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- Will finding me a deer in the park
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- A heron
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- Will climbing a tree at his old university
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- Monica and I at dinner in Bath
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- Being pensive in front of the Bath Abbey
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- Will being thoughtful in front of the Bath Abbey
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- Will and I
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- Will and I
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- Will at the driving range
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- Will cooking me a proper English roast
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- British potatoes
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- Our English chicken roast
The past few days have been favorite from the trip so far! Like I mentioned briefly in the last post, we started in London on Tuesday, stayed near the airport for the night, and then drove to Bath so I could visit Monica.
On our way to Bath, we stopped off at Hampton Court Palace Gardens (aka Bushy Park) because apparently there are hundreds of deer that roam about the gardens. I love animals, so we stopped off to find some. It wasn’t looking promising, likely due to the fact that it was cold, wet, and breezy, but then Will spotted a male’s antlers in the tall brush. There turned out to be three of them there, and after taking a few photographs, it was a successful mission.
After the park we drove back to the “motorway” (not highway, or freeway) and had another quick stop at Will’s old university, the University of Reading (pronounced “reding”). We took a look around the campus and ate lunch on campus, before our final drive towards Bath.
Finding the hostel was a bit of a nightmare (they have very narrow streets which cause humorous but frustrating maneuvering) and after checking in we literally ran to the city centre to meet Monica for dinner. She suggested a reputable Italian restaurant and we chatted over dinner, a bottle of wine, and tiramisu for a couple hours. A cheap pub was the last stop of the night, and I’m looking forward to seeing Monica when we stop back through Bath on our way down from Wales.
While in the city centre the next day, we saw the abbey and ate one of the most amazing breakfasts I’d ever had at a small cafe down by the water. We ended up sitting near Bath’s rugby teams, one of the most reputable in all of England, according to Will.
It was a wet drive to Bristol, but during a few dry periods we stopped at some gorgeous outlooks in the city. We drove across the Clifton Suspension Bridge and then went through the city to find some talked-up cider. Will kept talking about how this was the best cider, and it took us an hour to find the place after getting disoriented from parking, only to get to a closed restaurant. Luckily we had some hot beverages in the mall while waiting for the rain to subside.
Last night we arrived in Exmouth, Will’s hometown, and stayed at his home for the night. He cooked me a great English chicken roast. Yum! This morning he indulged me with some more of his culinary mastery by preparing a fluffy omelet and cream tea. Today I’m going to learn about rugby!
I’m not sure how long we’ll be hanging out in Exmouth, but with the biggest storm of the year thus far rolling in, it might be slightly longer than expected 
Jacqueline
