We are eternally grateful to The Portland Hotel, Buxton for offering the whole team complimentary accommodation and a hearty English breakfast of juices, cereals, scrambled and / or poached eggs on toast, toast and jams, and cupfuls of coffee. (Some team members needed their caffeine fix more than others...!)

The weather today could not have been better - a glorious English summer's day, with plenty of sunshine and a deep blue sky.

Abichal on the loose in the Peak District.

It was a delight and joy to be running in the rolling hills of Derbyshire and Staffordshire. Today the team had no meetings or schools to visit. The World Harmony Run is a tapestry of many different experiences and today was in stark contrast to yesterday, when we were running in the city of Liverpool and visiting inner city schools. But, as I was running along the undulating, quiet country roads outside Buxton my memories of the smiles and infectious joy and laughter of the children made me smile and they will remain with me for many years, as I carry their heartfelt wishes for harmony on towards Birmingham, Great Britain's second largest city.

With the open road calling and the beauty of the enchanting English countryside of traditional stone hedges, woodland and moorland, each runner had a moment of serenity to soak up the atmosphere.

Springtime in the flower kingdom.

On one stretch the rural road was closed to traffic and the runner had the isolation of a 4 km traffic-free stretch whilst the van travelled a scenic diversion.

As I ran through small rural villages, people spontaneously wished me a safe journey, and stopped me and shook my hand and patted me on the back.

At a small village called Cheadle I met an elderly couple on a railway bridge, overlooking an old English steam train paused at a station.

The couple was so friendly and endearing and truly touched when each held the torch aloft.

I had many more encounters with wonderful people with open hearts who wished me all the best running up the steep hills.

You never know just when inspiration will strike. Running along in the quiet countryside, we were spotted by Enid Nussbaum and John Killham, who were very enthusiastic about the Harmony Run and posed with the team just outside of Ipstones in the Peak District.

The World Harmony Run torch often gets mistaken for the Olympic torch, especially this year, being an Olympic year and with recent media coverage.

We passed some interesting architecture along the way.

Tall man Matthias, with Mark.

Our resting place this evening was on the outskirts of Birmingham in Lickey Hills, at the Bilberry Hill Centre where all our accommodation needs were met, courtesy of Mike Smith.

Mike has a beautiful dog called Gus who goes everywhere with him.

– Mark Collinson

Distance: 110 km

Team Members:
Ondrej Vesely (Czech Republic), Stefan Ehrenfellner (Austria), Matthias Frey (Germany), Rosta Vagner (Czech Republic), Balavan Thomas (England), Mark Collinson (England), Dave Hall (England), Abichal Watkins (Wales), Kamilla Hozlarova (Czech Republic), Fran Chamberlain (England), Ieva Kurzemniece (Latvia)

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