Mini May Adventures

Carrying on from the previous month, I can confirm that the crazy woman has not been back to her mischievous ways. We moved the poo bags back onto the path in a pile, set the camera up, and waited. Unfortunately though, we didn't catch the culprit, nor the person who cleaned up the bags; but all is calm, so we are leaving the plants un-planted.

May has been a good month... full of mini adventures. It started off with a trip to Alton Towers- finally! I can't believe I have been here three years and haven't been to an amusement park, and it was free-ish (with collected tokens from one of the national newspaper). It was a beautiful day, a random Wednesday off, and and term time, so no line-ups! There is a good mix of small and large rides in an outdoor park. It reminded me of a live version of Roller-coaster Tycoon without the piles of sick on the pavement.

Alton Towers Grounds

Nemesis

Alton Towers grounds from the gondola.

I'm not sure if it's an artefact of getting older, but all of the rides seemed way too short. I'm not sure if there is a standard of what the ride duration of a roller-coaster should be, or if it has been that long since I've been on one, but all of the major roller-coasters seem to be over far too soon. I was really grateful that we didn't have to queue because the ratio of ride-enjoyment to queue-fury would not have balanced. My favourite ride was the super topsy-turvy Nemesis, with Thirteen as (more traditional speed and angles with a surprise near the end) a close second.

I squeaked out a half-marathon one weekend. Didn't plan for it, didn't formally train for it, but it was enjoyable, nonetheless. It feels nice that I can relatively easily pick up a half-marathon race and not be crippled by it the next day. I guess I must have a reasonable enough fitness level to be able to do that. It still is strange to me (and my Mom as she reminds me) that I am actually running that far now... I used to hate running for more than two laps around the track and I vowed not to run that far again after my first half-marathon three years ago! Next up.. well, not quite next, but I have signed up for the London Marathon and I think I actually might train for it. If I don't get on the ballot, I will be pestering you for charity donations, so watch this space for more updates on training and fundraising.

The next couple of weekends were spent adventuring in the garden... replanting the greenery in the back and Craig's been busy building a pagoda/pergola whatever you call it. I will refer to it as the pergola (someone in yahoo answers suggests that a pergola is less structured often with lattice and climbing plants). It's a big change from last year and looking lovely in a completely different way. I'm really excited for the end of the summer to see how everything has grown. We have a lovely red Canadian Maple tree and I tried to convince Craig to plant some Canadian grass seed for an extra bit of home in this garden. It's true- they sell that crap here.

This brings us to the end of the month where we continued to play in the garden a bit more and finish painting the pergola in preparation for slabbing the patio in early June. But the lure of May Bank Holiday camping was too strong, so we were tempted lake-side for a spot of sunbathing and night-fishing. Ahhhh... peace, lush surrounding, and a clear night; just the relaxation we both needed. The next day while Craig continued to attempt to lure one in, I took a stroll to a nearby country museum and went for a 10-mile run up the canal: the English countryside makes a welcome change in scenery for my weekly run. 

Room with a view- lakeside.

Hartlebury Castle Museum

...has a cider press!

Canal side run

The weather is starting to pick up now after a slow, slow start and the garden will finally get a chance to grow. So, you can expect more garden updates next month... and as I re-opened "102 English Things To Do", you can expect some more typical Englishness. Ta!