Osborne View and Burley

It's Sunday....a day of rest. To add to that, we're on 'holiday'. Nothing is required of us but to rest and enjoy ourselves. Which is what we did. Apparently to have this many days of sun is extremely odd ~ a rarity. I choose to believe this is just another way in which God tells me He loves me. :) (big cheesey grin on my face)

This is The Osborne View.
We spent all day long out here. It was beautiful. The breeze blowing off the water.....sun shining....birds chirping...

What I will remember is the best beer I have ever tasted was here. It was from the 'extra cold' tap. I will remember the conversations surrounding Princess Diana. Political views. How relaxing this was. The smell in the air. And the conversations where we laughed so much.
(also, there was a potty access from the outside....no...I go all the way up two flights of stairs to one tucked away on the top floor...)

This was the view over the wall. First of all the pictures this camera takes are amazing. Second of all....this is SUCH a beautiful scene...If I'd had my way..I'd be right out there with them. (probably falling off being the klutz I am..)

hmmmm.......English plumber or Say No to Crack?

Soooo.....leaving the crack behind...the next day our wonderful hosts took us to another town. See, they asks us what we wanted to see...because if we wanted to go back to London, they'd take us. That's all fine and good...and believe me I'll be back...but we wanted to see what everyday England is like. I wanted to have tea and crumpets, scones and visit a tea house.

Now we have stayed with many different hosts. There have been good ones, not so good ones and excellent ones. These two people fall right into the excellent hosts. It has been said that fish and visitors stink in three days. We were there for 5. You wouldn't have known if we got on their nerves because we always felt welcome.

Look! Ferrari.....oooooooo

Look, the old chimney stacks!

As we were driving to our destination, we found many cute houses. As my daughter says, it looks like a gingerbread house.

Just kinda thought this was neat. England is so quaint.

BURLEY

Think Harry Potter shops here?

It was a bit alarming how many stores there were like this in this little town. Since I've read up a bit on the history, it makes a bit more sense. (BTW, I stole the following from a website)

Picturesque thatched cottages tucked away in unexpected places help conjure up how life was in the past. Burley has remained untouched by time, steeped in old customs and history, enabling visitors to unwind and enjoy its tranquil atmosphere.

Legends concerning dragons, witches and smuggling abound in this traditional village. Today you can go riding on horseback, in a horse-drawn wagon or on cycles.

Burley depicts everything you would expect from a traditional, old New Forest village. Nestling in the lee of a hill, surrounded by an area of true outstanding natural beauty.

This is when I laughed. Really? They sell brooms? Part of me wanted to know how they swept the floor...lol!

Being the great hosts they were, looky! A thatched roof tea house!
The Old Farmhouse

There were several different rooms to this tea house, which I'm told is traditional. I found it enchanting. Look at those wood floors and that staircase. The fireplaces were visibly aged and one held a surprise.

Enchanting....

Hello? Are you the chimney sweep?

Each room had it's own character and charm. Each had little interesting pieces of history.

Thank you Local Knight for your bravery against the Dragons...

If I had the money (and space to put it), I'd buy this and ship it back home.
(and promptly reupholster it) The lid flips up!

This is our sweet hostess Carla. She's a peach and it was so enjoyable just talking with her. She needs to give me lessons. How this woman can anticipate your needs as well as she does is amazing.
We had this discussion concerning aluminum. Now we cheeky Americans enunciate it (al LOO min um) They enunciate it (al la MIN i um) Do I have that right? We all got quiet a chuckle out of it. To be honest, they are enunciating it correctly...we are not.

She has a teenage son still at home that loves his games as much as my boy. He, however, was a hoot to talk to. He was talking to her begging, 'Please Mom, tell me you didn't take them to have tea and scones...' answered afirmatively he replies....'oh Mom! You make us look gay!' I rolled!

There is Steve, Carla and myself. See that lovely looking plate right there? That would be my scones with jam and clotted cream. Oh that stuff was so good! I could have that every morning! In fact, I was in fear I was dolluping it on a bit heavy, however, Carla was very shocked I didn't finish it off. 'Didn't you like it?' Oh yes ma'am I did!

See, what my hosts don't understand is how much this meant to me. (pardon me as a tear is wiped way...the screen is fuzzy) There is a long list of desired experiences on my wish list. To have actual tea and scones in a teahouse in England was one of them. It was a marvelous experience shared with good people that will never be forgotten.

Off we go with our bellies full. I have enjoyed this and am looking forward to the beautiful drive to where ever these two wish to take us. Every part of England that has been visited is just beautiful. Make me think of the movie The Holiday.
(sigh..mmmmm)

Now there's probably gonna be some nasty comments for this but previously these used to be the icon on the marmalade jars. They are called gollywogs... They were removed from the marmalade containers because certain people were offended by them. Therefore, they are now called called jollywogs. I personally thought they were cute. (To me it's not different than Mrs. Buttersworth, an American icon. ) However, since an English woman walked by and was loudly appalled by it, I took my picture for memory rather than the doll itself.

We get back to the car and here is this horse, standing right in front of the car. Being that this is a wild horse, of course I had to pet it. And then take it's picture.
(I just made you famous)

Back in the car we go and look what we found. This beautiful church.
(with another clock no less!)

The Church of St. Michaels and All the Angels in the Diocese of Winchester

And off to the side was this old grave. I can't tell how old it is because the dates have faded off already, but can you imagine what life had to be like back in the time of this person?

Off we go on another adventure. Stay tuned for the next experience in England. We still have a couple of days left!