SUFFOLK

Today we returned from a wonderful weekend in Suffolk. We stayed in a medieval hall, parts of which date back to 1380. The front of the house is lined with enormous tomato plants, and here by hangs a story:

When the owner lived in France her neighbour grew tomatoes. Seeds had been passed through his family for generations and he gave some to Sarenka. She has since moved back to England and every year she continues to grow these same tomatoes from seed, she also passes on seeds and tomato plants and donations are given to her favourite charity. Amusingly, the man who originally gave the seeds to Sarenka has a name that translates in English as Mr Nobody! When booking the weekend some time ago I asked for two plants to be put aside for me. Sarenka has kindly nurtured these and today I finally bought them home. Like Hill House Hall, my plants stand at the front where they will be sheltered and protected from any wind. I will make occasional posting about their progress, and as I write I look through the window and can see my Mr Nobody tomatoes, a reminder of a very happy weekend and a promise of good things to come.

I will be putting photos of the weekend on my Flickr photostream so do pop in and see what a wonderful place Hill House Hall is.

TAKE TEN!

Yesterday I was in London. The sun was shining and I was at a training, stuck inside. So when I had ten minutes to spare after lunch, I decided to make the most of the opportunity.

 

I have always been inspired by Gavin Hoey's photography and his tutorial videos. So, following his idea of 'one camera, one location, 15 minutes to bag the best photos possible', I decided to take up the challenge. Here is a taster of some of my photos, the rest are on my Flickr 

photostream.


 

I shall certainly be taking up this challenge again. It was great fun and I took photos I wouldn't normally think of taking. The time is manageable and it will be interesting to see what other opportunities present themselves in future.

I'd love to see your photos if you decide to take up a 10 or 15 minute photo challenge. Let me know where I can see them please!

Meanwhile if you want to check out  more of Gavin's photos you can also look on Flickr.