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Posts from the ‘Oxon’ Category

Dec 30

Family guy

As expected my body forced me awake early this morning, but it was nice to be back in my own Bermuda bed after a great Christmas at home with our families.

However the imperturbable other half will tell you, my disposition driving anti-clockwise around the M25 from Heathrow to pick my son up on the day we arrived was not particularly festive. Anyway a better journey under the now toll-less Dartford Tunnel to an old mate’s house in St Albans to be met with chili and lot’s of red wine did the trick, and despite a hangover the drive to Oxfordshire on Christmas Eve via Henley had me ready for Santa.

I was on the nice list, which was a pleasant surprise, as was my daughter, which was less of a surprise, and my other half’s family were in great spirits and we had a wonderful couple of days with them before we left early on Boxing Day to drive into London to my brother’s. My parents were already in situ as was my sister in law’s family and we had another very lovely day, rare days of us all being together that should be cherished.
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Dec 22

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Home for Christmas

We fly home to the UK tonight from Atlanta to spend Christmas with our families, which I am really excited about. Tomorrow after we land at Heathrow we have a bit of M25 navigating to do, first of all we have to nip around to Kent to pick my son up and then go back around the other way to friends in St Albans where we are going to spend tomorrow night.
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Dec 26

My 12 days of Christmas

I was drowning my sorrows in the Red Lion, the village pub today. Actually I started before the game. I do like to plan ahead!

The day after Christmas for us was spent in the Oxfordshire village my countryfied-other-half was born in, Brightwell-cum-Sotwell, and her sister still lives in (pop: 1,530). A big walk this morning with various dogs and kids and then to the pub, which is under new management.
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Dec 25

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones. This photo is of a footpath near my jolly-other-half’s brother and his families home in the village of Crowmarsh Gifford in South Oxfordshire. This is where I will be royally fed and watered later today.

Before then I will see what Santa has brought me, but more importantly watch the smile on the faces of three people that I adore more than anything in this world. I hope you get everything that you wish for today. Happy Christmas.

Dec 23

My 12 days of Christmas

A proper lie in was followed today by a visit to Millets Farm to grab lunch and go ice skating. Fortunately for me the skating rink was fully booked up!

Then this afternoon I managed to convince my other half’s family to help me satisfy one of my life-long ambitions, well for as long as I have been coming up to this part of the Chiltern Hills’ countryside anyway.
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Dec 22

My 12 days of Christmas

Spent the early part of our day at Gatwick Airport, giving myself a shot in the arm with a large dose of caffeine at Costa Coffee in readiness for today’s drive that will take us to Kings Hill in Kent to gather my son and his suitcase of hair product and unmatched socks, he is almost a teenager after all, then back on the M25 in the other direction and the M40 to the Oxfordshire countryside.
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May 22

Wedding bells

No, not mine but me and the family are flying back to London tonight for my mates wedding, the one in which I am one of two best men, the speech is coming along nicely, although I’m finding it hard to keep it below two hours.

The wedding is Friday but before then we are doing a mini tour of Oxfordshire and Essex catching up with friends. This after a late dinner last night with a client and then home to pack in the early hours before getting up silly early this morning to come to work. I can sleep when I’m older.
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Jan 5

Zooropa

Amongst bundles of discarded wrapping paper, turkey leftovers and bags under the eyes during our trip home I also made my first ever visit to Colchester Zoo, re-discovered some old London stomping grounds and had a couple of cracking pub lunches.

Colchester Zoo was much bigger than I imagined. Our friends had suggested a 4-hour visit and as we drove up there in the drizzly rain I truly wondered what an earth we were going to do for 3 of those hours.

But I should have feared not as we comfortably strolled it’s 60 acres during 3 hours and still left some for another day, although there were a fair amount of exhibits that had migrated for the winter. There are apparently over 260 different species and they are laid out in numerous zones where you can get pretty close to the animals.
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Dec 25

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to you and yours. Last night after we had crammed into the standing room only carol service at the tiny Mary Magdalene church in Crowmarsh, I had an enjoyable couple of pints of local brew River Crossing in the pub in this picture in the village of Brightwell-cum-Sotwell, although that photo was taken a year ago!

The Red Lion is a traditional 16th Century half timbered, thatched pub that almost burnt to the ground in 2001 but was rescued by brave local firemen and then rebuilt and is still rightly popular locally.
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Jan 30

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A Christmas story

Christmas is already feeling like a distant memory but there were some great ones from our trip home, one in particular that I’d like to share was the Torchlit Parade we joined in on Christmas Eve.

The torchlit parade takes place every Christmas Eve between the Oxfordshire villages of Streatley and Goring. At dusk people walk downhill from both villages and cross the small bridge that crosses the tapered River Thames and then gather in a vast meadow with a huge bonfire to sing carols.

Seeing thousands of people holding hessian and wax torches was a wonderful visual, especially with the snow cover on the ground. My son loved it but tended to wave his torch around a bit like it was a sparkler and we did well to escape the parade without the Fire Brigade being called!
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