Blenheim Palace International Horse Trials!

I've been quiet on this blog lately, but that's because things have been pleasantly quiet in Oxford for the last two weeks. Friends, decent weather, dinner parties, and plenty of reading and writing have all figured into my day-to-day activities, and actually not much else. For the first time this summer, I feel like I've gotten the chance to unwind.

That said, I did get to go to Blenheim Palace, not far from Oxford, this past Saturday to attend the annual International Horse Trials held there, another foray into British equestrian tourism! The horse trials take the form of a CCI*** and CIC*** event held on Blenheim's lovely grounds over the weekend, with many top riders from around the world attending to compete on their up-and-coming horses (as well as many regional riders trying their hand with their mounts at a three-star event). As I should not need to point out to the readers of this blog, any kind of horsey event in a beautiful setting immediately launches me into my own version of heaven. One of my friends and housemates in Oxford wound up going along with me, and she had the enviable task of getting to listen to my nonstop horse chatter all day long. I'd never gotten to watch the cross-country portion of a big event before, so we wandered along the entire course, saw some big names like William Fox-Pitt and Pippa Funnell and Philip Dutton gallop by, ogled at the many adorable dogs people had also brought to the event, did some shopping in which my pent-up equestrian apparel obsessions surfaced, and then watched a pretty sketch high-jump challenge and a few CIC*** show jumping rounds before heading back to Oxford and calling it a day.

Good weather, good company, and horses: always my recipe for happiness in this world. And yes, I do realize how many posts on this blog involve horses even though I am no longer riding as much as I used to... cheers to the country life!