In a Gloucester alleyway

It was time to refresh the larder today, and I particularly wanted to get some fresh tofu again as I've missed eating it recently. This required a trip to Gloucester and for efficiency I needed to go to several other shops while I was there.

Several hours later, I set off for the centre of the city, as I'd promised to get a magazine for Helena, as this is the nearest place that stocks it. Unfortunately the rain had started, so my intention of being a photographic observer on the city's streets were somewhat curtailed. I did try to shelter and hover about looking for interesting scenes, hopefully with people in them, but to no great avail. I'll come back again to try that.

I did look at the display of roman archaeological remains in the city centre, which was set under a glassed-over section of the pavement on Eastgate Street. But the modern display is badly designed and leaves much to be desired. Not one other person on the busy street seemed to take any notice of it at all.

I returned to my car by walking along Westgate Street, which has many more empty shops then I expected. The rain was getting harder so I decided to take a short cut down an alleyway that leads to the cathedral, which I thought might be worth seeing again. Before I reached the alley, I'd followed a blind man walking down the pedestrianised road ahead of me with a veery long white stick with a ball on its end. He stopped just as I reached him, having heard me approaching and asked me if he was near to a certain pub. It was lucky he stopped as he was about to walk straight into a big street light. I looked around and saw the pub's entrance was about ten yards ahead, and guided him to it. It was very salutary to realise how easy life is when you can see, and I could only admire his attitude in setting off to find an unknown rendezvous.

As soon as I entered the alley called College Court, I stopped immediately to savour this view, as twilight seemed to have come early between the high buildings and the street lights twinkling in the rain. I remembered that Helena always liked to show friends the little museum dedicated to the story of the 'Tailor of Gloucester', written by Beatrix Potter. It is sited in the last building on the left, just in front of the woman walking towards the archway that leads through to the cathedral grounds. I haven't been in the museum, nor have I read the book, so maybe Woodpeckers will add a comment about it in her own inimitable style.