this trip has been a trip to remember.
to say the least.
we are all beyond exhausted but we have created so many memories that for the first time ever in a vacation, apart from seeing my cats i just don't want to leave.
if vacations weren't so damn expensive i'd go on them a lot more.
we have 2 more days before we leave and we are filling the last few days with a lot of travel to nearby towns..
the day before yesterday we went to castle howard,
which isn't a castle at all.
it's a giant house similar to downton abbey, only bigger..
it's situated near the town of york and it's super grand.
only the grandest have a peacock..
lord grantham needs to peacock it up over at downton.
near the entrance to the grounds are a series of little shops selling locally sourced provisions such as vegetables, meat, dairy, beer and wine...
it was like a tiny whole foods.
i bought some of these strawberries, some jersey cream and homemade meringues and made this later..
apart from whipping the cream within an inch of it's life it was unbelievably good.
not quite eton mess, but close.
once past the provisions portion of the tour, with (the best) latte in hand (seriously i have had the best damn coffee over here)..we toured the gardens..
and really the best part of the whole shebang for me.
the prettiest row of delphiniums.
fiona tells papa that she pets bees on the back.
papa disbelieves.
cabbages and shallots growing together.
(note to self)
i could have stayed in the vegetable garden all day taking notes.
fennel and carrots to your left.
kale and more carrots(?) to your right.
plus 2 towers of beans.
it is impossible to take a picture of fiona wo her pulling a face. (you have to sneak it in)
fennel, chard and peas.
also notice the bed to your right..
they grew chives around the border of nearly every bed.
it was beautiful.
you could hear a faint hum in the vegetable garden.
i thought it was a machine doing some kind of work...
it were bees.
in the rose garden next door..
so many bees.
so many roses.
the smell was amazing.
honey, rose, vanilla, clove, peaches...all present.
just from the roses.
there were roses in trees.
roses in the bushes.
single roses...
so many roses.
europeans know how to work a focal point in the garden.
once past the gardens you walked through this..
i died a little.
and it plopped you out right here....
and here..
inside was pretty impressive too...
this dish collection was pretty darn impressive.
and...
i love england so hard.
