GOT TO SEE A REAL CASTLE!! (and actually go inside of it too ;) )
As part of the “Welcome Week”, they offered a free trip to Leeds Castle for all of the international students. (Which was quite generous seeing as how 750 students went!! Yeah, something like 13 coaches (some were double decker ones). That’s a lot of kids to give a free trip to) I know in my last blog I said it was a bit boring to say “yeah I saw a castle and it was awesome” but guys… I SAW A CASTLE AND IT WAS AWESOME!!! It really was beautiful. And yes, we actually got to go inside of it too! To be honest I kind of liked the outside more. Don’t get me wrong, the inside was stunning and quite educational as well but the grounds were breathtaking. The 500 acres were seriously something out of a story-book. It felt like we pulled an “Out of the Box jump into the picture” thing and landed right into a fairytale. You walked up to the castle on a path framed with all kinds of different trees and bushes. You also could walk along a mowed path along the creek (reminded me of your paths around the house, Dad (: minus the creek… and swans… there were swans everywhere here!). Once you actually got up the hill to the castle, you were instructed to walk around it and go in through the side. We entered the castle through a small room filled with huge barrels (Think The Hobbit and the barrels they escaped in). Then you made your way past the wine cellar (Don’t worry parents, I took pictures ;) ) and up the stairs into the first room. The first room was dedicated to the history of the castle and giving you some background information. The castle has been majestically standing since 1119. It has gone through the possession of several kings and has been granted to many wives until the ownership of Lady Baillie. It was her will that the castle could be enjoyed by everyone while still being used for special events. Consequently, after her death in 1974, the castle was given to the nation. Today, it is a very popular visitor attraction and also a very coveted place for events such as weddings and meetings. Talk about dream wedding! Too bad you would be absolutely penniless afterwards though :P
I won’t talk about every room because it is a big castle but I think my favorite room was the library. Literally floor to ceiling with beautifully bound books. The room was very well lit by the giant windows so I already loved it (natural light is the best). It was a very modest room though, not as big as you might expect. Also, it was kind of oddly placed in my opinion because off of it was the dining room. Which was probably my second favorite room due to the sea-foam-minty-green color (: Overall, the inside was very elegant. I think aiding in this was the fact that there were lots of flowers and arrangements all over. One room especially reminded me of my grandma’s old shop. It even smelled of popery ;)
To add to the story book feel of the grounds, of course there was a moat (way more impressive than the Dover Castle one because this one actually had water all the way around) and there was also a maze!! The whole way through, “Featherstone” by The Paper Kites was stuck in my head (: This was a legitimate maze too! Don’t think “Oh, how cute a little maze through the bushes!” No. This was made up of 2,400 trees that grew past your head so you couldn’t see over (unless you’re Jake Wood). It was way more intense than the corn mazes I’m used to. Once you made it to the center, you could go down into “The Grotto”. Carroll kids, don’t think our nice little grotto we have. This one had a very eerie, damp feeling and once you made it into the heart of it, you were greeted by not a nice statue of Mary but a huge face in the wall with red glowing eyes. We didn’t stay too long down here.
Instead, we went back out and admired the AMAZINGAWESOMECOOLESTTHINGI’VEEVERSEEN playground. This was honestly unlike any playground I have ever seen (and with all the babysitting I’ve done, I’ve seen quite a few playgrounds). The “Squire’s Courtyard” looked like a mini castle, complete with knight shields and everything. I was very tempted to go play on it but there were about 5 jillion kids on it already and didn’t feel like trying to make it through another maze… plus it was almost time to head back to the busses. We took the long way back through some of the gardens and took a couple more “picture perfect” pictures. Definitely a day for the scrapbook!
Keep Calm and make it through the maze.
Cheers!
E