Thursday 26 September 2013

The Mermaid Inn, Rye (Pt. 1), East Sussex

I have a reason for pushing this post to the front of the pile
During our recent couple of nights away after our house church weekend, we spent the day in Rye and met a delightful couple from the U.S.A.
They liked the idea of being on my blog so that they could show the photos to friends back home


Rye is a quaint medieval town and a delight to walk around. I will be sharing it with you in future posts
For this post we are going to be concentrating on The Mermaid Inn
Note it was re-built in 1420







Having walked around we decided to have lunch in the inn


Not the restaurant, but the Smugglers Snug almost under the fireplace


This door in the corner leads to what was a secret passage


Alan ordering and note the Hops hanging from  the ceiling


We are now right inside the fireplace and the gaping hole half way up was a priests hiding place



I am just showing pictures randomly as I wandered round waiting for our order
The entrance hall with picture gallery of famous people over the years


The inner courtyard




The Mermaid is a hotel too and here we see one of the staircases



See the ancient clock on the left


Before we arrived we had decided to order fish and chips for lunch.
The greatest crispy batter and succulent Haddock, caught today
accompanied with a pot of Mushy Peas dressed with herbs, a very delicious Caper Sauce and half a Lemon tied up in muslin with a pretty bow
The special paper that lines the basket takes one back to childhood when fish and chips were served in the fish and chip shops wrapped in newspaper (a greaseproof paper around the food)


Now this is Bruce & Becky Milne from Wisconsin with whom we shared a pleasant hour or so
Hi! Bruce and Becky - nice to see you again!


The infinity mirror in the ladies room




The restaurant now closed till evening


Photographs of some of the famous people who have stayed here 



Now the Queen Mother who would not have stayed here because of security did make a visit and other members of the Royal Family


The Silver cabinet


Hope you enjoyed your visit. The fish and chips were delicious, the chips so crisp on the outside and soft on the inside
Hosting a conference at church this weekend so will be away from computer for a few days.
for anyone interested




Sunday 22 September 2013

Strand House B & B, Winchelsea, East Sussex

Straight from our House church weekend away (more in a future post) we had booked to stay at this charming Guest House.
Our room was on the first floor spanning the width of the white painted front of the house.

The house dates from the 14th century. It was originally a hospital inhabited by Monks and was added too in the 15th century when it was the village workhouse (for the uninitiated most towns had a workhouse - a place where people went if they could not pay their rent - usually old people and children)
It became a hotel in 1932


Side view where some of it dates back to the 13th century


I thought these models in the garden of a sheep dog with sheep grazing were adorable 


The old well


A photograph of the house adorning the wall 
taken in 1862


Yes, at 5ft 4 inches I really was taller than our bedroom door and my head was only a few inches from the ceiling beams 


It was a delightful room with a King size bed and a day bed
Do notice the bears in their Strand House bath robes


The chimney and once fireplace I imagine would be part of the structure of the house as it can be seen outside too



Another Strand bear seen cuddling a Strand Kitty cat 



Entrance Hall


Sitting room with the friendliest cat I have ever come across
many cuddles for a cat lover  


The bears kept us company especially on the Sunday night when we had the place to ourselves. We were Blessed and spoilt as inevitably the next day we had to share with other guests, however this was fun too as all guests were friendly and chatty and represented 4 different countries among 5 couples (American, Canadian, Danish and British)



stairs to the second floor


Now here we are back home and yes Alan bought me a Strand bear to bring home and here we see him bonding with my Jelly Cat, his new room mate
Strand bear has his own web page and I will help him keep in touch
by sending photos occasionally


and yes he bought me Strand Kitty Cat too who is pleased to have a big cat to look after him
Winchelsea is close to the charming medieval town of Rye so there will be many photographs to come -  possibly even before I continue posting on Summer holiday and trips





Thursday 12 September 2013

Mapperton House & Gardens, Dorset

I thoroughly enjoyed walking around this garden as it has such a great combination of formal and wild


I like especially these Livingstone daisies growing out of the walls 


The garden is set in it's own valley which always adds to lush vegetation




The Orangery












The Ice House
































The West front of the House
An Elizabethan house enlarged in the 1660's
It is now the home of The Earl and Countess of Sandwich and harks back to the restoration of Charles II when the first Earl of Sandwich brought the King back from Holland 


Before leaving we paid a visit to The Sawmill Cafe in the grounds where the old saw machine is still standing


The ceiling is draped with a shamiana, an Indian wedding tent that was designed especially for Mapperton.
Needed to get this post off as we are away for a few days at our House Church weekend retreat. We have extended our trip by booking into a luxury bed and breakfast near Rye
for 2 nights
I cannot remember when I last had a cold so not very thrilled at going down with a sore throat, cough and cold 2 days before