Our Ripley trip was on Saturday, the 22nd of August. My next post full of pictures from our Yorkshire holiday will be about Wednesday, the 26th, which was our last day before travelling back to Germany on the Thursday. What did we do the days in between?
It's quickly told:
Sunday was our annual family meal. We all (= around 20 people) met again at the Boat Inn in Sprotbrough, where we'd already been last year. We had excellent food, and it was wonderful seeing nearly everyone again. Some who'd been there last year couldn't make it this time, but others who weren't there last year made up for it.
The waitress who was responsible for our group did her job very, very well: She gave you the impression that it was her pleasure to look after us. Upon her suggestion, we all gathered in the inn's garden for group photos, something we'd somehow never really thought of before.
On Monday, we went shopping in Harrogate. I saw many clothes I liked, but bought only one dress at Monsoon... at first.
Then we went into Miss Selfridge's, where at first nothing really caught my eye. But when we climbed the stairs and walked around a corner, all of a sudden there it was: the coat of my dreams!! Do you know that feeling, when you spot something in a shop and your heart makes a little exclamation mark? It was exactly like that, and I couldn't help drawing in a sharp breath. I tried it on, LOVED it... and put it back on the rack.
By then, we were more than ready for some tea or coffee, and had a break (with delicious cake) in a café one or two roads from the shop. All that time, I kept thinking of The Coat and how much I wanted it. It wasn't the price that had stopped me, rather the thought that I didn't actually need it... but when does one really need something? In the end, we did go back and I did buy the coat, and I am glad I did!
You will of course eventually get to see all three dresses and the coat I bought. (Two dresses at Dorothy Perkins' in Ripon and one at Monsoon in Harrogate.)
Tuesday was going to be the last full day to spend in Ripon, and so we visited all our favourite places again: Several book shops, the Cathedral, the River Skell walk and the canal. Most of the pictures in this post are from that day.
In between these activities, we did householdy stuff such as washing and ironing, cleaning and shopping, cooked our own meals, sat in the sun in our garden with books and cups of tea or coffee, went to see Mary several times, and enjoyed every minute of our holiday. It had seemed so long when we booked the cottage - 11 days! - and we could hardly believe our last day was here.
That day, Wednesday, offered enough for several posts... starting tomorrow!
I don’t think I’ve ever been to Ripley, although we’ve had several Yorkshire holidays.
ReplyDeleteYour ‘Yorkshire family’ means a lot to you, doesn’t it? It’s great to remain good friends and have annual holidays to see them all. And get to visit well-known and much-loved places again. There is a lovely kind of continuity in it all.
And of course, going clothes shopping is always close to your heart. I am glad you found dresses and a coat to take home with you.
Yes, Friko, they do mean a lot to me, and I am glad to know they feel that way towards me as well. You are right, the mix of visiting well-known places and discover new ones is what makes my holidays there so nice.
DeleteI have sometimes regretted things I bought, but have regretted nothing as much as things I loved and didn't buy! I'm very glad you bought the coat!
ReplyDeleteI have rarely regretted buying something, but I have sometimes looked at an item and thought it would be perfect for me, then tried it on and it didn't look good at all... so I was glad I at least tried it and found out it wasn't for me, instead of regretting not having bought it.
DeleteLooking forward to seeing The Coat! :)
ReplyDeleteI hope it won't be until November before I'll need to wear it :-)
DeleteI had a little walk around Sprotborough recently and saw the fish pass on The River Don as well as taking a couple of photos of The Church of St Mary The Virgin. It seemed like a nice place. You do seem to have packed a lot in to your holiday and you are a good living advert for Yorkshire tourism!
ReplyDeleteThat's why I am the Ambassador :-)
DeleteThis time, we didn't go for a walk in Sprotbrough (It really is spelled that way, not Sprotborough) like we did last year. One of my aunts invited us all over for coffee and tea at her place in Thurnscoe, so we went therre after the meal and stayed until it was time for the 2-hour-drive back to Ripon.
As I was reading about the coat of your dreams I immediately though that you were going to say that you went back for it and it had gone. I shall never (I say this now but, of course, who knows what will happen in real life) pass up such an opportunity again. A couple of years ago I saw a painting in a gallery on the Island. It was not expensive. It really spoke to me. I prevaricated. An hour later I rang the owner of the gallery and asked her to save it for me. It had just been sold. My stupidity still haunts me: not because it was a possession I could have acquired but because of the effect the picture had on me that I can still feel but cannot see.
ReplyDeleteThe "loss" of a work of art is, of course, somewhat worse than not buying a certain piece of clothiing. Although clothes can (and do) influence how we feel just as much as a painting can. It's a shame the painting was already gone! I guess there was no way you could have found out who bought it, and maybe talk to them... and I also guess you never found another one that had the same effect on you.
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