Home again, home again, jiggity-jig

by chuckofish

We have returned safely from jolly old England and all is well. Our flights were on time, and the DH managed all the driving with remarkable aplomb. He didn’t sideswipe a single parked car or lose a wing mirror to a hedge, and on those Devon roads that’s no mean feat.

We began our trip with a short stay at the Kew Gardens Hotel.

photo from Google

The proprietors are friendly and the rooms comfortable and very quiet. I would highly recommend this hotel, especially if you want to visit the National Archives or Kew Gardens, both of which are a very short walk away. I did a little genealogy at the National Archives, but made no noteworthy discoveries. While the DH toiled away at his mathematical treatises, I visited the gardens, which I blogged about a couple of years ago. Despite the earlier post, this was my first trip to Kew and it fulfilled all my expectations. My mother would have loved the huge old trees,

the beautiful flowers (are these agapanthus or something else?),

She would have explored every corner, so I did, too. From the fancy Victorian green house

to Kew palace, I wandered everywhere, got lost several times, and once or twice found myself going in circles.

I had a great time! I could hardly move the next day, but I spent most of that sitting in a car on the way down to Devon, so it didn’t matter.

In Devon we visited a National Trust property called Knightshayes that also boasted fabulous grounds. The house is a 19th century Gothic pile — all dark wood and brooding wallpaper — and not exactly my cup of tea, but the gardens were amazing.

and yours truly survived another epic stroll all around a vast estate.

Stay tuned for more about our adventures across the pond, and have a great weekend!