Today the government announced that as of July 4th the UK will relax its lockdown rules. That means that in a mere 11 days pubs, restaurants, cinemas, hotels, hair salons, libraries, museums, and theme parks all will be open for business. Social distancing will also ease up, as the standard 2-meter rule will be dropped in favor of a "1-meter-plus" approach. It's tough to tell exactly what this means. The gist of it is that we should stay 2 meters apart if we can, but if that's not possible we can be 1 meter apart. Or something like that. It's clear as mud. Like everything that comes out of Boris Johnson's mouth.
We will only have a few weeks to enjoy the opening up of the U.K., but even so I'm grateful that we will be able to go to a pub, see friends, and visit a museum or even an amusement park before we return home to the U.S.
Things have already been changing here in Cambridge. As of last Monday bookstores are open, as are a few stores on the High Street. Emma and I went to a department store last week to buy new sneakers. Granted we had to wait in a line for 10 minutes to get in; and we wore masks. But still, Cambridge is busier and it feels more normal than it has in months.
About two weeks ago we decided to expand our social bubble to include one other family -- or at least part of one other family, namely Richard's colleague, Simon, and his 11-year-old daughter Tia. In addition to going on some walks and bike rides together, we have had Simon over for tea and Tia to dinner. When things open up on July 4th, Simon and Tia will be joining us on holiday in Exmoor National Park, where we will be renting this 4-bedroom house:
It is in the tiny village of Oare:
Exmoor is on the north coast of Devon in the west of England. It's a lesser visited area, known for its open moors, beautiful coastline, and wild ponies. This is the basic gist of it:
Having had to cancel the majority of our holidays this year, we are really looking forward to exploring another part of the country and to taking some nice walks. It is a fantastic -- and unexpected -- bonus that pubs will actually be open.
And in case you were wondering, the roses here in Cambridge are still knocking me out on a daily basis. This one is blooming right across the street from us. What a beauty!
We will only have a few weeks to enjoy the opening up of the U.K., but even so I'm grateful that we will be able to go to a pub, see friends, and visit a museum or even an amusement park before we return home to the U.S.
Things have already been changing here in Cambridge. As of last Monday bookstores are open, as are a few stores on the High Street. Emma and I went to a department store last week to buy new sneakers. Granted we had to wait in a line for 10 minutes to get in; and we wore masks. But still, Cambridge is busier and it feels more normal than it has in months.
About two weeks ago we decided to expand our social bubble to include one other family -- or at least part of one other family, namely Richard's colleague, Simon, and his 11-year-old daughter Tia. In addition to going on some walks and bike rides together, we have had Simon over for tea and Tia to dinner. When things open up on July 4th, Simon and Tia will be joining us on holiday in Exmoor National Park, where we will be renting this 4-bedroom house:
It is in the tiny village of Oare:
Exmoor is on the north coast of Devon in the west of England. It's a lesser visited area, known for its open moors, beautiful coastline, and wild ponies. This is the basic gist of it:
Having had to cancel the majority of our holidays this year, we are really looking forward to exploring another part of the country and to taking some nice walks. It is a fantastic -- and unexpected -- bonus that pubs will actually be open.
And in case you were wondering, the roses here in Cambridge are still knocking me out on a daily basis. This one is blooming right across the street from us. What a beauty!
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