Sunday, June 1, 2008

My Asthmatic Interactions with Marley the Horse

The first day of June, everyone, and it's friggin freezing here in Newcastle. I sure hope summer gets better than this, cuz this is colder than a Miami winter!

Well, even if the temperature doesn't get any toastier, I'm determined to have some summer fun here in Newcastle. This weekend was no exception. On Friday I had my first horse-riding lesson, and on Saturday, Bret and I went to Alnwick Gardens.

After watching several horse racing programs on the telly and planning a trip to the races (June 28 for Plate Day!), I became inspired to attempt some horse-riding antics myself. So I signed up at Stepney Stables for a beginner adult class.

I was told to dress in exercise clothes and not wear trainers, so I put on some sweatpants and some riding style boots, paid my 16 quid, and got ready for my first time on a horse.

Stepney Stables is located just 5 minutes from my flat in the Ouseburn Valley. There is an indoor arena where we take our lessons, and the stables are just next to it. After getting fitted for a hat (a lovely black velvet one), Claire, the instructor called me in. 'Claudia, you're on Marley! Look at the board!'...she was a no-nonsense lady, so I knew I had to be extra alert...

For the beginner's class, little page girls walk with the horses so that we don't get flung off and break our necks. My page girl was Donna. She was about 12 or so, and also 'no-nonsense'. "Idiot!" she'd yell at the horse when he would'nt listen. 'Stop it!!" and smack him on the nose. I suppose one must be rather firm with horses, as they are big and strong. I certainly wanted a well-behaved horse for my first lesson!

After we all got on our horses (there were 5 of us), we started walking slowly around the arena. Little by little, the lesson became more complicated. We started doing rings, telling our horses to change directions, practicing the stop and go. I learned correct posture and how to hold the reigns. As the class went on, I grew more and more confident. I thought, 'wow, I really have a knack for this!' I started envisioning myself with my new Polo Ralph Lauren riding clothes, trotting about on my horse. Despite the large quantities of horse poo and the damp sweaty horse smell in the air, I felt very dignified up there. Surely Claire was impressed...'Claudia, there is no need to cross your reigns!! You are confusing the horse!" Ok, maybe Claire was not terribly impressed...suddenly I felt like an 8 year old girl at Martha Mahr Ballet. This was perfection at all times.

Except Marley was not interested in perfection. He was a beautiful pure white horse- one could imagine him running free on the hillsides, and it seemed that's exactly what he wanted to do...not obey passively in a beginner's riding class. He kept trying to pass the other horses. Needless to say, Donna was yelling 'idiot' every other second. But finally, Marley got a taste of fun when we started trotting! I'm not yet good at going up and down (I was kind of getting bounced around by Marley) but I think I could improve if I had more lessons...however...

As the class continued, I started to feel my breathing get shorter and shorter. Finally, by the end of the class, I was a complete allergic mess! I like to think that I am allergic to the mould and spores let out from the hay and NOT horses, but for the sake of my lungs, I will not try riding at Stepney again and wait until I can take a lesson outdoors.

The next morning, still feeling woozy from all the allergy medicine that I ingested, Bret and I set out to Alnwick Gardens, just a 30 min train ride from Newcastle. While it was a bit of a mission getting there due to a shortage of buses from the Alnmouth trainstation and the Gardens, the wait was worth it. The gardens are amazing! There are spitting fountains, there's a bamboo labyrinth, a rose garden with 300 different kinds of roses, an ornamental garden, and a poison garden with hemlock, cocaine plants, weed, belladonna, and other assorted recreational drugs and dangerous killer plants. Bret and I have grown inspired to one day have a beautiful garden of our own, which will include not only fruits and veggies, but lots of fragrant, dramatic buds. My personal faves were the Marjorie vine, High Noons, and the Concha vine. After learning all about flowers, we headed back home where I made a whole chicken roasted in cider with lettuce and cream, and a side of rich mashed potatoes!

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