Last call

(Update:  One of the places described below was just written up in the NY Times)

This was the last weekend of our stay, and also a 4 day bank holiday / Easter weekend, so we rented a car (just barely, turns out this is the 2nd busiest holiday time of the year in the UK)  and took some expeditions to places that were difficult to do by public transport.  All of the places we went were packed with families wearing wellies and accompanied by their dogs, and even with overflow parking we could barely get in.

On Saturday we went to Wimpole Estate,  a National Trust house and garden.  Downton Abbey has given us a good background for visiting country estates, as we now have an understanding of the functions of all the rooms that we are seeing.  The mansion was impressive (last lived in by Kipling's daughter), as were the grounds.  They have an amazing number of daffodils, and it is also lambing season, so I was happy.  There was also a farm and we saw a goat that had just been born and lots of baby piglets.  We took a nice walk through the sheep pasture up to the fake gothic ruins on a hill above the property.

On Sunday we drove two hours each way to go to the Suffolk Coast.  Starting at the North, we visited a town recommend to me called Southwold. It has a very old church, a lighthouse, famous beach huts, and a seaside pier (kind of like a mini-Brighton).  It is also home to the Adnams Brewery but we didn't partake.

Heading south, our next stop was a National Trust reserve called Dunwich Heath and Beach. We took a very nice walk along the cliffs through gorse and (not in bloom) heather, and then through various seaside habitats, ending at the (rocky) beach.

Finally, we ended at Aldeburgh.  This was a really cute town which we liked much better than Southwold.  Very picturesque and home of the best chippy in the UK supposedly.  We of course tried it and agree, and I don't even usually like fish and chips.  Benjamin Britten lived here but unfortunately his house was not open and we weren't there on the days of any music (there is a famous music festival now).

Today we went to Ickworth, another National Trust house and garden.  I had another transcendent garden experience in the stumpery.  And we got to see a ton of lambs.

Finally, we went to Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve, a wetland preserve which is what this whole part of England used to be (before the fens were drained).  We took very nice walks here as well.

Audley End House and Gardens

View towards Audley End House

Temple of Concord

Peach trees

Grape vines

Audley End is named after Sir Thomas Audley, who was given the land after the monastery dissolution by Henry VIII in part for his help with Anne Boleyn.  Audley End House is palatial and very Downton Abby, with a whole service wing complex as well. The grounds are of the landscape park variety (designed by Capability Brown). 

Tea House Bridge

Herbs/Fruit Trees

The kitchen gardens were the best part, particularly the glasshouse for vines and fruit trues.  For someone who likes espalier (training fruit trees on a wall or even wire) the gardens were heaven.

I took the bus from the train and the driver forgot to tell me to get off, so I also got to get a driving tour of Saffron Walden.  It was actually very cute so I was glad to have seen it.  Very old and quaint medieval market town, and there were even some castle ruins.  It is named after the saffron crocus, the growing of which was a 16th and 17th century industry.

Transcendence in a Winter Garden

Silver Birch Grove

While we have enjoyed many gardens over the years, to date only the White Garden of Sissinghurt (viewed in 1989 I think!)  provided a transcendent experience.  All that changed this weekend with our visit to the Winter Garden of Anglesey Abbey. "The gardens boast 270 different varieties of snowdrop (including 20 discovered there) scattered across 114 acres. Meander along the paths for fabulous displays dotted across the gardens. The Winter Garden – designed with plants that give winter colour and fragrance – also bursts with life at this time of year." 

We actually went to Anglesey because of the February Snowdrop Festival, as the snowdrops were reported to be virtually 100% in bloom and the weather was decent. Despite being a flowering bulb fanatic, for some reason I have never planted a snowdrop. Perhaps this is because snowdrops are quite short-lived in places that I have lived.  Or maybe it is because the charms of snowdrops are  rather subtle.  In any case, the lack of snowdrops in my life must change next year! The Festival seemed to be quite a draw as the garden was packed with Brits wearing Wellies.

The Angleseybbey Snowdrop itself

Parkland Snowdrops et al.

There was quite a useful display of many different snowdrop varieties before entering the garden, and each variety was also well-labeled in the Winter Garden.   We learned that the motivation for the relatively recent Winter Garden was that after some disease killed some other plants,  there were favorable conditions for the snowdrops' natural revival. The gardener built on this to turn kind of a garbage area into this beautiful garden path. In our later walk through the rest of the property, there were also many unlabelled fields of snowdrops (where we could test our new found knowledge regarding varieties).

