More walking around

The UK's lockdown is set to end next month. I believe we will be adopted a phased re-opening, but we're excited about it, even if it is gradual, especially since the country has vaccinated so many millions of people already. I don't think we'll be booking multiple vacations yet, but at least there will be more to do, and at some point, I'd really like to get a trim on my hair if not a proper cut and dye job. I last cut my hair in August, and while the home hair colour kits do a good job, it's hard for me to get all the parts of my hair properly, and there are always grey spots here and there.

While the weather was a bit chilly (dare I say cold and offend my friend and family back home who just made it through over a week of temps around -30ºC!), I wasn't as motivated to go for walks, but from time to time my husband and I would try to get some fresh air. On one of our walks, we discovered that a fountain in a nearby park doesn't seem to get turned off despite the colder weather, so it ended up freezing up somewhat, but the effect was really pretty. I normally don't like to be in the photos I both take and post, but my husband's phone has the option for a wide-angle lens photo, and I liked the effect. 

We go to a nearby butcher for our Sunday roast, something that's a common practice here, and we decided to take a different route. I was sure glad we did, because we ended up coming across a small patch of bright, yellow-orange crocuses. I have seen daffodils blooming for some time now, and I had seen snowdrops here and there both budding and in bloom, but this was something I hadn't yet spotted. The photos couldn't do it justice. You'd probably have to have a pretty fancy professional camera with the knowledge of how to use it properly to capture the way the light hit these flowers. My husband described it as being almost phosphorescent. It's such a unique colour that I haven't seen anywhere else.

On another walk, I noticed a plaque on one of the houses. If you've never been to London before, there are plaques all over the place on various buildings and home. Many famous historical figures have lived and/or worked in the various buildings so marked, but this one was a little different. It was a memorial, rather than a description of someone that lived there. Many other memorials are for war efforts in England or as part of wars in Europe, Africa, and Asia, but this one is for none other than Nicaragua! I had to search Google to see if I could find out more information because the plaque doesn't really tell me enough of what I want to know, and I came across this one site that appears to be some sort of blog, and it had more information and links to more information as well. One of those links is a brochure for the original finished project with photos of the interior. It actually looks quite nice inside! I also learned through that brochure that the vulture looking down from there is not just a pigeon scaring device but actually appears to be part of the design of Nicaragua House. Anyway, it's an interesting little tidbit that is not really along the tourist path, but these are the little nuggets I love to come across in my wanderings around the world.