Day Six June 4 Thursday Peak District


Is this a postcard or what? I have died and gone to Downton Abbey! 

We drove around just following the roads and taking in the scenery. A guest at the hotel called this area the "real Britain", we're seeing what she means. Unpretentious, still doing things the older ways, accepting tourists, but not going overboard. The Peak District is about nature, geology, environment. Its quiet and seems removed from the anxieties of the world. The people who live here just live their lives and we get to join in for a while. 

We reached Bakewell in time for lunch. THE Bakewell, home of the famous Bakewell tart, only it's not a tart it's a pudding. They seem pretty annoyed when you ask for a tart. A pudding is a dessert, a tart is a WHORE. If you "tart it up" you're dressing like a slut.
And you can't go to Bakewell without having a totally delicious tart... I mean... pudding.

On to HADDON HALL and what a stunning surprize. Its claim is it's " the finest example of a fortified medieval manor house in existence".  I was tickled to find the hype was true. Haddon Hall dates from the 12th Century (King John gave permission for its construction! KING JOHN of Robin Hood and the evil sheriff fame!) . After the 17thC it sat neglected for over two hundred years  until the 1920s, which was a good thing because it was spared the horrors of the Victorians and Georgians who just wanted to rip everything up, put in bad plumbing  ( like what's in my hotel room) and make everything look like the Greeks took over. In the 1920's the 9th Duke and Duchess  restored the house and gardens, making it habitable again. The good news is the restoration was done with the integrity of the historic house as the priority so we get to see the authenticity of this fantastic architecture as well as get a genuine look at life in the Middle Ages. I approve. 

For example : Instead of tearing out the original kitchen with its cool slab counters, stone water trough, tables, butcher block, smoking room, walk in fireplace with spit and paving stone floor hollowed out from thousands of weary feet, he built a separate modern kitchen in a stable block and put in a tunnel with a dumb waiter to bring food to his living area. Thoughtful! 

My mouth hung open when we walked across the little bridge over the River Wye and saw the "house" rising over the surrounding pastures. As big and looming as it might seem, like most of the medieval period buildings, its within a human scale. I would feel very comfortable here. Very....comfortable....indeed. I wonder how much it would cost to build a house like this now instead of some of the McMansions that are being built today that have no aesthetic sense at all? How about half of it? 

Am I ranting again?

Wall Panel Carving of Queen Elizabeth I 

Honey, I'm home! 

I Wanted to Take This Home

On the Ceiling, We're Back in Tudor Country Again,
No More House of York White Rose! 

The gardens were amazing. I have so many new ideas for plants, wildflowers, outdoor rooms but first starting with a total redo of the herbs. England always inspires but the gardens at Haddon Hall were do-able. More lavender. And purple Globe Alliums, tons of Alliums. 

The best thing about expecting little is being wonderfully surprized when you get a lot. This was one of those days, and it wasnt over.