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.

http://www.christianspectrum.org.uk/

for anyone interested

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

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

http://www.thestrandhouse.co.uk/

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