Richmond

Was up fairly early so finished the first of the cross stitch cacti.  Didn't feel so good with a poorly tummy so we got off to a slow start and left for a planned trip to Richmond about 1pm when I started to feel better. We parked alongside the river which looked so welcoming on what turns out to be the hottest day of the year thus far. 

We walked up the steep winding road to the castle passing lovely cottages.  The castle was built just after the battle of Hastings by Alan of Brittany, a relative of William the Conqueror to strengthen the Norman hold on the north of England.  Overlooking both the river and the town it afforded some cracking views of the surrounding area.  I particularly loved the garden and it was easy to imagine courtiers relaxing there on a similarly sunny day in years past. The garden is still well maintained although full of flowers and the area which would once have grown vegetables to feed the residents of the castle and herbs for medicinal purposes is now a very neatly manicured lawn.

Afterwards we wandered into the town for a late lunch and settled on the Red House Hotel.  I had a gorgeous halloumi in beer batter sandwich with roast vegetables, fries and coleslaw. I'm not too keen on the current trend to serve things in brioche buns which are too crunchy and not easy to eat. I'd have preferred a soft bap but other than that it was lovely and washed down well with a Golden Sheep bitter shandy

When we got back to the cottage we drove past to see what was further up the hill.  The village is literally two streets at right angles to each other.  Beyond that is glorious Yorkshire moorland full of sheep and nesting birds and we could see a lot of the route we'd travelled earlier in the day.

We turned round to come back to the cottage which is when I noticed the red telephone box we'd passed on the way up. The other side had a sign saying 'Book Swap'. I was very excited as I've seen these things posted on Facebook but never encountered one in real life before so once we parked up I picked up my phone and camera and wandered up there to take some pictures.

It was a delightful surprise and the perfect way to finish the day out.

We watched The Intern after tea with Ann Hathaway and Robert De Niro Alot of De Niro's recent films are about the challenges facing older people post-career and family raising and decry a bygone age of chivalry and snappy dressing. The Intern touches on those as well as the role the more mature person has to play in a society so geared up to youthfulness. A lovely gentle watch.

Today's soundtrack was the Pauline ipod shuffle which included Skinny Lister, Jason Isbell, John Fulbright and Don Henley.