I've been spending a few days in Banbury with a friend, an ex work colleague, Gary and his wife Caroline. Travelling across country is never straightforward especially when using the Mazda SatNav (note to self - write to Mazda and tell them how awful their SatNav is). Thankfully I had a mental map of where I was going so generally ignored the directions I was given and shouted rude epithets at the machine. If this is the best Mazda can achieve then heaven help us if they ever produce an autonomous car.

<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/banbury-walknov18.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-5366" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/banbury-walknov18-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></a>I had a wonderful few days walking through the Oxfordshire countryside. At this time of year the days may be short however the skies can be so bright, lots of contrast and the long shadows add a dimension that you don't get at any other time of the year. In many ways the British countryside is unappreciated.

We also paid a visit to <a href="https://www.comptonverney.org.uk/thing-to-do/whistler-and-nature/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Compton Verney</a> where there was a Whistler exhibition. I didn't know anything about Whistler other than his name and was delighted by some of his images. Interested to learn he was a contemporary of Turner and was greatly influenced by him.

[gallery type="rectangular" size="medium" ids="5368,5367"]

<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/bee-super-framesnov18.jpg"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-5365" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/bee-super-framesnov18-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" /></a>I also went with Gary to a talk about bee farming which was fascinating. A bee farmer who was a bit bumbling and didn't care that his slides were not in the right order but very astute. He must be doing something right because he advises the government about bee keeping and has travelled the world giving advice.

Before I left I was given an overview of Gary's bee keeping experience. I need to get on a course however the downside is that I won't get hands-on experience until next summer and therefore if I do decide to pursue it as a hobby I won't get my hive until spring 2020.