Advertisement
001
leaving ottawa Hello all
I think I’ve reached the point in my receding jet lag where I can actually form sentences, so it seems like a good time for an update. I left Ottawa on Thursday evening and arrived at Heathrow at 1 30AM Ottawa, or 6 30AM London. On the flight I was told that the only way to beat jet lag was to sleep for a couple of hours on the plane and then to not nap at all during the day. Unfortunately, since this was my first flight in almost four years, I was quite nervous and couldn’t seem to get even a moment of sleep. However, I was determined to get on UK time as soon as possible so I decided instead that I would stay awake until at least 10PM with no naps. NOT an easy goal. Friday is mostly a blur but I’ll try my best to remember. Our drive from the airport was two and a half hours of Kodak moments. I’m actually quite happy that I didn’t have my camera on me because I might have spent my time watching the countryside pass by through a lens rather than actually taking it all in. It
005
fireplace! was a clear sunny day, and turns out England is way more lush than I ever would have imagined. Half of the time I was convinced that the plane had re-routed and dropped me off in some tropical paradise and not the cold, gloomy (however, culturally exciting) England I had painted in my head. The highway was completely surrounded by beautiful trees, cliffs, and fields and fields of sheep. This was the first big surprise - seeing sheep meters away from a huge highway on a steeply slanted field facing down towards the cars. When I’m used to the tall buildings, town homes, and ugly cement walls lining the 417, this was a very pleasant surprise. Driving on the left side really didn’t phase me too much, except for one quick moment when we were on a small country road and hadn’t seen a car in a while. I was all caught up in the scenery when I saw a big truck coming towards us and I had a quick flash of my life before my eyes before I remembered where I was. Really, I could go on forever about the drive over, the tiny quaint villages, the old homes
007
view from the ballroom with mossy roofs, and the hedges that fence in the sheep, but I have yet to begin about the castle and to be honest, I’d much rather be out in the gardens than typing in my room!
Pulling into the castle was a surreal experience. It’s much bigger than any photo could ever tell, and much welcoming actually. We first went to our residence and dropped off our things, my room mate didn’t come for a few more hours so I got to choose my bed (window side, obviously). I went to explore the castle with a few people I had met on the plane. We were all pretty drowsy but still couldn’t help walking through the main halls and the closest gardens. When night time finally came (after only 30 or so hours!) we all went to the castle pub, the Headless Drummer, which is apparently haunted by, yes, a headless drummer. I have yet to see him but at that point I really don’t think I was seeing much at all. After only half a pint I was falling asleep at the table and decided it was time to go to bed.
This morning was a whole other
008
archway along the courtyard story. I slept fantastically so waking up at 8 for our guided tours and registration was just like any other day. In the castle tour we got to see the dungeon and the ‘oubliette’ (which you may remember from the Labyrinth!) and had all of the history, legends, and ghost stories explained to us. The garden tour was incredible. The grounds just keep going and going, in the entire hour and a half I don’t think we saw even a fraction of what is out there. So many explorations will most definitely follow. In the after noon we had three and a half hours of info sessions, which were surprisingly quite interesting. Since, I’ve decided that I’m joining the choir, going to a rehearsal opera performance at the Glyndebourne festival and running yoga/pilates sessions.
One fun-fact about the castle which I found particularly interesting is that Helena Bonham-Carter filmed her first movie here and Ralph Fiennes ancestors were the ones who actually built the castle in 1441. So if I wasn’t already convinced that I was living in Hogwarts, I’ve got Voldemort and Bellatrix Lestrange to back it up!
Well, I’m off to the Bonfire now but I miss you
022
ivy! all and wish you were here to see this all with me. I hardly think my words or photos can explain how beautiful it is!
Love, Nikki
Advertisement
Tot: 0.123s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 6; qc: 44; dbt: 0.0789s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Brittany
non-member comment
Already Jealous
Funny that while you are having nice weather in a place known for it's rainy days WE'RE having the crappy cold thunder showers. Show some pictures of your room/ view from room. I can't even image what a castle residence would look like! So jealous!