Kentwell Hall

Today we visited Kentwell Hall.  

http://www.kentwell.co.uk

We went back in time to 1559.  

From the car park we walked through the time tunnel (a man made corridor) to the gates of Kentwell Hall. 

Each year a different Tudor year is re-created for a three-week period during the summer.  

The re-creation is acted out by hundreds of people.  Everyone stays in character all day.  They work, play, eat and talk in the chosen year.  It is amazing.  We loved it!

After the first half hour we were greeting people with ‘Good Day’ the greeting of that period.

We had lunch in the Ale House.  Jim had a coffin (a pastie) and I had pottage (a vegetable soup).  The food was delicious.  We shared a jug of ale served in a pottery jug and mugs.  The ale had bite.  The peasants and serfs make all the food and ale at Kentwell.

It was intriguing to watch and ask questions of Kentwell’s staff and genteel while we wandered the grounds and the house.

Lilian, our house sit owner is a cook in the manor house and has been for the past twenty years.  Her picture is used on Kentwells pamphlets and website.  She generously put our names down for complimentary tickets hence our even knowing of the place.  It was a fun day thanks to Lilian.

Have a look at all the Kentwell photos on Flickr.

Enter in the year 1559

Kentwell Hall 

Enjoying our 1559 lunch

Week 2 at Bridge House

Sunday and Monday we spent with our friend Wendi, from Mt Beauty.  She caught the train out from London for the night.  I pinched Wendi a few times while she was here just to make sure she really was here.  It seems so odd to meet up so far away from home.

Sunday we enjoyed a carvery lunch and a pint of cider at a nearby village pub before heading into Ipswich to walk around the market (part of the Ip-Art Festival), thanks to Mum for that information.  I had Skyped with her earlier that morning and she told me about the market.  Isn’t the electronic world we live in amazing!

Monday morning we went for a walk along the river - at the end of Mill Lane.

Just like a Midsommer Murder crime scene

I forgot to take a photo of Wendi while she was here – talking too much (I know you find that hard to believe).  After our walk we went to Lilian’s allotment and picked silver beet, broad beans and strawberries.  We made a frittata using the silver beet and broad beans for lunch.

The strawberries I used that night in a dessert called Eton Mess for Lilian and her American friends – I’ll tell you about dinner in a minute.  Anyway, Wendi knew the name of the dessert.  I was describing it to her as Karen (our August Surrey housesit) made it for us for dinner when we stayed the night with her a few weeks ago.  So with the name, I Googled and viola! 

Dinner Monday night was with Lilian, Autumn and Daniel.  Lilian did an exchange in San Francisco (Kentwell Hall exchange) and stayed with Autumn and Daniel.  They are here for a short holiday, more business than holiday.  Both are very creative and arty.  Autumn designs corsets, corsets you say, yes corsets.  Lilian says her work is amazing and she sells to a Parisian clientele and would like to open a shop in London.  They spent the day with Lilian at Kentwell and she was keen to show them her house so they stayed Monday night.  They were a lovely couple and the conversation over dinner was interesting.  Autumn asked for the Eton Mess recipe.  For the main I made chicken with green olives, rice with almonds and a green salad.  I am enjoying cooking again even though I have not really missed it, because time goes so fast and before you know it I will be cooking again everyday.  Got to make the most of not having a routine. 

Other outings during the week were Helmingham Hall Gardens and the Ipswich markets.  Ipswich high street has market stalls four days a week, selling anything from fruit and veg, clothes, tools, books etc.  The fruit and veg are so cheap and ready to eat, no leaving it on the windowsill for days to ripen.

On Wednesday we visited Helmingham Hall.  It is a privately owned home with beautiful grounds and gardens.  It is a half hour drive from here.  Jim selects alternative routes on the SatNav so we end up on country roads and not the motorways.  You get to drive through lots of cute villages with very little traffic.

http://www.helmingham.com/history.asp

Please look at all the photos of the gardens.  It is a late late spring here so the flowers are still looking good.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimhappy/

Helmingham Hall

In between our outings I have been weeding in the backyard and at the allotment and Jim does what he does best – watching TV, surfing the net and generally being our IT person (loading photos on Flickr etc).

