Going out for a coffee

[Treefrog]

My friend Tess and I went to Leek yesterday to pick up a few things she'd ordered. 'Fancy a coffee?' she asked.

Over to Ashbourne, town crowded, headed off to Buxton, to this place



It's almost like being in a cathedral, and the coffee was superb too. It's on a balcony overlooking an arcade full of little shops selling all sorts of interesting stuff, including a semiprecious stones shop selling stuff like Labradorite pendants, etc. And it's in part of what was the old library in the Georgian Crescent



With a grant from the English Heritage a lot of the stonework has been replaced or refaced to bring it back to its original condition and it is starting to look absolutely stunning.

After we'd had a quick wander round, we heading back to Leek along the main Leek-Buxton road, past Axe Edge and Axe Edge Moor. Looking away from Axe Edge is this view across the South Derbyshire moorland:



Places like this, their openness and the ability to see for miles are so refreshing to me. Knowing that there is so much space around me is something that I find really uplifting, the only noise is the wind across the hillsides, birdsong and the occasional sheep. The feeling of being carefree and away from the troubles of everyday life is such a brilliant thing, if only for an hour or two. It's only when I get out into places like this that I'm reminded of what I dislike about cities - the noise, the smell, the oppressive feeling of being surrounded by hordes of people, cars and buildings, not being able to see for more than a few hundred yards in any direction except straight up, ...
Okay, so I'm an ageing hippy - sue me!

A mile or two from where this last shot was taken is the tiny village of Flash, right on the border of Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Cheshire. At one time it was a haven for counterfeiters - when the Sherriff's men came a-calling the counterfeiters could just nip over the border into another county where the Sherriff had no jurisdiction - thus leading to the term 'Flash money.'

Just thought I'd share this with you