Once we returned from Scotland (a bucket list trip in and of itself) we made our way to another decidedly British landmark and yet another bucket list destination for my: Highclere Castle! That's right, I've been to Downton Abbey! I must admit - driving up to the stunning castle with the blue skies and green grass, the television show score playing in the car (courtesy of my sister) - it was a pretty remarkable moment - and you can bet I took tons of pictures!
Highclere Castle has been in the Herbert family for a couple hundred years now, although the official title(s) of the family are Lord and Lady Carnarvon (or as my sister mistakenly called them "Lord and Lady Carnivore - I will not let her live that one down) and they still live and run the estate that Highclere Castle is a part of. I'm sure this will come as no surprise - but there are tons of fluffy little sheep running wild across the estate lands, ha-ha! Sheep are everywhere in the U.K.
We booked our tour time for the afternoon and arrived with plenty of time to explore the grounds and have lunch before our 1:00 entry time - and let me tell you, the grounds are vast! They have both a formal garden and a secret garden (yep - you read that right) and they're both filled with flowers and vines and hedgerows and benches and more... including two benches that were often occupied by Lady Mary and the Dowager Countess on Downton! We explored both of the gardens before following a trail around the side of the house and up to view a small temple on the grounds - and to find some shade. It was hot!
As I said - I took so many pictures and I've even weeded some of these out because honestly - there are tons! I subjected my Facebook friends to all of them, ha-ha! It was just such a perfect day and I'm not saying that I'd have taken less pictures if it had been a typical English day with rain... but I might have...
Highclere has multiple locations for dining and they had tables set out under the trees, alongside the house and apparently there was an indoor dining area - but who wants to dine inside on such a beautiful day? We found a table under the shade alongside the stables and each grabbed some traditional English fare for lunch - I had a beef pasty that was filled with beef, potatoes, carrots and onions - it was a tasty pasty. I know - lame joke! Lindsey and I also visited the Tiki Bar set up on the grounds and each got a Watermelon Mojito made with Highclere Castle's very own gin - and it was delicious! My sister even bought a whole bottle of the gin, because of course she did, ha-ha!
The castle had two ticketed entry times: morning and afternoon and you'll likely have to wait in line to enter the house, regardless of the ticket time you choose. We waited about 45 minutes to go in - COVID regulations in place meant you had to wear a mask inside and only about 6-8 people were allowed to enter at a time. You aren't allowed to take pictures inside the house but let me just tell you that if you've watched Downton Abbey - you know exactly what the inside of the house looks like. The show uses the furnishings, the rooms, the décor of the house just as it is and so the houses' current interior looks exactly like what you see on good old PBS! I was so very tempted to snap a sneaky snapshot - especially inside the main hall and on the staircase - but I behaved myself.
I could have absolutely gone nuts in the gift shop - but I restrained myself. However I did get two very special things at the Highclere Castle gift shop that I will use in my upcoming wedding; a beautiful tiara and some stunning art deco style earrings! I can't wait to wear them and also know that they came from this lovely estate in the middle of the stunning English countryside! It was so much fun to be able to spend the day exploring Highclere Castle and to feel like; if even only for a few minutes, we had stepped into an episode of Downton Abbey! If you've thought about visiting Highclere - I cannot recommend it more - definitely do it, you won't regret the choice!
Along the meandering way home, we made a couple stops along the way starting with Donnington Castle! Donnington Castle is a ruined medieval castle that was inhabited as early on as the 1300's and was even once home to a Chaucer - that's right - a family member of Geoffrey Chaucer of The Canterbury Tales! The castle is currently in the care of English Heritage and there isn't much left - but it's a fun little stop to make along the way! We also had dinner in the town of Milton Keynes and drove by Bletchley Park, where Alan Turing and his team broke the German Enigma code during WWII. I'll have to make a return trip to see the entire complex - but it was cool to drive by!
Thursday was a lot more relaxed day - we drove over to the market town of Ely and toured Ely Cathedral; this was a return trip for me and well worth it. I was able to see Ely Cathedral from outside when I was in the UK in November but couldn't tour due to COVID... Ely is one of the larger cathedrals in the United Kingdom and there has been a place of worship on the sight of Ely since 900 - can you believe that? It's mind-boggling! The cathedral had a globe suspended in the center for a month long series they were doing about Christ and Planet Earth; sharing how people could be good stewards of the Earth that we've been given, it was pretty interesting looking!
I also found myself some wings in a portion of the cathedral and y'all know I couldn't resist taking a picture with them, ha-ha! I think it turned out really well myself! My sister took us all to afternoon tea at one of her favorite tea houses in the little town of Ely - The Peacock Tea Room! The tea was lovely and the company (sweet family) were excellent as well!
The weather took a bit of an odd turn once we got back to Bury - clouds had rolled in and the temperature had dropped quite a bit, so I changed into some jeans before we walked around the town and did a little shopping! I made some purchases at Seasalt Cornwall and Marks & Spencer and we snapped pictures all over the little town because it was in the midst of Bury in Bloom - and there were flowers everywhere! We also stumbled onto some delightful little elderly Brits who chatted with us about airplanes, flowers and all things life in Bury! So precious!
After grabbing burgers for dinner at Byron's, Lindsey and I had a sister's outing to a delightful little placed we'd walked by on her street: Baskerville's Coffee and Cocktails! The upper floor is a coffee house but the lower floor is a Speakeasy filled with dim lighting, jazz music and cocktails inspired by Sherlock Holmes! Lindsey and I both had Rathbone's Fairy Garden, which came complete with it's very own fairy garden, edible flowers and a pasta straw and then I had the Moriarity - a coffee cocktail that was divine!
It was the perfect way to wrap up my time in Bury St. Edmunds before we headed to London for the weekend and to wrap up my two week trip!
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