 |
| Autumn splendour in Farnham Park |
Lord, it is time. The summer was too long.Lay your shadow on the sundials now,
and through the meadow let the winds throng.
Ask the last fruits to ripen on the vine;
give them two more summer days
to bring about perfection and to raise
the final sweetness in the heavy wine.
Whoever has no house now will establish none,
whoever lives alone now will live on long alone,
will awaken, read, and write long letters,
and wander up and down the barren paths
the parks expose when the leaves are blown.
- Rainer Maria Rilke (1902)
(translated from the original German)
 |
| Vibrant autumn foliage on a house in New Alresford, Hampshire |
The UK has not had a spectacular autumn this year.
A long period of mild, muggy, quasi-summer weather that lasted well into October means it didn't feel remotely like autumn here in the south east of England until a few weeks ago. We only got our first frost at the beginning of November, and in fact there have only been three or four since then, and very mild.
The colours, too, have been more subdued in my opinion. But now I am enjoying the final hurrah of this, my favourite season, now with the predominantly coppers and golds of acer, hawthorn and beech.
Ooh, spooky, misty days... it is glorious.
 |
| A misty morning in the grounds of Farnham Castle |
 |
| Dewy cobwebs on Castle Street |
 |
| The Bishop's Palace at Farnham Castle, shrouded in morning mist |
 |
| Farnham Park |
For myself, I see an amber gentleness. Autumn is an approaching slumber. There's a sense of settling calm as the natural world stops frenetically reproducing, blooming and maturing.
Also - quite importantly for those of us who delight in a country amble - it really is the *best* season for walking. Not too hot, not too cold, plenty of variation in the foliage. Drizzles. Fogs. Golden light. The promise of a pub with an open fire afterwards, something warming to eat, preferably washed down with a soft Italian red.
 |
| Kevin drinking in the golden autumn splendour alongside the Basingstoke Canal in Odiham |
 |
| Our walk on a recent weekend - a circular path that started and finished at The Mill House pub, and meandered along the Basingstoke Canal and through woodland, including past Odiham Castle |
 |
| Odiham Castle - walls still standing after 800 years |
 |
| Another view of Odiham Castle |
 |
| Holly berries - I suppose Christmas must not be far away! |
 |
| One of the canal bridges at North Warnborough (Odiham) in Hampshire |
 |
| Whitewashed house in Hampshire |
 |
| The water in this part of the Basingstoke Canal is so incredibly clear because it is fed by chalk springs. These ducks, swimming in formation, appeared to be enjoying the spectacle of the underwater forest beneath them |
 |
| The Mill House |
 |
| Our reward at the end of a damp 3-mile jaunt - one of our favourite local pubs, The Mill House in North Warnborough (Odiham), Hampshire |
 |
| A welcoming nook in The Mill House |
One of the main reasons I enjoy living in a cool climate is the stark variation between the seasons. I've never understood people who want every day to be the same - sun and heat all the time. To live somewhere equatorial would kill me, and even Sydney is frustrating with its barely-sweater-worthy winters (and I grew up in the south-western suburbs back in the days when frost was a regular occurrence).
I love those tangible signs of time passing as we cycle through the seasons. Autumn gently prods us towards winter... again, nothing to lament in my opinion. Nature will wrap its icy blanket around us, giving us time to rest.
I don't dread the short days. I look forward to bracing air, long shadows, candlelight. Already I am eagerly digging out my winter clothes - gloves, hats, scarves. Clothes with structure. Clothes with texture. So much more interesting than summer fashion.
 |
| The lime and beech avenue, Farnham Park |
 |
| Full moon setting on a frosty morning - the view from my workplace |
 |
| Autumn walking is muddy! Wellies mandatory |
 |
| Kevin admiring the view back towards Farnham - on one of our afternoon walks in the farmland behind our street. Note the balls of mistletoe in the trees |
 |
| Street lights already on at about 3:45pm - Upper Church Lane in Farnham |
 |
| Autumn's also the perfect time for baking - these are vegan banana and blueberry muffins |
 |
| Long shadows and soft autumn sunshine - one of the paths through farmland, just behind our street |
Over the past couple of months we've been busy rediscovering the Farnham area. Truly we are spoilt for choice in terms of pubs, restaurants and shopping. Nearly all of them offer some kind of loyalty program or early dining specials, meaning it's affordable for us to eat out once a week despite living in an expensive area with a modest household income. We also have three different cinema chains within 10-20 minutes' drive - they're commercial cinemas, so no arthouse films and they lack the elegance and luxury of some of the better cinemas in Australia, but all the same I'm happy to have a choice of venues.
I do not miss Epsom at all.
The photo below speaks volumes about where we now live. I snapped this on Sunday morning, just in front of the University for the Creative Arts which is on our street. Oh, yes - it's a better class of hard-drinking student here in Farnham. None of your empty cider bottles or Fosters cans. No, the inebriates of Farnham leave behind half-empty bottles of Waitrose-branded rosé!
 |
| Morning-after evidence of Saturday evening's revelry - Farnham style |
 |
| The author in her element |
I'm trying to temper my natural tendency towards pessimism, which tells me that autumn will be over in the blink of an eye - and instead just enjoy the moment while it lasts.
And, of course, there is winter - and another Christmas in Norway - to eagerly await. Life is good.
Until next time,
- Maree xo
