Didn't get up a 5am even though I was awake as I didn't want to wake up my host, Sharron. So I just lay in bed drifting in and out of slumber until I heard her mooching about. We had a lovely breakfast, something I haven't had before. It was Bircher Muesli from Pret. You soak it in a bit of apple juice first and then add some yogurt to it. Sharron also added some grated apple, which is something I will be doing at home as it really added a nice dimension to it. Forget to get a picture again :-/
Straight after breakfast and a coffee, we headed over to the first part of our day out to Cirencester. We parked up and had a wander around town, where they had a little market with lots of artisan stalls selling handmade or homemade goods. It was a lovely place with narrow streets and traditional buildings.
We bought some homemade pies for lunch. I went for slow-cooked shin of beef with vegetables and Sharron had the wild bore. We also treated ourselves to some (well 6 lol) Portuguese custard tarts for our excursion to Stonehenge in the campervan. We nipped into Waitrose too for something for Dinner that ws easy to prepare on a gas hob. Sharron has this device called a ridgemonkey that is kind of a pan with sections that has a lid that clamps on so you can cook everything in it on the hob and just keep turning it over to cook both sides etc.
Took a few pics of the streets and some vintage food vans that looked nice and had a wander around an indoor market with various artists displaying their work. We stumbled upon a lady selling Forever Living and Sharron bought a couple of items from her. Even though I could have ordered it for her, I said it would be nice to support her as I don't really do it anymore as a business, I just order stuff for my regular customers.
After about an hour of sightseeing, we headed back to Sharrons for lunch. We quickly heated the pies in the microwave rather than wait for ages for them to warm through in the oven. I wasn't over-impressed with mine as I had two big pieces of fat/gristle which always puts me off. At £4.50 a pop you expect them to put lean cuts in not minging bits :-/
Lunch finished and it was time to pack the van and head off to Stonehenge. It was a bit impromptu as this time yesterday it wasn't even on the agenda but that's where me and Sharron are quite similar, we both like to do things on a whim if the mood takes us.
The van was really compact and had so much storage in every nook and cranny. I could really picture myself traveling around in one with Bella. I might even hire one for a weekend and go on a little trip with her so how we manage.
By the time we got to Stonehenge the sun had already gone down so it wasn't the best light for photos. We parked up on a street nearby as it closes at 3pm so we were hoping to get some pics without all the people on them. They weren't as big as I was expecting them to be and we were quite a way back from the stones as I said I wasn't bothered about paying to go in and hear all the gubbins about them, I just wanted to say I'd been and get a picture lol. In the end the only way to get a good picture was to line up the phone camera with the binoculars, which took ages to get right but at least you can see them clearer.
While we still had some daylight we decided to get Arty and paint our view. Sharron had a sketchbook and some pencils and two sets of watercolor paints. I can't remember the last time I even tried to draw or paint something. It was so nice to just have nowhere to be or anything else to do but just enjoy the moment and be present. There aren't many people I could have shared this experience with and done these type of things.
After our art class lol, we (well I say we Sharron) sorted out dinner. Everything cooked in her gadget on the hob, which was nifty. We had a Charlie Bingham's chicken in white wine with mash and some carrots and broccoli. It was really tasty and didn't feel like a |"roughing it camping" kind of meal. It was just as good as something you'd cook at home.
After dinner, we played a few games of something called the Viking game, which was kind of cross between draughts and chess. Now chess I am no good at it as I don't think enough moves ahead to win. I think you have to be a certain kind of person to be good at chess. But this game seemed like a step up from draughts but not as difficult as chess.
We had some 'chips n dips' while we played and before you knew it a couple of hours had passed and we were both ready to hit the sack. Great day and great company.
It was nice being out in the middle of nowhere in a campervan with the heater on all toasty warm. Hopefully we will see the sun coming up tomorrow.
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