It was a beautiful morning to potter around Cirencester and shop local.  I had a few things on a list; we needed to buy meat, vegetables and stuff for the weekend and neither of us felt much like going further afield.  We were out early in the dazzling sunshine, noting the vast difference in temperature between the shops in the sun and those in the shade.

It was especially noticeable in the Market Place, where the stallholders in the Farmers’ Market were cloaked in deep shade until almost lunchtime.

When I get the chance, I love to shop like this; to visit the greengrocer, the butcher and the baker.  It’s fun to chat with each of them and of course, to observe our fellow customers.

Like the chap in front of us in the greengrocer who wanted to know the source of the dates on sale before buying them.  “Tunisia” appeared to be an acceptable answer…so off he popped and filled a bag.  We’d have liked to know more about his reasoning but of course, we’re English and wouldn’t dream of asking!  We were buying root vegetables to put in the pot with the rather tempting shin beef we’d just bought, imagining a spot of comfort food for supper tonight.

Who can resist bringing home a little Spring sunshine?  They won’t last very long but for a few days, the kitchen windowsill is a little brighter and the sweet scent makes washing up that bit more pleasant.

Wrapped up warm and with beef stew and dumplings on our mind then, It’s hard to imagine that just a year ago today, we were boarding our lovely cruise ship to set off on an exciting adventure having just enjoyed a few sunny days with our sweet friends in Florida.  We have to wait a little longer for our 2015 adventure, but looking up to the blue sky in Cirencester, it reminded me of those palm-tree fringed skies even if we are wearing several more layers of clothes today than we were this time  last year!