Isle of Wight

I left school at just a little after 3:30. Sheila took me to the Dartford branch of Avis, where Peter walked me through the process of driving and renting a car in England. Rule one: keep the middle of the road on the right left! of you. Rule two: keep in mind that English drivers will plow you over. Full stop.

I traveled down only one one-way street (good god) before getting onto the highway, nearly an hour late, and picking up Erik from the Sainsbury's in Sutton. Then we were off. The ferry was a riot (see awesome upholstery below!), and very quick and easy.

Finally we arrived in Steephill Cove. The drive was long, death-defying at some points, and since I was the only one who could drive stick (note: being able to drive a standard car is always important), I drove
from Dartford
to Sutton
to Portsmouth
to Steephill Cove
in one night after a looong day week of teaching.

Naturally, this ensued...

a little wine by the bedside...nice

my Hunters, ready for action

But before diving headfirst into the wine, a cuppa. And, as Laura would say, I made it, so it was really special ;)



Yours truly, taking a peek into the camera (where's the rodeo? Picnic? Any other jokes about my Korean checkered shirt?) because I couldn't resist taking some pictures before getting nestled in for the weekend.

What a gorgeous place we picked. The cottage was perfect for a cozy, seaside getaway. It was fully equipped with a kettle, fridge, and tv. We had books, a ton of food, and good company. It was a delightful weekend.


The gorgeous thatched cottage

...and one last shot before we called it a night.

View from the front porch





And so began a walk down to the ocean for a little look around...






































Best hours ever



I must say that I finally feel as though the camera does the place justice. From the simple to the sublime, the pics are true representations of the stuff I saw, not just good attempts. I do have to get better at this "camera stuff" (again, Laura was right...I need to take a course), but I think I'll fiddle for awhile, enjoy the spring as it surfaces, and figure out what I can on my own. In the meantime, I will enjoy the perspective, the relativity, and the views. Oh! The views!



Heavens opening up on a little piece of water



Looking back towards Steephill Cove



Looking forward to Ventors

And so begins a tour around Ventnors...

Sign reads,
"Lost cudderly rabit
called rabit
if found please call daisy"
Kids do say it best sometimes, don't they?

...and they look so damn cute on beaches








What we ate, portion after portion, for the entire day on Saturday


Lunch on Sunday at the Spy Glass Inn





A few sheep in the field on the way back to the ferry



Muddied ferry waters






And the sunset that topped off the weekend. Thanks for a great time!