Today, Friday we are off to the local pub ‘The Bramford Cock’ for a carvery lunch.  Did I mention carvery lunches are all the go here.  It is a bargain at 12 pounds ($18) for two – see what it tastes like.  Unfortunately it is another grey day.  The sun came out yesterday morning for an hour.  We (Jim, myself and Florence) all sat out in it until it hid behind the clouds for the remainder of the day.  Florence continues to be a gracious old lady, coming to us when she wants food or attention.  Today is another grey day with drizzling rain.  Another typical Summer's day in England - so they say.

The end of our first week in Bramford

We have been in Bramford just over a week now.  

This is how the week unfolded.  

After enjoying our drive to Bury St Edmunds on Tuesday we were keen to drive to Colchester a town 30 miles from here on Wednesday but we didn’t end up going until today, Saturday.  Car trouble!!!!!!

The story goes like this.  

Wednesday morning we go out to the car but it won’t start.  Extremely long story (lasting three days) cut short – it was a fuse, the brake fuse???????  Roadside assist charged 70 pounds ($100) and was unable to find any obvious problem – the mechanic checked the fuses as Jim did (but not the brake fuse) why would you when the car is starting but not turning over.  Roadside assist suggested towing it to the nearest VW dealership.  How lucky are we, there is one 1 mile from here.  Jerry, Lilian’s handyman lovely man towed the car for us.  

The dealership rang Friday midmorning to say it was the fuse.  How embarrassing!!!!  

Another 70 pounds later and the little red beast is running again.

So this afternoon after the Lions vs Wallabies match (this time Jim was not so happy as Australia lost) we drove to Colchester.  It is a busy town but still has a country feel to it.  England has many towns with a high street and markets, which are great for shopping.

Last night we drove to the waterfront of Ipswich.  It was the Ipswich Art Festival opening.  When you get a minute you should Google Ipswich, it has an interesting place in history.  We had a yummy dinner of pizza then walked along the quay and watched a performance of Iron Man (written by Ted Hughes).  I have picked out a performance I would like to see.  I’ll have to make the effort to get tickets.  I do miss going to the Hot House Theatre in Albury with Mary-Lou.

Tomorrow morning Wendi, our friend from Mt Beauty will be arriving by train from London to stay the night with us.  She is on holiday with her sister for the month in the UK.  They have just finished two weeks in the north walking part of Hadrian’s Wall.  It will be so nice to see a friend from home.  

Ipswich Quay at 7pm 

Tourist boat

Iron Man performance

Iron Man (operated by two men)

War memorial in Colchester (Jim liked the dark sky behind a dark looking angel)

Castle Gardens (the park behind the dark angel)

Bury St Edmunds - Photo stream

Because we (mainly Jim) has taken so many great photos and I only pick a few to post on the blog we have decided to post all our photos onto Flickr.  It is a photo sharing site.

The idea is when I post a blog I will attach the Flickr web address and you click on the web address and go to the folder for that blog.  You can open any folder you wish to look into at any time to look back at photos.

We'll try it with this blog.
  

Yesterday we went for a drive to Bury St Edmunds where our car came from.  It is a historic town with cobbled stone streets.  We walked through the gardens and ruins of the Bury St Edmunds Abbey circa 1026.  We drove there on the motorway and drove back through many small villages.  Lilian says Suffolk is a county with many many villages.  They are very cute.  We hope to return to a couple for pub lunches while we are here.

For the photos of Bury St Edmunds

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimhappy/ 

Right click on the above link/go to address/click on sets/double click on folder/double click on first photo and arrow through to view each photo

To return folder click on folder name on bottom right of screen/click all sets - to take you back to home page

Good luck!

Village life

Bramford village is an easy place to live in.  There is a corner shop, well small supermarket really, up the road and round the corner although we found our fav supermarket 'Waitrose' today in Ipswich.  There was also market stalls in Ipswich town centre selling amongst other things fresh fruit and veg and so cheap.  The market stalls operate four days a week so that is a good thing for us except we have to find cheaper parking otherwise it makes the fruit and veg not so cheap.

There is a local pub up the road and round the corner as well 'The Bramford Cock'.  We have not visited the pub as yet, I am sure we will by the end of the week.

I have found a couple of walks to do around the village - will start investigating further tomorrow morning.  It will be nice to do a morning walk again, my routine in a previous (Australian) life.

