Dreaming of Freedom

Yesterday I went to spend my alloted 20 minutes talking to the person in charge of my SFI course. It was quite good getting some time to talk to a teacher and ask questions. The work experience I get to do after a few months consists of two full days a week at a place of work - it’s unpaid but does provide you with a reference as well as experience.
I then met up with Cheri and spent a very pleasant day wandering around town, eating nachos and drinking coffee in the city museum.

Today despite the rain I met up with Karin and wandered up through the Botanical Gardens to the wonderful wooded area behind. It’s great for walking and consists of a lake, woods and heather covered heath. The colours were all muted greens, oranges and purples and the mist hung on the hills: making the walk have a sort of refreshing autumnal beauty about it. After the drizzle drenched us we went and sat in the steamy warmth of the greenhouses in the Gardens and munched our picnic.

Yesterday it turns out was Gustav Adolfsdagen (Gustav Adolf’s day). I’m sorry I didn’t celebrate it - partly because he was the king that founded Gothenburg but more importantly because you get to eat a delicious looking cake!

I’m now snuggly tucked up at home watching the darkness descend through my rain smeared windows enjoying fika.

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It is now officially cold and I have even considered putting the heating on! On the 1st of November I noticed the first frost. Yesterday there was frost again but this time it lingered long into the day. Today there was ice. Yes real ice. I wandered down to Slottsskogen with the camera and there on the pond standing about, when they should have been swimming, was a whole collection of ducks and seagulls.

It is the most satisfying autumn ever - there is the most beautiful feast of colours - a real celebratory riot of reds and yellows to warm us through the onslaught of Cold Weather.

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I cycled down the river and over the bridge to Hisingen to have a look around. I cycled through the houses up to S.A.Hedlunds Park and Slätta Damm. It’s a lovely wild area - hills covered in trees and Slätta Damm is a lake covered in water lilies. The Swedes really know how to make parklands for people to use.

On another topic - tip of the hat to The Archers and the brilliant storyline of the swap club and other attempts to make the fictional village sustainable. What a great idea - we should all set up things like that - in fact people have but now it’s achieved global fame on the Archers maybe other people will jump on board the idea. On a similar note the Norwich Swap Shop is still going strong. Visit it on Gentleman’s Walk on the 8th of every month between 10 and 4, to swap some stuff or volunteer your time.

For other useful things in Norwich you could check out The Greenhouse.

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I walked around St James after work today. It’s quite nice but it’s bizarre wandering past the shops seeing priceless antiques on sale, of the sort that I’ve only ever seen in galleries and museums. It was odd seeing things in Christies advertised at more than the cost of an ordinary person’s house and it struck me again what a city of extremes London is - the very poor and the very rich living side by side. It must be odd to own a surviving piece of C15th statue or Elizabethan painting and keep it just in your house for only you and your friends to see. What a good thing that someone thought to set up galleries and museums for all of us.

St James is of course very affluent and full of exclusive tailors, wine shops, large houses, and of course St James Palace. I’ve discovered that you can just wander into Christies and look at the stuff so I’m going back to do that. I saw the London Library which unfortunately costs to join and had a good look through the railings into St James park. I also saw the Spencer House which is where Princess Diana lived while in London - just round the corner from her ex-husband and mother-in-law. That have been cosy! I was using Andrew Duncan’s Walking London to navigate my way around and I have to say that I love the book. If you’re planning to spend anytime in London I highly recommend that you get hold of one of his books because you really feel that you are seeing different parts of London and lots of little nooks and crannies that you wouldn’t be brave enough to venture into.

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I had a fantastic weekend. Went up to see my Granny and was fed wholesome stew and porridge. We then popped into Cambridge on the way to Norwich and had a look around Churchill, Trinity and Clare Colleges with Tim. We wizzinipped to Norwich so I could meet up with Will, Ella and Rich. We were disappointed to find that Wetherspoons no longer serve vegan burgers - their one saving grace has disappeared and I will no longer feel any need to frequent the establishment. It was however lovely to meet up and Weatherspoons failed to ruin it.
I spent the rest of the evening hanging out at the Arts Centre and being Joe’s groupie which was great. It was probably his last time with the band so it was good to see them. The band was superb and we all danced happily along half in love with Anna and her dancing partner.
Mum and I spent Sunday travelling around the countryside and visiting the Fitzwilliam museum in Cambridge. There is a pretty good art collection there.

It’s back at work this week and all sorts of exciting things are happening - Christmas parties and secret santas - so it really feels holidayish there!

I nipped into the Photographers Gallery earlier and there is an interesting exhibition there called Seeing is Believing - lots of pictures collected by Harry Price an enthusiastic investigator of the paranormal and mediums. The photographs are fasinating because they show fake ghosts, tables leaning suspiciously close to curtains, arms clearly raised close to levitating objects and other such gems. You might be interested Rob if you get a chance to come to London.

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The weekend was glorious with wonderful sunshine. I wandered around Kensington on Sunday and Monday looking at all the beautiful old houses. Kensington Gardens is an amazing space. It’s just so big and full of people when it is sunny. I wandered round with Keyvan’s camera snapping trees, flowers, and occasionally, surreptitiously, people! I’m becoming addicted to Andrew Duncan’s ‘Favourite walks round London’. Recommended buy. Originally recommended by Ellie – so thanks for that Ellie!

Keyvan and I spent Monday exploring Holland Park (much cosier than Kensington Gardens) and the quaint little Kensington streets and squares. It’s really lovely. I spent the whole time wanting to live there and then remembering that you practically have to be millionaire to do that.

I’m back in Norwich now doing more mundane things but it’s off to London and then Bath again soon for more adventures!

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