green fields and blue skies

I've had a pretty good time since I left Sydney, enjoyed a short stint in Singapore, which is always nice, and now I'm in the English countryside. Tomorrow I leave for London, and as excited as I am to be in that great megalopolis, I'm going to miss the country, with its stillness, the blue skies, the stormclouds that move across the sky in a heartbeat, the way the air is extra crisp after a sudden downpour, the flowers that blossom so fiercely in the sunshine, especially my favourite hydrangeas just popping up everywhere, the rush of excitement at discovering cherries in a tree, and the sillyness at never knowing that cherries grew in trees(!), the random rabbits bolting into shadow-- things that cities never have. I'll miss the old english folk, who always have a smile to spare, and the blue eyed kids curiously enchanted by an asian alien (such as myself), the many dogs who obediently trot after their owners, occasionally eager for a pat. I'll miss the little towns, perched on cliffs overlooking the sea, the quaint hotels with their tea rooms and cream teas, old sea walls with holes for their canons, circa 1845, and winding roads with trees bending over to meet right in the middle. Till next time,