The countryside

Last weekend, I took JJ and we went to the Peak District. OK, I admit he was doing all the driving (I can't handle driving on the wrong side of the road), but the area was my idea! We had rented a small car and a house in the middle of a tiny village called Hartington. The village was so cute. It had a pub, a hotel and a couple of tiny shops. We got to meet some of the locals and I can say they're really nice. The goal of the trip was to go hiking, which we managed to do successfully. The first day we walked for about 4 hours going up the Lose hill and the Mam Tor. The second day we walked around Bakewell and the area around Chatsworth Estate. It was such an amazing weekend!

I want to say that's an oak tree, but I can't be sure. I'm more of a city person. I don't know my trees

I love these old brick bridges

Walking around Bakewell

Following the trails was 'interesting'. I only fell once in the mud! That's a good score for me.

Do I look like I belong there?

That's early in our ascent. I still look fresh

The view from the top - breathtaking

Leaving our house the first day of our hike.

Kavala

Awww... my home town... :-)

Random Thoughts Day

I went to watch the ‘Only lovers left alive’ the other day. If you watch the trailer and you expect a vampire action movie, you will be gravely disappointed. The movie is not like that. It’s slow paced and to be honest, it doesn’t have lots to offer in terms of plot and character evolution. However, that doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy it. The cinematography and especially the music of the film is exceptional. I’m a huge fan of Tilda Swindon and Tom Hiddleston proves to be a very talented actor as well, able to stand next to her. What the movie might lack in plot, it covers in acting and direction. I know it’s not a movie for everyone, it’s Jim Jarmusch after all, however, I’d recommend it for a different but interesting viewing.

 The month of March will be quite busy in my little casa. It starts with a small road trip to the National Park of Peak District. I’ve never been there before, but I’m hoping that it will be a nice hiking destination. I can’t say we’re that much into hiking. Our last trip was the white cliffs of Dover a couple of years ago, but I believe we’ll enjoy that little excursion. We’ll see how it goes. Hopefully, I’ll have pictures to share next week.  After that, for almost a week we’ll have our first formal guest staying with us for a week. That will be a first after our lodger left. Then, it’s the birthday of yours truly and my Half Marathon at the end of the month. In the meantime, we’ll be finishing getting connected to the main national gas network and having our front and back garden properly cleared from the last tenant’s garbage. I simply can’t wait to get a proper spot to plant vegetables for the new season.

On a different matter, I’m thinking of adopting a ‘coffee’ name. Something easy for people to understand and be able to write on a cup. I was thinking either Steve or Dave. I’ll run some tests and see what might come up.

Nick i a difficult name apparently