By mid morning today the sun came out.  It has been a few days.  It was warming to sit out the front of the house (with Florence) and soak it up.  While I was soaking up the sun Jim was watching the Brumbies vs Lions rugby match.  He was extremely happy with the Brumbies winning - his team.

As far as watering the garden and allotment we haven't had to as yet because since we arrived as it has rained every day either during the day or overnight.  I have been to the allotment twice to cut asparagus for dinner.  The broadbeans will be ready to pick in the next few days and the strawberries are turning red.  What a treat!

Lilian's allotment

Surrounding allotments

‘Bridge House’ Mill Lane Bramford Ipswich Suffolk

We arrived at our house sit on Thursday after dropping off our Wicked van back to London.  Lilian is so sweet she had left us a dinner of chicken and mushroom pie and rhubarb crumble for dessert.  Yummy English country cooking.

Today is day 5 in the house and all is going well.  It is lovely to be here.  Florence (the cat) is no trouble.  She comes and goes and doesn’t even have kitty litter – what a bonus.

We bought a car last night.  Claire a young girl from Bury St Edmunds (a half hours drive away) drove her car to us.  It is a VW polo estate (wagon) 1998, red in colour.  The car is neat, tidy and mechanically sound so fingers crossed it is reliable for the next 6 months. 

Not feeling so well (again I hear you say, yes I am sick of it too it seems to be a regular thing this last 6 months - I blame the changeable weather) so off to bed early.

Hopefully the sun will come out tomorrow and I can sit in it and dry out.

Flo Flo

Bridge House

Back yard

The new car 

The Cotswolds

The Cotswolds are a range of hills between Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire.  I thought it was a village, silly me.  We are staying in a touring park in Cheltenham 6 miles (9kms in our language) out of Gloucester.  This campsite is an organised affair with all the facilities.  Our first two campsites were on private farms which is more to our liking because of the country feel and surrounds.

Our first full day in Cheltenham rain was predicted so we decided to go on the GWR, (Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway) a tourist train loop.  I love the thought of train trips.  My ultimate dream would be to go on the Orient Express for an European trip, unfortunately I can't see that happening.
The GWR was good fun.  We started at Cheltenham on the stream train got off at Winchcombe for morning tea.  Winchcombe Station is set up like the second world war, the cafe, the staff everything.  The locals carry out re-enactments of the evacuees of children from London during the Blitz.  We spoke to a woman who was an evacuee, she was a volunteer who takes part in the re-enactments.
From Winchcombe we got back on the train and carried onto Toddington, back to Winchcombe over the Stanway Viaduct to Laverton and back to Toddington where we got off and had lunch at a local pub 'The Pheasant'.  Funny, because we saw a couple of pheasants in the fields beside the railway line.
We didn't eat pheasant though, Jim had beef pie and a pint I had trout and a cider all English favs.

You know how I love food - well I forgot to say our camp meals have been yummy.  We have been shopping at Waitrose.  Waitrose has prepared meals which are fresh, delicious and wholesome E.G. Porcini mushroom ravioli with char grilled vegetable sauce followed by New York cheesecake topped with fresh berries we bought by the roadside.  We are lucky with berries because it is the summer berry season and they are being sold everywhere.

Back to our travels, leaving Cheltenham for our final nights camping at Mildenhall in Bury St Edmuds we drove through a few Cotswold villages and sites - Cleeve Hill, Broadway and Chipping Campden.  Cleeve Hill is the highest point in the Cotswolds overlooking the vale (as the locals say).  Broadway and Chipping Campden are showpiece villages of the Cotswolds (as the travel literature brags) with houses and buildings built out of the local honey coloured limestone.
Once again trying to locate our campsite 'The Willows' took a bit of time - for our final night we chose a site close to Ipswich so we wouldn't have to travel too far the next day.  The website stated it was a quirky family friendly campsite.  It didn't say in what way quirky.  When we arrived we soon found out.  It was next to an air force base.  The campsite attracts plane spotters - after spending the night there we will  not be taking up plane spotting.  It was an entertaining afternoon and night though.  I had a chat to a father and son who often stay there to fulfil their passion of plane spotting.  I admit I did feel excited when I heard the first plane revving up ready to pass over head.  While we were perched on our little camp stools eating our spinach ravioli (from Sainburys, far inferior than Waitrose) a plane roared overhead (so close), I laughed my head off.  I thought this is hilarious how we are spending our year abroad.

