Sandringham and Castle Rising

Last day of our holiday – sometimes I look forward to going home, but not this time – we have really enjoyed ourselves.

We had been going to go to Norwich, but decided that although it looks close on the map, it takes two hours to get their either by bus or train (and actually it is not that much better by car).  This doesn’t really give much time to do justice to the city (particularly for the newly renovated castle), so we decided to do that another time and go for something a bit closer.

So we took the 35 bus this time and went first to Sandringham, and then to Castle Rising (they are only a few miles apart).  I have been to Sandringham once before, although I have never been inside the house.  It was expensive at £53 for the two of us – but actually worth the money.  The gardens are simply fantastic – it was yet another lovely day.

 

It has been dry down here and some of the plants needed a bit of help.  I liked this photo of the Norfolk rain forest!

The house was great too – unfortunately you could not take pictures inside – but it was full of personality – I could not help thinking of this poem.

Spirit of well-shot woodcock, partridge, snipe

Flutter and bear him up the Norfolk sky:

In that red house in a red mahogany book-case

The stamp collection waits with mounts long dry.

 The big blue eyes are shut which saw wrong clothing

And favourite fields and coverts from a horse;

Old men in country houses hear clocks ticking

Over thick carpets with a deadened force;

 Old men who never cheated, never doubted,

Communicated monthly, sit and stare

At the new suburb stretched beyond the runway

Where a young man lands hatless from the air.

 

I am reminded that George V ran on “Sandringham Time” which was half an hour ahead of GMT.  I had always imagined this as being 10 minutes as a minor nudge to hurry things along (I do this to J), but no – he actually ran the whole estate on this officially so he had more time for shooting – it must have caused havoc.   Anyway the guides were brilliant – very highly knowledgeable compared to a lot of the stately homes around here where they all seem to be foreign students with a very limited command of our history (and sometimes our language).

Then we went on to Castle Rising.  It was quite impressive.

The person who did the signs obviously had a sense of irony about modern health and safety.

I was becoming irritated with a noisy school group until I heard what they were yelling as they ran down the embankments “Shield Wall!!!  Shield Wall!!!” So I will let them off.