Weekend in Wales

Well, this weekend's radio silence was a bit unexpected - but the house in Wales only had internet in the one computer in the study, and it would have been sort of counterintuitive to sneak away to update you all on the bliss of being out of the rat race.  But it was, truly, blissful.  I hadn't understood what Jane Austen meant when she talked about a house being well situated, but now I do; the place we stayed was in deepest nowhere on the side of a mountain overlooking a beautiful valley.

We had gorgeous weather all weekend, with temperatures in the mid 20s and cloudless skies.  A few of us arrived late due to a missed connecting train, and by time time we arrived the party was in full swing.  We spent our first night drinking, dancing, singing, and hopping between the pool and the hot tub.  Jon managed to sleep in the next morning, but I was woken early by some very vocal sheep in the meadow on the other side of the drive.  After a full English breakfast, we took the rest of the day to wander around the estate, exploring the gardens, building dams in the river, reading in the sun, enjoying a picnic lunch by the lake, taking naps on the lawn, and racing the golf cart along the mown pathways.  In the evening, we celebrated a birthday with champagne and the most decadent chocolate cake I have ever tasted.  It was difficult to tear ourselves away this afternoon - but we had to return to London, because, for most of us, real life begins again tomorrow.

Not for me, though, because tomorrow is three days to D day, and I'll be continuing my farewell tour at Glyndebourne.  And as for you - you Americans in the crowd - tomorrow is Memorial Day!  A very happy long weekend to you all, dear readers.