Festival

Nantwich was as sunny as last year, when we were first surprised by this town. A visit to the market, coffee and a supermarket trip took up the morning, and by then we'd finally decided to head south and make for the Avon via Tewkesbury. So after a late lunch we set off down the Shroppie and, what with some queues up the Hack Green locks,

reached Audlem about 6.30.

It was immediately apparent that something was afoot – large numbers of boats and visitors that not even the bank holiday could really account for, and the sound of music. Turned out that Audlem has an annual arts and music festival, and we found ourselves right in the middle of it.

To our surprise, we found a space just long enough for Erin Mae (well, nearly) at the end of the 5 day moorings opposite the Bridge Inn.

A stroll into the village in the evening sun furnished a couple of pictures of the Grade 1 listed parish church,

and a festival programme.

We took in about 5 minutes of a reasonably talented folk blues singer in the Lord C, but the crowded pub was not affording him the courtesy of much attention (big contrast with the crowds at the Swanage blues festival in March). And then the venison pie we'd bought in Nantwich market began to call us home.

Not sure what the forecast is for tomorrow, but today was like you might imagine a Saturday in May to be. So, while the pie was cooking, I took the accordion into the cratch and softly played "As I roved out…". (Softly, in part because it's a sad song, and in part so as not to offend Audlem's very cultured visitors this weekend with my as yet untutored playing.) And I also wanted the accordion to suggest the second part of "Martin's Farewell to the Montgomery Canal". When it's done, I'll see if I can put it up on this blog.