September Travels

With the solar finally sorted it was time for a few days away visiting family - breaking the journey on the way with a night in Warwick.

Had a good walk round the town and outside of the castle, indulged in a couple of drinks, and had a very nice curry - watching (with some bemusement) as hundreds of people in flashing bunny ears went walking by . . .





It turns out there was a charity walk in town - they certainly made for a colourful if rather bizarre sight!

From bunny ears to dragon boats - happened upon another charity event by the river the next day - all the teams dressed up, and obviously having a great time.


On from Warwick to meet up with family - had a good catch-up, and took the parents out and about.  Nice, but breezy trip to RSPB Titchwell - walked down to the dunes, lovely views out to sea and the wind whipping the sand around our feet:

Nice lunch out, then finished the day with a visit to the old Wolferton station - formerly the 'royal' station for Sandringham before it closed in 1969. 


Now a private home, they open the platform area free of charge to visitors in the afternoons - really quite charming, with some interesting displays reflecting the history of the station.

All in all a nice few days before heading back to Wales (and work).

All the Wonders of Warwick!

With a week's holiday ahead of us, we were off to Warwick for a couple of days - primarily to visit Warwick Castle (for which we'd managed to acquire a set of half-price tickets).

Arrived on a sunny Sunday afternoon, stopping at a new (for us) National Trust property, Charlecote Park.  Nice house, nice grounds, very very hot day.

On to Warwick itself, to book into our B&B, have a wander round the town, drink cider in the sun, and indulge in our first curry of the trip.

Day two took us to the Castle - we were already primed with what to expect - something much more along the lines of a visitor attraction than a historic property.  There were indeed archery demonstrations, a giant trebuchet, a 'Flight of the Eagles', and for families lots of opportunities to buy princess and knight outfits for small people . . .

It was also however a stunning property, very well-presented, with some innovative touches (such as Harry Potter style portraits telling the history of the castle).  The set pieces were all very well done too. 

On the downside . . . the sheer number of people . . .  and perhaps a little less attention to conservation aspects than we'd normally expect (no darkened rooms to keep light levels to a minimum here!).  All in all though, a good day out - probably even more so for family visitors.


On our last morning in Warwick we took the advice of a friend and visited St Mary's Church, most of which was rebuilt in the eighteenth century (following the Great Fire of Warwick), but which includes a medieval survival in its Beauchamp Chapel. 






This proved to be a real highlight for me (as an Elizabethan buff), as it contained the tombs of Robert and Lettice Dudley, and their 'noble imp'.

That wasn't the end of the trip, as we moved East to visit family, via a very wet Kenilworth Castle (will have to go back on a drier occasion).

Took the parents for a day out to another new National Trust property at Blickling Hall in Norfolk - lovely exterior, beautiful grounds and the sun was back with us. 


Then, on our final day, we returned to Wales via Attingham Park (a return visit this time).  A good break, and still some days left to get stuck into the garden!