Fishcakes would be my choice.
My sister's cat would race into the kitchen at the smell of salmon even if asleep upstairs.
Mary would have been so pleased to see you again. You have so many shared memories.
Windy and mild. Surprising. Today in Glasgow it rained hard. Warm rain. Humid still.
Lucy Mangan's column in The Guardian was a laugh. Big reader.
DeleteIt was nice sitting with Mary in her garden and chat. Her cat joined us later.
DeleteOddly enough, I don‘t like salmon, although I like fish in general, my favourite being trout, native to the Black Forest. We have never had anything we didn‘t enjoy at Oliver‘s Pantry. They also have great cakes. Their Millionaire‘s Shortbread and carrot cake are our favourites.
I have never read anything by Lucy Mangan, but the blurb on the back of the book captured my interest.
Black Forest Trout ! It's like the menu from a Nabokov novel - he lived in Berlin.
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