Norwich Castle

Norwich Castle

Last Friday night (or early Saturday morning) the weather turned cold, cold enough that when we woke Saturday morning, a small layer of snow covered everything. However, the snow didn't stop us from venturing out for a small excursion. We set out to see Norwich Castle.

Norwich Castle was the only castle in East Anglia (the name given to the area where we live) commissioned by William the Conqueror, the first Norman King of England, sometime between 1066 and 1075. Up until the mid 12th Century, Norwich Castle was the only prominent royal castle in East Anglia. In 1220, the castle was re-purposed to be used as a gaol, or prison, and remained so until 1887 when it was purchased by the city of Norwich.

The city of Norwich reopened the castle in 1895 as a museum, which it remains so today. The museum houses many different exhibits from wildlife specimens to works of art to reliving the past.

The first exhibit we visited was the Natural History Exhibit which housed specimens of animals not only in the various regions of the UK, but around the world. One particular display caught my attention, that of a mummified cat. The display read:

Mummified cats are regularly found in houses, having been sealed up behind walls to protect the house against evil spirits.

Interesting cat is it not... The display continued:

However, this unfortunate animal simply got its foot trapped. The carcasse was untouched by flies, so it must have been winter when this happened. After it had dried, the fur was completely eaten by clothes moth caterpillars..

I don't know which fate would have been worse for the cat, being sealed up behind a wall in the house or getting trapped in the dead of winter. Now, the display is rather morbid, but I find the British's need for accuracy rather interesting and funny. 

The art galleries were interesting. It seemed like most of the art were created by local artists or the subject was local to Norwich and the surrounding area. The Teapot gallery was pretty amazing to me as I have become British and like my tea in pots! Some of the teapots displayed dated back to the 1700s! I also enjoyed the displays of textiles worn through the ages. We toured the histories of the Anglo Saxon and Viking era, Egyptian mummies, the Roman empire, and as recently as the World Wars. The museum had on display letters home, mostly letters from battle stating their loved ones had passed. There were even letters from those that were captured and living in POWs. 

The castle keep was breathtakingly beautiful, and a little dark (as it should be). There were a few exhibits throughout the keep, but mostly the keep was for taking in the beauty. One amazing feature was the well in the keep. I don't know for sure if it was used in the past, but today it is used as a wishing well. The money collected in the well goes to a charitable organization. The well is pretty deep; I'd hate to be the person that is in charge of collecting the coins. The top level of the keep has some pretty low clearances, even I had to duck, but beware the dungeon! 

After we left the castle, we walked the short (and I mean VERY short) distance to the Castle Mall where we ate at this fast food place called Southern Fried Chicken. It really makes me miss Chic-Fil-A!! We walked around the mall a bit, I even picked up some "British" measuring things to make baking easier, but more about that in another blog maybe. 

Leeds Castle

My first adventure of the new year...

Our group of friends here had planned on going to Stonehenge, but unforeseen events led to several of our group to have to cancel. However, it was the morning of our adventure, and Holly and myself were up for anything! We played with the idea of going to Stonehenge ourselves, but opted for a shorter journey and save Stonehenge for another day. 

Getting to our destination was easier said than done. While we live in an age where technology is highly advanced, it is not always trustworthy... Most of our journey was easy and simple navigation with the infamous Google Maps. However, as we were getting closer to our destination, directions became more vague and less dependable. Not all this can be blamed on Google Maps as there seemed to be some road construction and learning the British motorway. However, Google Maps did take us to this tiny, narrow road, claiming to take us to our destination. Questionable doubts rose, and we missed the turn off. We were going to attempt a U-Turn (which I'm fairly certain would have been illegal, we are, of course, American tourists and don't know any better), but Google Maps had found us an alternate route. And so we followed.

The alternate route turned out to be another tiny, narrow road that was quite picturesque. We decided to be spontaneous and continue trusting Google Maps. There were many "ooohs" and "aahhs" as we took in the splendid countryside. However, those "oohs" and "aahs" were short lived and became "OMG! OMG! OMG!" and "we're going to die!" moments. We came to a low water crossing, it had been raining all the previous night and all that morning.. The water crossing the road was pretty wide and looked rather deep. As we contemplated crossing and deciding the best course of action was to attempt backing out the way we came, we were blocked by 2 cars. On the opposite side of the water crossing was a horse trailer waiting to see what was going on. 

