Jumping the centuries
The Noye family, inspired by a man that I smell like (and without needing two tickets), Jan and I and the girls went out to Orwell Corner Historic Village yesterday to partake in the Orwell Corner Winter Fun Day. The writeup in the local paper suggested that we could
Visit with farm animals, go sledding, make snow taffy, help Blacksmith make a nail, horse and sleigh rides (weather permitting), plus traditional indoor board and card games. Hot chocolate will be served.
It was all true and to top it off there was a light snowfall that floated clumps of stick-on-the-end-of-your-nose snow. It is very hard not to spout words like “idyllic,” “rustic,” “picturesque,” “unspoiled,” and other synonyms … because it was a lot of fun. A lot of people worked hard to make an afternoon of sleigh rides, hot chocolate, and maple syrup taffy in the snow.
We spent about 45 minutes in the blacksmith shop and Robin and I got to make some crafts with steel. She got to make a nail and I made a double-ended hook. When Robin was not making her nail and hammering she was driving the fan to keep the force hot. She was told that in the late 19th century she might earn ten cents for a day of keeping the shop clean and the fire hot. She would probably also have been a boy.
All told, we spent a little over two hours wandering around the village, eating taffy (actually, picking taffy out of teeth and hoping not to dislodge fillings), patting bunnies (free to a good home), going on sleigh rides, and drinking hot chocolate. We finished the day at home with warm stew and many smiles.
