We had a wonderful time in Vermont. I don’t know what I was expecting, but after disappointing trips to sterile towns in upstate New York and Massachusetts, my hopes were not very high.

So it was a pleasant surprise to find that Vermont was not only very beautiful but that the few people we bumped into in gas stations, book shops and thrift stores, were all very warm and friendly.

Of course, a few days is not long enough to really get the measure of a place. But I was only half joking when I told Sofie, during the journey home, that I thought we should move to Brattleboro and spend our weekends visiting New York. Above is the house we stayed in and, below, our companions for the weekend, Jesse and William.

I ought to say that the trip was an early celebration for our upcoming fifth wedding anniversary, so thanks to Jesse and William for thinking of us.

TOO LATE: William, caught flat on his back, cannot evade the oncoming Jesse.

I'M OKAY: After breaking Jesse's fall, William tries to get up.

EXHAUSTED: William finally gives up and succumbs to his fate.

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