Rudders at Home

I’ve been busy recently. Very busy. Work has me in early and home late, so I haven’t had much time to sit down at home, let alone post to the site. However, just last weekend, I did take much appreciated afternoon off to celebrate my birthday.

It started when Paul brought home my birthday cake:

Absolutely yummy. Paul brought this home for me from Patisserie Valerie last Friday. Granted, that was October 31, but we were on our way out the door for my annual birthday trip. This year it was a bit low key, completely different from the year before. But that’s ok, because I had a fabulous time, and I finally got to celebrate Bonfire Night in the UK.

My birthday falls on November 5, which  in America is most often just a normal day, unless it happens to fall on an election day. Which it doesn’t this year. Close, but not quite. In the UK, November 5 is Bonfire Night. Bonfire Night – what is that, you ask? Well, it’s a holiday the UK has to celebrate the foiled plot of Guy Fawkes’ attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament.

The weekend before my birthday, Paul took me up to Derbyshire for my annual trip. We went there specifically to tour the house Chatsworth and go to their Bonfire Night celebrations. Not to mention enjoy the beautiful countryside up there.

Chatsworth celebrated Bonfire Night in style. Not only did we get to see this massive fire, but they also put on an impressive display of fireworks.

It was a great night. Not too cold, and only minimal rain. The event started at 6:30, and they had food vans selling pasties and sausage sandwiches, along with beer, tea and coffee. It was a bit of a carnival, with people on stilts all dressed up and then they also had performers who were juggling fire batons and all sorts.

It was a quick weekend, with the Saturday spent touring the house and exploring the gardens. I was having a terrible afternoon with the camera, though, and didn’t manage to get many pictures, which is a bit disappointing. It was a nice break and one I’ll definitely remember for a while.

1 Comment »