The Winter Garden itself, however, stole the show.  The garden was filled with grasses as well as shrubs and trees with stems and barks and even flowers that provided an amazing rainbow of colors in the dead of winter.   Winter would be bearable with such a garden! Unfortunately for me,  I fear that this particular winter garden would require a winter with very little snow and would not work in Pittsburgh.

Tibetian Cherry

Righty Ho

Another weekend, another expedition.  Today we took the bus to Anglesey Abbey, Gardens and Lode Mill, a National Trust Property.  We also joined/revived our National Trust membership for the year. Although the weather forecast was iffy, Mark was informed that there are no bad weather days, just bad clothes.  So we set off. It was the seemingly usual mix of sun and clouds with high winds and occasional rain and temperatures in the 50-60s range. The property was huge and we spent about 5 hours there, wandering the grounds and visiting the house and having tea on deck chairs in the garden.  The Lord's mother was actually an American oil heiress, all very Downton Abbey.  As Mark has noted in his post, they do amazing lawns here.  Hedges too.  We seem to be between flower seasons, bulbs are mostly gone (there was an awesome hyacinth formal garden that we just missed) and perennials are not quite there (irises and roses are just starting).  The mill was open as it was National Mills Weekend and they even turned it on while we were there.

Yesterday Steve (my host) took me to lunch at Emmanuel College (aka Emma).  We sat at the high table although unlike other colleges the table isn't actually elevated.  You start in the cloak room where all the academic gowns are kept, although those aren't used at lunch. They have a buffet or you can order off a set menu (soup, main, dessert). Then we retired upstairs for coffee.  Emma is where I will be a Fellow when I return in January, and can eat there for free every lunch and dinner (if I could survive that).  Steve said Emma  used to be known for rugby and drinking but its academic star rose when Diana and Charles were breaking up as the Master was an expert on constitutional crises and was on the news everynight, giving the College loads of free publicity.  After lunch we walked around the lovely grounds which includes a pond with ducks and currently ducklings, and a modern building called the trolley.  It is really amazing how one walks in from the main drag of the city into this walled enclave of greenery and quiet.

My big dilemma is that Steve has invited us to go to a Emma Feast, which are very special and won't happen when we return next year.  The only problem is that it is black tie.  I brought only one dress which is more work-appropriate, and only casual sandals.  Hence my dilemma, what to wear!  Mark has never worn black tie, not even for our wedding.  That is easier as one can rent, but now Nicole is flying in during this event.  Still deciding, maybe Susan (who is staying at our house) can fedex me some of my clothes!  Hmmm, we just looked and that will cost like $200, guess I'll go frock shopping tomorrow!

Meanwhile, we have just watched Eurovision, which the other people returning to Cambridge at the bus stop alerted us to.

Weekend Excursions

Turns out that our first weekend was long due to a Monday bank holiday.  And the arrival rain turned into partly sunny weather in the 60s.  Although it seems chilly, the plants are a bit ahead of Pittsburgh as the tulips are at their end while lilacs are already in full bloom.

Grantchester Meadows Walk on the River Cam

On Saturday we took over a 5.4+ mile walk to Orchard Tea Garden in Grantchester.  The walk has paths through both meadows and by the river.  Grantchester itself is a very cute little village with a nice church.  Even though it is so close to Cambridge, we felt like we had escaped the big city and entered another world.

In the evening we went to the Festival of the Voice gala concert (which we had seen on a poster) at Trinity College Chapel. Little did we know that the Hilliard Ensemble was retiring and feted by three other ensembles.  Instead of ice cream during the interval as in Scotland, here our tickets got us wine.  But still no free programs!

Walking through the park to Ely Cathedral

On Sunday we took a short train ride to Ely to see the Cathedral, which is one of the nicest we've seen.  Beautiful stained glass, interesting octagonal tower, and very well signed throughout.  Whilst there we observed a special pet service.  We also went into the Stained Glass Museum which was well worth the admission.  The town was also holding its annual Eel Festival, but that was disappointing.  Instead we had tea at the Samovar Tea House.  We returned to the Cathedral for Evensong services complete with boy's choir, then walked by the river before returning to Cambridge.

On Monday we went to two gardens open for charity via the National Garden Scheme. The first garden (Upwater Lodge) was amazing.  The Wisteria-covered house was built by the owner's grandfather over 100 years ago and fronted onto a brook and the river, had a sheep herd,  a lawn tennis court, vineyard, and many many gardens - meadows, vegetable, perennials.  The next house was more normal, and we also had a yummy Delia Smith homemade date/ricotta/hazelnut cake with tea in the garden chatting with locals.  Walked back via the river where a cow seemed to have gotten stuck in the water.