There’s so much to love about my town! On my frequent runs/walks, I have gathered a collection of some of my favourite sights. Enjoy!
The ducks
Somehow the ducks here seem to be cuter than in other places. Now, I know that’s not true, because ducks fly and are therefore found everywhere, but our ducks always seem to be happy, playing about in the river, regardless of the weather, and just bringing a smile to people’s lips.
The castle
Having a castle in town is pretty damn cool – sitting peacefully up on the hill, overlooking the town like the regal royals that used to live there. And in fact, descendants of the original family still live in part of it, and the main section has been turned into a restaurant/function space. I did think seriously about getting married in the castle, just because it sounds awesome!
The fields in the middle of the houses
I love the fact that there are still large patches of crops close to the city centre. You pass a giant field of corn, and 10-15 minutes later (walking) you’re in the centre of town. Of course, this presents its own challenges, from when the crops are fertilised (close the windows everyone!) to the slow-moving tractors traversing the streets, but I love being in a small town that has a relatively large city centre and still maintains its country feeling. Bliss.
This house in the snow
At other times of the year I would walk past this house with barely a glance, but somehow in Winter it just bursts out as a cute, fairytale kind of gingerbread house.
This garden area with its hut
Dotted around the town are additional grassed areas, functioning as a second backyard for those that own them, next to or a small distance from their actual house or apartment. These spaces are used for growing plants and trees, and often come complete with kids play accessories and an adorable wooden hut for BBQs and summer festivities. For some reason this particular one has always stuck out at being especially cute!
The magical wooden house
Why? I’m not entirely sure, but I’ve always thought of this house as the magical wooden house. It looks so sturdy, so majestic, without being over the top. I imagine that one day I’ll walk past and it will be gone, having grown wings and flown off to its magical wooden land.
This plant arch that grows over the footpath
In the winter it’s simply a spike of sticks – nothing much to look at. And then spring hits and the leaves grow, flowers abound and there appears a perfect green arch over the street.
Sunday traffic lights
The orange flashing light is a happy sight to behold. The town pretty much shuts down on Sundays, and some of the traffic lights do too. It’s ingenious, because how annoying is it waiting for the light to go green when no one else is around, just because you better do the right thing?
The house with the moat
Another random house I like. This house has its own moat! Not even the castle has a moat! I can just imagine how nice it must be to sit on the front porch and listen to the water constantly rush by. Possibly pee-inducing, but pleasant all the same.
The streams
On the same topic, small streams weave and wind their way from high in the mountains through the town in mazes of icy, clear water. They are picturesque in all seasons, regardless of whether they’re packed in with heavy summer foliage or iced up in the middle of winter.
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