Wednesday 18.09.2019

In many ways these last couple of days have been one of my favourite kind of autumn days. Not the jewel-coloured leaves shimmering in a still-warm sun, nor the last of the swallows and martins circling round, nor the busy combining and baling of golden straw, going on late into the night under a harvest moon, lovely as all those things are.

By contrast, these days of perfectly still air, misty, cool and grey, mizzling,not yet winter cold although inviting a morning fire to be lit anyway, the damp air enhancing the autumnal fragrances of the land tip-toeing towards winter. Makes you want to light a bonfire, where you still can, a time honoured autumn tradition.

And meanwhile the summer and its adventures recede ever more quickly into the distant past.
In July there was a long weekend in Dublin: a revelation in many ways, not least the way the history of the country came at us from practically every wall and building

and made us realise how ignorant we were. Not taught in our history lessons anyway.




The Spire of Dublin, the anticipated pubs, the unanticipated (by me) nature reserve and walk along the beach, the little reminders that you weren`t in the UK,

the awesome Trinity College library, the thought provoking National Museum (especially the Alison Lowry exhibition about the Magdalene Sisters which runs until May 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xecqNvY3Cs), a train ride (that crossed a border without any drama - just saying) and two ferry journeys, the one from Belfast to Cairnryan done on a beautiful sunny day which meant we could do the whole trip on deck. The only way to travel.

And then came August........