Windsor and Winchester

I wanted to see both Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace but we opted for the more historical of the two and visited Windsor. It was very cool to see a real castle, still in use. Queen Elizabeth loved this home more than any other place. She and her family were whisked away to the castle at the start of WW II and stayed there throughout, but her son only uses it for state visits. Just a few weeks after we got home, they hosted Donald Trump there.

After a yummy lunch of fish and chips we drove to the town of Winchester to see the longest cathedral in Europe, Winchester Cathedral. It was really amazing.

We wandered through the quaint little town of Winchester and had dinner.

Rather than cram everything into this post, I’m going to do one more post to finish up our trip. Stay tuned for Blenheim Palace and the Tower of London!

On the Sunday of our trip we attended St. Mary’s parish church in Henley. We could hear the bells ringing all the way from our cottage. This church’s foundations were built in the 1200’s!

After church we went to a Sunday Roast at the Angel Restaurant (below). Sunday Roast is a big deal and a big meal in England. There was more food on my plate than I’ve ever seen. Some of it I liked, some I did not. However, Rock loved it all.

After our very large meal we drove to Basildon Park, another large estate in England used now as a tourist venue, but where Mr. Bingley’s house, Netherfield Park, was filmed in Pride and Prejudice as well as some of Downton Abbey. The grounds were beautiful and we had a lovely walk in and out of the rain as we wandered on the huge property.

In the dining room/ballroom I had Rock take my picture by this random window. When we went home that night we watched Pride and Prejudice and I discovered it was the same window as in one of my favorite scenes from the movie!

Silly, I know, but cool for Austen fans like me.

A walk that I imagined Elizabeth Bennett walking on her way to Netherfield Park. Sorry it’s so big-I can’t get it smaller for some reason.

Stay tuned for the final (I think!) post from England!

Our day in Oxford was definitely a highlight. Being in this town that has been the center for knowledge, education, history and architecture for centuries was thrilling. And seeing many of the places Harry Potter was filmed was kinda fun too. 😉

The Bodliaen is one of the oldest libraries in the world. And also one of the biggest. It was first build tin 1602. It’s books are so precious that you aren’t even allowed to check them out. EVER. And it’s always been that way. Even King Charles couldn’t check out a book there. Below is the sign/promise you make when entering.

We definitely didn’t get to see as much of Oxford as I would have liked. I wanted to go back and spend a second day there, but there was just too much other stuff to see. Ah well. Someday I will go back and walk along the Thames as it winds it’s way through Oxford.