Seeing as we weren't moving, it proceeded to cross the water which turned out not to be that deep! Feeling rather silly and certain all the parties trying to get by us were probably complaining in their vehicles, we forged the water crossing (successfully, I might add) and continued towards our destination.

We finally made it back to the main road in search of our destination. Google Maps indicated our turn and seeing the sign, we turned onto the tiny, narrow road feeling excited that we would be arriving soon. Our excitement was short lived as yet again there were no signs for our destination. We did manage to find the security entrance and was given directions to the main entrance. 

Google Maps off, we again set off. A short time later, we found ourselves turning into this large drive leading up to Leeds Castle! 

Leeds Castle

Leeds Castle is by far the best adventure I've experienced here in UK! Known as the "Loveliest Castle in the World", Leeds Castle does not disappointed- even in the cold winter months when many of the trees have lost their leaves and flowers are no longer blooming.

The castle is situated on 2 islands on the River Len. Construction began in 1119 as a Norman stronghold until 1278 when it fell into possession of Queen Eleanor of Castile, the first wife of Edward I. From there, the castle became a "dowry", passing within the lines of royalty for 300 years. During the Tudor reign, Henry VIII had the castle was transformed from a stronghold to a royal palace for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. 

In the 1600s, Leeds Castle was sold due to financial troubles and became a private residence. The castle was restored during this time in the Jacobean style as it was sold between several families. Almost 200 hundred years later, Leeds Castle was near falling down and another restoration project (and largely what remains today with as little alteration as possible) was completed in 1823. In 1925, Leeds Castle was again sold and purchased by an Anglo-American heiress who became known as Lady Baille after her 3rd marriage. Much of the interior designs that can be seen in the castle today were implemented by Lady Baille. In 1974, Lady Baille entrusted Leeds Castle and 500 acre pack to the Leeds Castle Foundation. The castle was opened to the public in 1976. 

From the car park, we walked the grounds leading up to the castle. Even in the winter months, the grounds were beautiful. I would like to visit again during the spring or summer when everything is in full bloom. I imagine the grounds would be breathtaking! 

The castle was also very beautiful and interesting, especially the history as I briefly described above. It's amazing to think that parts of the castle date back to the 13th and 14th century! Leeds Castle has been greatly shaped by its history and owners (some of whom have greatly impacted Britain's history as well)! 

One legend has it that after Edward I first wife, Eleanor passed, he married the French princess Margaret and gifted to her Leeds Castle. Upon her death, ownership was transferred to Edward II, son of Edward I. Edward II left Leeds Castle under the supervision of Bartholomew de Badlesmere, Lord Steward of the royal household. During his reign, Edward II made many enemies including the Lord Steward.


One day, the Queen Isabella and several party members tried to gain access to Leeds Castle but were refused by Bartholomew's wife. Edward II then besieged the castle and captured Bartholomew, his wife, and children. Bartholomew's wife and children were imprisoned and Bartholomew himself was later executed.

After touring the castle, we ate lunch at the Fairfax restaurant and tried to find our way through the castle's maze. The maze was such fun and even had an unexpected treat at the end, an underground cavern tunnel called the Grotto! We then caught the end of the falconry exhibit in which some experts were talking about owls. As we made our way back to the car, we decided we didn't want to leave and would take up residency in a cottage located on the grounds of Leeds Castle and live with the current resident, Mr. Peacok! 

Leeds Castle is one experience I'll never forget. Our motto or theme for the day became "it's not that deep" as a reminder that things could probably be worse and that there is always a silver lining. Despite the constant drizzle and cool temps, we enjoyed ourselves, and not because it was a 'girl's day out', but because we got to see into the past and experience life there for a time. 

The journey home was fairly uneventful with the exception of one car load of idiots who cut me off and then just sat in the road craning their necks to see the car accident in the opposing lane- just hope no one was seriously injured!. Traffic going the opposite direction was backup or closed off for about 10 miles!

Until next time... 

*****UPDATE*****

While I thoroughly enjoyed my first visit to Leeds, I wanted to return during the spring or summer to really enjoy the scenery in full bloom. Two years later, I returned for another visit. Half the day was spent at Canterbury Cathedral and the other half at Leeds Castle. See below for some comparison pictures versus the beautiful winter and the spectacular summer! 

Photo Credit D.S.

Photo Credit D.S.

Photo Credit D.S.

