Day 88 Friday 19th June
Birthday party time. Our friend Dave was seventy today. In times of lockdown organizing a party gets complicated, especially if you have more than six friends. We were allocated the breakfast option. Prosecco and Danish pastries at eleven o’clock, in the garden. Which meant that we had to be up reasonably early for a Friday morning. I’m not usually ready to party at eleven a.m., but is was an enjoyable get together. I assume that other batches of friends were allocated the afternoon tea shift and the evening shift.
We had to leave slightly early because we had arranged to visit the Royal Horticultural Society garden at Wisley. Grace used to be a member of the R.H.S., as is Diane. I hadn’t been to Wisley since, what I suppose, in retrospect, was our first date about fifteen months ago. Grace and I used to visit reasonably regularly. It has not been possible to visit since lock-down started. The gardens have been partially reopened since, June 1st. In order to control the numbers you have to pre-book a slot, and ours was two p.m.
The gardens looked magnificent and it was pleasant to walk around with a lot less people than normal. The normal restaurant’s and cafés are not open, but the have a few old style Citroën vans set up selling tea, coffee and ice cream. On did rather good sausage baps.
There were some sculptures, scattered around the garden, based on the work of the c16th Milanese artist Giuseppe Arcimboldo. He painted several pictures of human heads that were actually composed of fruits, vegetables and flowers.
About fifty years ago Diane became involved with the folk music scene that centred around Tanners Hatch Youth Hostel (near Dorking). A motley collection of folkies and various hangers on would take over the hostel for the weekend to make music together. The tradition still carries on.
Tanners Hatch is quite possibly the most beautiful, ‘traditional’ Youth Hostel in England, in an idyllic National Trust woodland setting in deepest Surrey near Polesden Lacey, Dorking. For many years on the second Saturday of every month (except June, July and August) there was an informal session of acoustic music, loosely referred to as ‘folk’ but ranging from traditional folk songs and tunes to the finest in rock and pop classics, depending on who is there! Although these regular events are not so regular any more we do aim to have at least 3 a year, which we will advertise on this site. The main music session is on Saturday but if we have Friday booked, there will be an informal session then too. As ever, players, singers and listeners of all ilks are welcome. You can come just for the session or stay the night in one of the heated single sex dormitories!
From the Tanners Hatch Music Site
Diane is still in contact with a lot of the people from back then and through her I have been drawn in. Obviously It is not possible to have the sessions at the moment, so in common with every one else, they have moved to Zoom. In the evening we joined an online session. Some sound quality was less than perfect, but it was an enjoyable evening.
Tanners also organizes an annual festival (held in a field near Dorking) unfortunately it has also had to be cancelled for this year. We went along in the B.G.B. last year and had a wonderful time.
A Scotsman in Suburbia 