Autumn Leaves

Autumn Leaves
Originally uploaded by Lisa Fagg

Happy birthday to me! Today is my birthday. How to celebrate? Well, if you're me, you want to be outdoors - but not stressing yourself too much! So we got up late, had brunch (scrambled eggs, smoked salmon and home-baked bread rolls) and set off with "No Particular Place to Go".

We walked into Fen Ditton, then back along the river as far as the Cambridge Museum of Technology, continuing along the river to Midsummer Common, returning along Maids Causeway.  We called in at the Zebra pub on the "home stretch".  It was a lovely afternoon.

As we set out, I was in the mood for colour - and I found plenty of it. Late berries, leaves, trees - all contributed to the spectral symphony. I snapped away for a while before admitting that I could never capture it all. We walked along the river, looking at the narrow-boats and wondering about the life inside them; watched the Colleges' early-arrivals get their first taste of the oars - some would go on to race in The Bumps in May, no doubt - and artfully dodged joggers and cyclists - all of whom seemed to have woken up this day and realised its potential.

Steam Cylinder of Headly Mill Engine
Originally uploaded by Lisa Fagg

Before we knew it, we'd been walking for over 2 hours. Up ahead, the Cambridge Museum of Technology was showing signs of life - in times previous,  it has seemed dormant - our curiosity got the better of us and we couldn't resist the urge to go inside. We bought tickets in the little gift shop attached to the site and went in to explore.  What an adventure it was!  We were transported to another time, another era.  The age of mechanical things; the smells of oil and gas mingled with those of the WD-40 and metal polish used to restore the titans to their former glory. It was immense and a real testimony to the art and science that was the industrial era of the 19th century.

Soon the sun began to recede and it was time to think about winding up. We headed homeward with the intention of stopping at a pub along the way for a pint. We wound up at a place called the Zebra - one we'd passed by, on many occasions, but never gone into. It turned out to be a kind of 'ageing hippy' kind of joint - the staff and clientele ranged in age from 30's to 60's. The music was FABULOUS - The Stones, The Who, The Faces, Hawkwind, Fleetwood Mac and Simon & Garfunkel, to name but a few. Before we knew it our 'pint' had turned into two.  We left after our second pint, our steps more determined now, as our thoughts turned to our plans for dinner.

Steak, Mashed Potatoes with Cavolo Nero
Originally uploaded by Lisa Fagg

For dinner we had a couple of fantastic sirloin steaks from our trusted local butcher (thanks Andrew Northrop!!) with potatoes and Cavolo Nero from our organic box - which we decided to mash together with butter and olive oil. The result was exquisite! With this, we drank a bottle of 2005 Château Haut-Nouchet, an organic Pessac-Léognan claret. Wow.

And so, it was, that I celebrated another year gone by.