It's been raining all day, so I have transported myself back to Schloss Kapfenstein, a fabulous converted castle we visited in Austria. The fortress was originally built in 1065--just before the dastardly Normans invaded England!--but, as you can see, it is now quite peaceful and lovely.
I walked up to this lovely flowery bush to take a photo and was rewarded by a fabulous view over the walls of the Alhambra.
Other than at the monastery, elderly women definitely dominated the landscape in Zagorsk. Like anywhere else, young people flee to the cities; and, of course, among the older generations, many more men than women were lost in World War II. Russia lost more people than any other country in that war—20 million, I believe—and many more were killed by Stalin when they returned.
Wasn't able to post this week (switched over all our equipment AND servers) but, to celebrate, here are a few photos from Lavenham, which I think is my favorite little town in England--so far, at least. We discovered it quite by accident, and enjoyed every minute. Dozens of Tudor houses line the street and, as you see in the last photo, they're not all the traditional black on white.
