We arrived by train to the a nearby town of Fletching and took a taxi to Willow Cottage. Here we then met Sue and her dog Cola. We went for a walk and got to know them. We spent three days with Sue listening to her fascinating stories about when she was a child growing up in Cypress and her own world travels.
Sue took my mom and I to her hand bell ringing practice in the belfry in the village Church. They needed another person for ringing Old King Wenceslas and so I was able to try ringing hand bells for the first time. I was really nervous and my legs felt shaky but I was able to do it and it was really exciting. We also went to a carol service at the church where we sang lots of carols, the choir sang and people read from the bible.
We have watched a lot of interesting movies lately such as Schindler’s List, My Life So far and BBC nature programs. It was terrible how prisoners had to do some awful things to keep themselves alive in Schindler's list.
I am reading the Hobbit, I have always wanted to read this book since we did the play when I was in school at Linnaea. There is a lot of action in the Hobbit. Bilbo is on a long journey in which there is a lot of trials.
I have been water color painting with my new paint brushes that my mom got me for Christmas. They are very nice paint brushes that you fill up with water, when you squeeze them the water flows through the brush. Mom bought them because I had a friend who had some and she had thought they were really nice. I have been trying them out and working on my skills.
We have been working on a 1000 piece puzzle for about two weeks, we have not been able to complete the sky and that is all that is left.
We have gone on lots of walks with Cola. We walked along the chalky cliffs of the Seven Sisters. The chalk that makes the cliffs is actually made of shrimp poo that has been there for centuries, probably dating back to the time of the dinosaurs.
Ruben and I made up a game called sponge ball golf. You use wooden walking sticks and a piece of sponge like seaweed that is in the shape of a ball. These sponges can be found all along the shores of the Seven Sisters. You also need a lot of rabbit holes. You try to steal the ball from your opponent and keep it for as long as you can until you can find a nice looking rabbit hole to shoot it into at which point you have scored a point if you have shot it in a hole.
We went to the parking lot of the Griffin Pub in the village. We watched people arriving on their horses all dressed up in their boots hats and red and green coats while around twenty five fox hounds followed in behind. There many different kinds of horses, some with their tails and manes braided. Their hair was cut and brushed in a strange way. A few of them were a bit feisty. It was very exciting. The riders had mulled wine and then set off at the sound of the horn for the Drag Hunt. A drag hunt is not really chasing a fox. It has been illegal to hunt fox in England for around six years. Instead they dip a rag or cloth in chemicals and drag it through the woods for the dogs to follow the scent of.
So far it has been very relaxing in Fletching.
Mia
