Kiwis and Fairy Bread

10-18 September 2025

I now realize that I have three homes: Somerville, Bay Head, and Glossop. We come so often to this little town in the north of England, particularly during the last three years, that I have come to love it dearly. The shops, the tall green hills, the Parker Family home, the Derbyshire accents, the history, the apartment we rent each visit, the air, the sky, the weather. It is a good place to be.

We’ll start with the weather. It has been cold. It has rarely reached above 60 degrees (15 for you Celsius folks) and lows have been about 40 (4 C). It’s been wet. Rain each day from misty to pouring to sunny to windy and back again. The clouds I must say, have been spectacular. Big fluffy, white, and all shades of gray. One can watch the rain falling over the city of Manchester and making its way here.

Brits are always apologizing to us about the weather. In the summer they are sorry it is so hot, in the fall and winter that it is rainy and cold. We don’t mind the weather, really. We are always aware of it and (almost) always prepared. But as Mum says, complaining about the weather gives us all something to talk about. It’s the same everywhere I suppose.

The history of this area still intrigues me. It makes me feel a kind of deep connection. A local park with a duck pond, play ground and gardens, has a documented history of a thousand years. The trail we walked within the moors just outside of Glossop goes back to the year 300 AD. The stones the pave the path were laid by ancient Romans. Apparently many Roman soldiers were also engineers (although I expect, sadly, that slaves were also involved in the roads construction). More recently (relatively) is a site along a river walk that is famous for the rehearsal of The Dambusters Raid, a World War II operation that ultimately destroyed several hydroelectric plants in Germany. (We enjoyed our walk near there where we met friendly cows and cheered on ultra-marathon runners)

Glossop has currently found fame as the home of Hilary Mantel, author of the Wolf Hall novels, that tell the story of Oliver Cromwell, King Henry VIII and four of his wives. They’ve been adapted into a West End and Broadway play and a beautifully costumed television drama (do check it out)

I am wondering if I should look deeper into the past of New Jersey. Find out more about what life was like when my parents were children during the war years. And although they did not document their lives in written form, the Native Americans did thrive there for millennia. If I seek it out I may well find a deeper connection to my New Jersey homes as well.

During our week with our family we had meals together, watched old movies, did some house keeping and planted pansies. Mike shared family photographs. I knit almost two entire baby blankets (to give to neighbors back home who are expecting). The rainbow colors of the yarn make me happy.

Mike’s mum shared memories of her father, who was a painter and decorator in Bradford, and died as a prisoner of war on a bombed Japanese submarine. When we visited our friend Jackie, a relative from my side of the family, the two talked of meeting and falling in love with their husbands. Good times.

Along with Mike’s brother and his dog, we went out several times to feed the ducks and have afternoon tea. I never tire of the desserts here: sticky toffee pudding, vanilla slices, cherry Bakewell tart, chocolate covered digestive biscuits, and dark chocolate Kit Kats. When I don’t want to cook we takeout fish and chips or jacket potatoes, swimming in butter and cheese. And of course, there is always toast and hot buttered crumpets.

Glossop has a great downtown. There are four grocery stores, as well as two butchers and several bakeries (The Bread Shoppe is my favorite). Numerous pubs and cafes. And where else would a green grocer with the name of Sowerbutts be a thriving business and not the, forgive the pun, butt of a joke?

Mum and Mike and I wander through Charity Shops, that sell used home goods and clothing. Mum found a pretty and warm polka dot cardigan: Mike a perfectly fitting burgundy corduroy shirt.

In the evenings we return to Kinder, the three room apartment where we once spent three and a half weeks. It is welcoming and comfortable. We watch the six part BBC adaptation of War and Peace and get totally wrapped up in it. Will Natasha find true love? Will Pierre find his purpose? Will Princess Marya overcome her shyness and her brother Prince Andre find the glory in battle he seeks? And how will Russia rid itself of Napoleon? Tolstoy will tell.

And before we know it eight days have passed and it is time to go. I am always teary at good byes.

So farewell to Glossop, The Peaks and The Parkers. Until next time….