When my brother and I were younger, we would always go with our parents on family holidays. Quite often the holidays would have been to England in the caravan. I always enjoyed going away on these trips, and I think it’s down to these that I have such a love of travel. However, I don’t think I ever really appreciated some of the places we went to, gardens, estates, mansions, quaint little villages etc, and I usually got bored quickly.

Bourton on the Water

Now that I am older though, and also because I am a photographer, I am coming to realise how great these places we went to really were. I want to revisit the places my parents took me as a child. Recently, I had a week off work, and Lorraine and I headed to one of these places. We flew over to Bristol, hired a car and drove up to the Cotswolds fo a few days. It was brilliant, to just relax, with no plans, and appreciate the beautiful area of England we were in. We made the most of the car hire and unlimited mileage, we stayed in Bourton on the Water, and visited Lower Slaughter, Burford, Stow on the Wold, Stratford Upon Avon, Oxford and Bath.

Punts

Radcliffe Camera

As always, Lorraine has all the ‘normal’ photos, and I spent a lot of time behind my SLR.

Old Buildings in Stratford

Bath Abbey

There are a few more photos on my Flickr

You will no doubt have noticed that this blog has been very empty lately, with no regular posts. There is good reason for this.

Any of you regular readers will know that Lorraine and I recently got married. The past couple of months have been really busy, changing names and addresses on all sorts of thing, getting the apartment furnished, and generally enjoying being married. It’s great by the way. All this has pushed blogging way down my list of priorities, and to be honest it has been nice to have to break. Over the next days and weeks I will be starting to update this blog again. What and when I blog is yet to be decided, but one thing I do know is that I will probably be blogging more photos that normal posts.

There have been a couple of changes on the blog. A new theme, I wanted a fresh look, but haven’t had time to customise the new theme, but it is a new look. I will be tidying up my blog roll and links, removing old link, adding new ones. I have also enabled moderated comments, so after you comment I will have to approve your comments. The reason for this is while I was on honeymoon, and continuously since, there have been a number of comments from someone impersonating me. It is very annoying, and I wish i didn’t have to moderate my comments, but unfortunately that’s the way it will have to be, but for you regular commenters hopefully that won’t put you off commenting.

So… Today is the big day. Lorraine and I are getting married today. Then jetting off to Cuba for a while.

Blog closed until further notice. See ya in a while.

Change is never an easy thing to go through. As people we generally like to keep things as they are, providing we are content. Change is however, inevitable, whether we like it or not.

I am at a stage of my life where there are lots of areas changing, and quite significantly.

In the past I have gone through various transitions, going from primary school to high school, from high school to university, moving out of home (mostly), my family moving away from where I grew up. These have all been fairly significant changes in my life, and the next year is going to be full of even more significant changes.

I have just graduated from QUB, which means the end of full tine education. I find this bizarre, because up until this point in my life, full time education has been what I do. I have been in school since I was 4, so that’s 19 years of education at an end.

I recently started a job, and it’s a full time, permanent job, not a working in a shop on weekends job, but a real job. So far I really enjoy being in the working world, I have a lot to learn and get used to, but in time that will all come.

Probably the biggest change is one that is happening in a little over 6 months time. I am getting married in January. I know quite a few people think that I’m too young, and others don’t understand why I am getting married, but I am, and I’m really looking forward to this new stage of life. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous about the whole thing. If I’m being honest I will probably find the transition from Belfast student,  to married life in Ballymena difficult at times.

I wouldn’t have it any other way though, I’m excited about getting married, and I couldn’t have anyone better to go through it with. I love Lorraine and am so thankful for her. I know that this next year will be challenging, but it is going to amazing, and I am looking forward to embracing this new phase in my life, with my fiancée, then wife by my side.