Photo Credit D.S.

A Holly Jolly Christmas

This time of year always seems busy... First, there is Thanksgiving (which the Brits do not celebrate in case anyone was wondering), followed by my birthday, then Christmas, and lastly, New Years. I apologize for not having posted a new blog in some time. However, we haven't done much of interest other than the day to day tasks.

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving we found ourselves with some old friends from our previous base, the Harrisons. They hosted a pot-luck dinner which is always nice (means less cooking!). We brought sweet potatoes, with marshmallows of course!

Funny story with the sweet potatoes.. First, sweet potatoes here are GIANT! Really, they are enormous! They are also not nice and roundly shaped as what we're used to in the states. These potatoes are wonky- for lack of a better word. They have all kinds of groves and pits that make peeling them difficult. Not only are they difficult to peel, but you need a chainsaw or some sort of heavy duty power tool to cut them into pieces!

No, my large butcher knife was NOT dull. Anyone that knows my husband knows that we cannot have a dull knife in the house. His philosophy is it's better to cut your hand off with a sharp knife than to have to make more than one cut with a dull(er) knife.

Well, once I had mashed and added some yummy ingredients- butter, brown sugar, etc. I topped them off with marshmallows and placed them in the oven. 30 minutes later, the marshmallows hadn't changed! Now, it would seem obvious I had forgot to turn on the oven.. WRONG, it was on 350. I don't care what people say about each oven having a mind of its own, but once you've got the feel for it, it's great.. This oven is IMPOSSIBLE! I turned up the heat to 400. Marshmallows got a little softer, but we didn't have time to wait, but I was determined to have my toasted mallows...

I decided to turn on the broiler. Genius! In less than 10 seconds I had perfectly browned toasted marshmallows. However, my oven wasn't too happy I outsmarted it and filled the oven and house with smoke. The fire alarm wasn't too happy with the oven's revenge and started screaming bloody murder! The fire alarm really doesn't like the oven anyways, it's always going off on it... And just so you know, I'm a pretty excellent cook! I have witnesses that can attest to that (and my superior cooking skills).

So, with the sweet potatoes in tow we went to Thanksgiving where they were most thoroughly enjoyed! And we played Crimes Against Humanity afterwards. If you know what that is, I'm sure you're laughing. If not, I'll just leave you confused.

Birthday

For my birthday, we invited our friends over to our house for dinner and games. I made pot roast, which I did in the Crock Pot (fool proof!) and very delicious! We've made some new friends that are just amazing, and it's been great getting to know them! We played the Game of Things in which each person writes a thought about a particular category/phrase that is read out loud. Then each player, in turn, tries to guess who thought what. Pretty fun! I can say I had a great birthday!

Best of all, Jacob baked me a cake, chocolate with chocolate icing!

Christmas

As far back as I can remember, I've always had a Christmas tree that had the color coded branches that you had to build the tree with. There may have been 1 or 2 years before I went off to college that my mom had one of the pre-lit trees that come in 3 parts, but my tree in college and our first years of marriage were the color coded branches.

In our attempt to downsize, fearing we wouldn't have a lot of storage space, we got rid of that tree. Even though Jacob hated that tree, I wish we had it. It reminds me of home and of Christmas. However, we did buy a new tree, pre-lit and in 3 pieces. I hate it. It doesn't fluff right, and I think the manufacturers are getting skimpier on the branches and needles! And no, we can't have a real tree- I'm allergic. But, we've got some pretty neat ornaments that are memorable to us which I LOVE!

Jacob initially had to work Christmas Eve, but a couple hours before he had to go in, he received a call saying he'd be on standby. So, Christmas Eve we had our Christmas together and our friends, the Perkins came over.

Christmas Day, we went with the Perkins to a friend's house for Christmas. Again, we had a potluck and I was making the desserts. Most of the week I had been baking- apple strudels, pecan clusters, homemade pound cake, and brownies! We didn't stay as long as we normally would have, but we had stayed up pretty late Christmas Eve...

We also got to Skype our families back home which was great! It's difficult being so far away from our families as we are both family oriented people, but we are very fortunate to have great friends here to share our adventures with.

New Years

Not sure what our plans for ringing in the New Year may be, but we do have an exciting adventure in the works coming up! I can't wait, but I'm going to leave you in suspense until my next blog (which shouldn't been too long await, fingers crossed)!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Have a cup of tea!