[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-surprise-mini-break":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston13-973550df4f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI haven't been posting morning sketches because, for the first time ever, Stuart took me off on a surprise holiday! We did lots of hiking in the Sussex countryside, drank ale and soaked up three days' unbroken sunshine. I didn't even manage to do a single sketch, we just tramped around the hills, munched wild garlic and looked at stuff, while the birds went absolutely mental and the lambs did flips in the grass.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston02-eb9cdfc06b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe stayed in the village of \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfriston\">Alfriston\u003C/a>, in the Cuckmere Valley, which turned out to have one of the best indie bookshops I've seen, \u003Ca href=\"http://muchadobooks.com\">Much Ado Books\u003C/a>. They had a great range of high-quality small press books, many by \u003Ca href=\"http://www.handandeye.co.uk\">Hand & Eye letterpress\u003C/a>, including albums of work by \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Ravilious\">Eric Ravilious\u003C/a>, \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Bawden\">Edward Bawden\u003C/a> and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.stjudesgallery.co.uk/artists/c_brown/index.htm\">Chris Brown\u003C/a> (one of my lecturers at art college). I spotted Woodrow's book, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.myriadeditions.com/?location_id=30\">\u003Ci>Rumble Strip\u003C/i>\u003C/a> and about a zillion things I wanted to buy. I got it down to a few books, including one called \u003Ca href=\"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fattypuffs_and_Thinifers\">\u003Ci>Fattypuffs and Thinifers\u003C/i>\u003C/a>, a giggle-inducing text written in 1930 by \u003Cb>André Maurois\u003C/b> with hilarious illustrations by \u003Cb>Fritz Wegner\u003C/b>.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston05-653338d296.jpg\"> \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston06-d1f6c09ad1.jpg\">\\r\n\u003C!--more Click here for more pics of lots of twee cottage-y type things that make an American tourist like me all excited and make hardcore urban Brits roll their eyes-->\\r\n \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston03-4a692e1c46.jpg\"> \\r\n\\r\nSome meadow larks were having a jam session in the air above this field of rapeseed flowers. Stuart and I stood in the middle of it for a good while with happy, silly just-got-into-the-country expressions on our faces.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston01-09af2ae49d.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe just had to buy chocolate at this shop in Firle, on the walk between Glynde station and our B&B. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston07-ca19fc4439.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nWe had a great riverbank picnic today of pie and plums that we bought in this deli.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston10-f273cf3461.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nAlfriston high street sports this quirky old-time music shop, complete with plaster Victrola dog looking out the window.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston08-a8596a32e6.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nI loved the way the yellow flowers gave the hills a strange glow in places.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston04-18c85a7165.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThis woman came driving by us just as we hiked into Alfriston. A little too cinematic to seem true, but hey.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston12-af7ac98c42.jpg\"> \u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston11-b46595d233.jpg\"> \\r\n\\r\nLots of varied scenery: we started one hike from the white bridge at Alfriston and walked to the white cliffs near Beachy Head. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/alfriston14-acb9a0a4b6.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOkay, very tired and slightly sunburnt... off to bed with me for now.","2009-04-22T22:02:00.000Z","surprise-mini-break",[],"surprise mini break!",1776628732087]