Audley End

“You and I are but specks of that rhythmic urge which is Brahma, which is Allah, which is God.”
Ruth St.Denis 
After the upheaval of moving again on Tuesday we’re settling in to our temporary home in Essex for another two weeks, house-sitting and looking after tabby N. Weather forecast for tomorrow not promising and today started surprisingly warm and sunny so we headed out for a few hours to Audley End, an English Heritage house near Saffron Walden. I’d never given it much thought before coming here but there are so many “Ends” around here, which seems to be given to places at the end of the road or track, never at the beginning?
An impressive Jacobean pile and stuffed full of history and impressive art, so well worth a couple of hours wandering around. Like so many other similar places it’s really impressive from a distance, with imposing approach avenues and waterways to show off its grandeur. There’s also a memorial to Polish wartime agents who trained for covert operations in occupied Europe.
As we were completing our visit K1 wanted to see the formal garden while I was keen to get a photo of the place from the Robert Adam bridge over the river Cam, so we agreed to meet back at the car park. As I approached the bridge I noticed a cyclist standing there, and as I approached we exchanged pleasantries. Once I’d completed my photos we began talking, he’d noticed a Welsh accent and was keen to know more, being an ex-Neath boy. Once he found we shared the same surname it was nearly half an hour before we parted company! K2 used to complain about my unerring ability to attract kindred spirits to chat in the most unlikely places, obviously I haven’t lost the knack.