Winchcombe - notice the bomb on the platform

Fields around Winchcombe 

Morning tea at the period cafe at Winchcombe station

Inside the stream train heading for Toddington

Broadway streetscape

View from Cleeve Hill

Tower at Cleeve Hill - pheasant in foreground

Market hall in Chipping Campden

Thatched roof house found throughout the area

Last night in Wicked van - wicked!!!!!!

Road trip with wicked van

This morning (Thursday June 6) we bussed it up from Plymouth to Victoria bus station in London.  We took a taxi from the bus station to Lambeth North to pick up the van.  The thought of dragging our bags up the stairs of the tube not to mention dodging the crowds was too much to bear.

Jim drove really well considering he hasn’t driven for 6 months and then had to drive from London to Abinger Common, an hour away in Surrey.  

We arrived at Karen’s for dinner after looking around Dorking.  Karen is the owner of the house, for our August housesit.  She is lovely and lives in a beautiful old English house with a beautiful English garden.  Everything is beautiful.  The dogs are big, old and friendly.  I’ll introduce you to them when we are there in August.  It will be a pleasure to look after her house, dogs and garden.

The next morning we drove from Abinger Common, Surrey to Ipswich, Suffolk.  Thank goodness for Dave’s satnav – talking us (well Jim) through the villages and the confusing large roundabouts on the motorways.  Jim opted to be the only driver – the control freak in him.  I didn’t put up a fight, I don’t mind being driven around for a week. 

We arrived at Bramford, the village 2kms out of Ipswich where are housesit starts next Thursday.  Lilian, the home owner showed us round her old English home, another beautiful place to stay.  Then we walked 10-mintues up the road to her garden allotment where she showed us what to do with the vegetables growing there.

Back at her house Lilian had made a yummy lunch for us of asparagus tart (made with her home grown asparagus) and salad followed by Victoria Sponge, an English fav filled with cream and raspberry jam (made with her home grown raspberries).  After lunch we set off for our night’s accommodation at Osney Lodge Farm back in Surrey not far from where we were the night before.  

This trip took 4.5 hours, was only meant to take 2.5 hours.  We sat in standstill traffic for 1.5 hours on the motorway and because of this delay we got caught in London peak hour traffic.  Overall, no real problems.  When Jim started to lose it I just pretended to be asleep  - best tactic to prevent any arguments.

Arrived at the campsite early evening and wandered down to the local pub for dinner – nothing special on offer so we shared a pizza.  We didn’t have any food with us after the traffic debacle; we were just keen to get off the road.

Our first night in the van was comfortable but with no food we hit the road early to find some.  After our breakfast stop we made our way to West Knoyle in Wiltshire for our home for the next two nights.  Closer to our destination we saw Stonehenge ahead of us – what a shock when you aren’t expecting it so we decided to take a look.  It was good fun walking round listening to the audio.

We finally found our campsite.  As it turned out it was at the end of the street where Bertie, one of the Ski Him guests from Gulmarg lives.  Jim remembered Bertie said he lived in Wiltshire near Stonehenge.  We caught up with him and his wife Francie for a drink at their old English home.  Their 17th century house is full of history with a beautiful English garden maintained by Francie.  They grew up not far from Stonehenge and said as kids they use to climb over the rocks so they are dismayed at the attraction to it these days.

Our second day in West Knoyle we drove to Bath, one hour’s drive away.  It is picturesque and awe inspiring as you drive into the town with its historic buildings, an easy town to walk around to see the sights.

