The country

Our little cottage is in a small hamlet of about 18 or 20 houses surrounded by dairy farms. The countryside of rolling green hills is usually lush and fertile and the sense of peace and space is palpable. We used to live in this beautiful area before moving to the city and missed it so much that we bought our little place so we could visit. In a strange way it also helped me settle into the city, just knowing the cottage was there, waiting, and on a whim we could easily arrive for lunch or a mid-week overnight stay. It freed me from feeling trapped in the city.


We are third from the end of the string of houses that straddle the road, and have farmland opposite and behind. The cottage is getting close to 100 years old now and was originally only three rooms: bedroom, lounge and kitchen, with a verandah front and back. Over the years the back verandah was enclosed to make two further bedrooms and a new back verandah built on. Later this verandah was also enclosed to make a bathroom and laundry, the sloping ceiling by this time being so low no further additions are possible.


It is like a little cubby house and we love it. It has its own character with rough-hewn floor boards, quirky doors, wood fire heating and tank water. We have a large backyard and our dogs joyfully express the sense of freedom we all feel as they run around in delight. We often eat out-of-doors – breakfasts on the front verandah to take advantage of the morning sun, picnic lunches in the backyard in the shade of the native oak, or long evening meals taking in the rays of the setting sun. On occasions when the summer nights have been warm and clear we have dragged our mattress outside to sleep under the starry skies. Perfect. (… to be continued)