England Abloom & Weekend in Beautiful Somerset

In the past couple of weeks spring seems finally to have arrived. In addition to loads of daffodils, we are now seeing many flowering trees (cherries, plums, magnolias), as well as forsythia, primrose, and others.

Flowering cherries in front of our flat

We spent the past weekend with our friends Mike and Joan in the home of friends Reg and Lynne in Somerset. In addition to lovely meals and conversation in their home, Reg and Lynne took us touring to the seaside at Weymouth, Portland, and Lyme Regis, and to the abbey at Sherborne—an amazing structure with intricate fan-vaulted ceilings and a Saxon wall that is probably more than 1,000 years old. We ate our way through the countryside, with stops at some great pubs: the Pulpit, the Halfway House, and the Lord Nelson. When we weren’t eating (and drinking) lunch we were indulging ourselves in tearooms, with plenty of scones and cakes, including Mike’s favorite, Dorset apple cake.

Weymouth

Mike, Joan, Lynne, Reg, Ken at Lyme Regis

Halfway House pub

Carved altar piece at Sherborne Abbey

Window and part of fan vaulted ceiling at the abbey

Connie, Mike, Reg, and Ken made their way to the Lord Nelson pub by way of a fine hike up to Ham Hill, where we saw the faint remnants of a medieval village, the earthwork remains of one of the largest Iron Age hill forts in Europe, and the Ham Hill stone circle (a Millennium Project) in the Ham Hill Country Park. The hike covered meadows, woods, hillsides, and orchards, and we saw lots of birds and flowers. It also made the hikers late for lunch at the Lord Nelson, but Lynne and Joan eventually relented and allowed the walkers to have lunch.

Mike, Ken and Reg before the hike

Ham Hill stone circle (modern)

The villages, towns, and countryside of Somerset and the surrounding area seemed at their best during this bright, sunny weekend; before we realized it, we had eaten, drunk, and talked our way through the weekend, and were on the train for our return to Oxford. Yet again we’ve found delightful people and places, making us feel at home such a long way from home.

In front of Lynne and Reg's converted barn home