Our English friend Tracey who lives in Sydney did say England was windy - she wasn't exaggerating

Jim looks superimposed in this photo but he isn't

Looking around our South Godstone campsite

Bath

Double decker buses are the go for sight seeing even in Dubai and Oman we saw them

Bath

Bath again

Wicked Van road trip itinerary

Day 1 - June 6

Abinger Common, Surrey – stayed with Karen (our August housesit)

Day 2 - June 7

South Godstone, Surrey – Osney Lodge Farm Campsite

Day 3 & 4 - June 8 & 9

Bush Farm & Woodland Campsite – West Knoyle, Wiltshire

Day 5 & 6 - June 10 & 11

Briarfields Motel & Camping Park – Cheltenham, Gloucestershire

Day 7 - June 12

?? who knows, we will work it out along the way

Day 8 - June 13

From ?? to Bramford Village, Suffolk (our housesit for next three weeks) to drop off our bags.  Will return van to London and catch train back to Ipswich, Suffolk (closest train station to Bramford which is 2 miles out of Ipswich)

PS. having trouble keeping phone and laptop charged in the campsites to blog - will post details and photos on the weekend when we are settled in Bramford

'Wicked Disney' our mural - you can't quite see Mickey Mouse on the rear but he is enough to scare off small children

Wicked Donald - who knows what he is doing

School holidays are over

Tuesday 4 June

Today was a normal day for the Mills family – kids back to school and Karen and Dave back to work as the mid-term break is over.

Jim and I went into Plymouth for the morning to pick up a couple of travellers’ essentials E.G. undies and adaptors.  We have been on the road 6 months now and the undies are starting to wear thin. 

When the kids came home from school we sat in the backyard and watched them play in their ‘paddling pool’ – don’t you just love English expressions!  It was another warm sunny afternoon in the backyard.  Dave said it got up to 21 degrees.  I must admit I was sweating in my jeans and long t-shirt.

Tomorrow we will work out an itinerary for the next week.  On Thursday we will bus it back to London and pick up a Wicked Campervan.  We have rented it for the week, this will take us up to Thursday June 13 when our housesit commences in Suffolk.  

Let you know our itinerary when we have worked it out.

Beautiful spring flowers

Monday 3 June

Today we headed for Cotehele – an old Tudor home maintained by the National Trust, once again so close by to visit, only a twenty-minute drive.  

Our plan was to go for a walk first then wander around the gardens of the house.  

We parked the car and walked an hour to the Tamar Pub for lunch. 

It was a flat walk except for one hill through a beautiful wooded area that ran alongside the Tamar River.  The path was a picture with all the multi-coloured spring flowers.  

Along the walk Lola and Jack collected spring flowers for me to put in my hat.  Not sure how long I will be wearing the hat, when I saw the photos I thought I looked like a ‘simple minded’ old woman.  That is the good thing about the e-age anything can be deleted.

Another great thing about Cornwall is most places are dog friendly.  You can pretty much take your dog most places with you – cafes, pubs and restaurants.

As I mentioned above most places will allow dogs except for Cotehele House so we decided to go to the café near the car park instead, which was dog friendly and had afternoon tea - guess what we had.

On the way back to the car we bought a bunch of rhubarb at a stand selling tomato seedlings and posies of fresh flowers (as well as rhubarb).  Driving to Cotehele we passed a few of these stands set up outside houses selling numerous produce, mainly strawberries, tomatoes, rhubarb and flowers.  The payment system is an honour system.  Isn’t that great. 

Who is the silly old woman in the hat?

Looking down from the look out

The bridge you can see in the distance in the photo above

The streetscape near the pub, further along from the bridge

Walking along the Tamar

Looking down to the old mill near the carpark

Plymouth, local sights

Sunday 2 June

We started the day with a local car boot sale, Karen’s passion.  Lisa (Muntz) and Karen would get on really well with their love of things second hand.  Karen found a few treasures and I certainly did.  I paid 3GBP ($4.50) for jeans, linen pants and three long sleeved tops ‘what a bargain’.  The clothes I bought in India will be useless here unless it miraculously turns hot (not warm).

From the car boot we headed to the area of Plymouth known as the Barbican.  It is the old harbour area.  During the war Plymouth was hit badly during the blitz but the Barbican missed being hit, miraculously.  We wandered around checking out the boutique shops and art galleries.  Poor Mary-Lou who struggles as an artist to find galleries in Australia these days would be envious, as they appear to be quite a few here for local artists.

Even though the temperatures are low compared to what we are use to for summer the sun is warm if you find the right spot, and Karen and Dave’s backyard is one of those spots.  We spent the late afternoon in the back yard enjoying a BBQ with their family and friends.  The sun has been shining since Thursday and is predicted to be sunny for another week.  We are so lucky!!!

Long Barn Cottage - Karen & Dave's front door

The whole house