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This shady path is near Adlestrop. Most
of the walk was through open landscapes, as you can see from other pictures.
I'm very fond of the mysteriousness of shaded paths like this, always
wondering what I will find on the other side. It's part of the excitement
of walking in places I haven't been before.
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In this case, this was what I found there.
An oak tree that has been shaped by the wind over the hills. It's a bit
like a giant bonsai.
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Not much later, I found some elegant hardware
entering the National Trust property of Chastleton House. The crop in
the background is flax.
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| When I came out of Peasewell
Wood onto a lane, I spotted these umbelliferous flowers growing just in
front of a gate by a fine view over the valley. |
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This is from the other side of Chastleton,
looking north. It's very typical Cotswolds view.
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| This is from Cornwell church.
There were decorations around the tops of the windows. These ended in busts.
The best one was this male face. It is so lifelike, I felt it could be someone
I know. I wonder if the stonemason who created it was using a real model.
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I would guess that this face
was carved by someone else because it is much more stylised. Unfortunately
I don't have a larger version of it. |
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| Cornwell was a pretty village
but most of it was private so there wasn't a lot I could legally take pictures
of. I did manage to sneak a view of a farmyard with this proud rooster without
breaking any laws. |
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This is the view towards Slade
Farm from Whitequarry Hill. The silhouette effect of the trees between the
bridlepath and the field turned out very nice, I think. |
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| The next village was Daylesford.
It had this Georgian postbox set in a wall. I've noticed that I seem to
be collecting pictures of postboxes. It's the fact that they are so similar
but still so different, that makes them fun to photograph. They also appear
in many different settings and often say something about that setting, whether
that message was intended by the people who put the box there or not. This
box clearly communicates that it is set in an orderly community that values
communication and probably also reliability. |
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In the guidebook it says that
Daylesford is dominated by its Victorian church and they weren't kidding.
I didn't get a chance to go inside but the outside is definitely Victorian
in a romantic neo-gothic way. This door made me think of a pre-Raphaelite
painting. The nettles in front make it even more romantic. |
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| There was one monument in particular
that had statues on it in a very Victorian style. This is one of a woman
with a book... |
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...and this one of a woman
who used to point her index finger heavenward. Why there was such a grand
monument in such a remote place I never found out. But I really like the
statues. |
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| The church had gargoyles although
in typical Victorian fashion, they had lost their function (to shed rain
from the roof) and were used only for decoration. |
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Another very pre-Raphaelite thing is to
juxtapose innocent beauty with danger. As illustrated here where the fearsome
batlike creature sits on a frieze of flowers.
All in all this was a fun church with
lots of details to photograph.
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| This is the river Evenlode.
English doesn't make any distinction between a small river and a large river
but in Swedish this is definitely an "å", not a "flod".
Whatever you may call it, there's a footbridge over it between Daylesford
and Oddington. |
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A little nearer to Lower Oddington
I found this pink comfrey. Gorgeous, isn't it? |
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After Lower Oddington I returned to Adlestrop
skirting a cricket field. From the cricket ground you have this very nice
view of Adlestrop House dwarfed by a lebanon cedar.
More...
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Adlestrop is actually famous. It was forever
written into English culture when Edward Thomas wrote a poem about a train
that stopped there. That is why, when the trains no longer stopped here,
the sign was moved to this shelter near the village car park.
More...
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When I returned to the car, there was
still some daylight. So I drove on to Stow-on-the-Wold and had a look
around town. It's a very pretty Cotswold town with more antique shops
than you can shake a stick at. These are real antique shops, mind you,
and you will not see a single Star Wars figure or Raggedy Anne doll in
them. Probably not many bargains either but I'm sure I'd still enjoy browsing
in them on a rainy afternoon.
Photographing shop windows is pretty meaningless
but this mysterious private door caught my eye. I think I can guarantee
that it wasn't bought at Great Mills.
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