Culture: Salisbury Cathedral

Last Thursday, I went to Salisbury Cathedral with two students. I can’t remember if I’ve ever been there before, so I was really looking forward to exploring it, as well as visiting the Magna Carta exhibition (one of the remaining four parts is kept in Salisbury Cathedral).

From the station, it's a 15-minute scenic walk away; along the high street and next to a river. We walked under an ancient bridge, rounded the corner of some trees and there it was – absolutely magnificent. I was immediately struck by how forbidding it looked, towering above us and reaching straight into the sky.

After taking some pictures outside, we went in to collect our exhibition tickets. They were free, but because it can get busy, the website recommends booking a time slot in advance; however, we were able to go in before our time as it was quiet when we arrived.

What struck me as we went to the exhibition entrance was the large cloister with two enormous trees in the middle; I imagined monks wandering around it, studying and praying (it really drew my mind back to Ken Follet’s Pillar’s of the Earth). I love reading gravestones too, and there were plenty of them in the walls and floor; I think the oldest I saw in the cloister was about 300 years old.

The exhibition itself was fascinating – it explained exactly what the Magna Carta was, why it was significant 800 years ago and the effect it’s had on the law today. It also drew attention to the state of the legal system internationally, including the percentage of prisoners currently awaiting trial and the level of corruption in each country’s system.

The document itself is written in minute handwriting; as parchment was so expensive, the barons had to save as much space as possible. Sometimes it's hard to imagine just how signifcant things like the Magna Carta are, but looking at it and reading the translation really highlighted how influential this document was - or should that be is? The translation has emboldened the three clauses that are still in our laws today - most notably, that people cannot be imprisoned without reason and must be tried by their peers.

After lunch, we joined a tour of the Cathedral. Originally built in Sarum in the 12th century, it suffered during the Reformation in the 16th century when a man called James Wyatt took out the stained glass windows, among other things. I won't list everything I learnt, but I loved looking at the tombs and effigies and learning about the people buried in them. I'm fascinated by Lady Jane Grey (the girl who was Queen for 9 days), so was pleased to find her sister has a memorial in the Cathedral, put there by her son. There's also a font near the entrance, which reflects the ceiling and window at the opposite end of the Cathedral, which is stunning; I managed to get a picture of the reflection after multiple attempts to angle myself correctly but getting my sleeve wet instead.

Salisbury Cathedral was wonderful in so many ways - the recommended donation is £4.25 for students, which is definitely worth it, and the exhibition is free! I hope to go back in Summer with Maxx, and relax on the grass outside afterwards.

Pictures will be uploaded when I'm back in England.

Culture: Hever Castle

Last Saturday, Maxx took me to Hever Castle. Famously known as the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, I was really excited to explore the castle and the beautiful, extensive gardens, as well as stay in the luxury guest rooms just next door.
It really was the most relaxing weekend away I've ever had. I felt truly replenished and at harmony during our brief stay. Maxx and I arrived around 3:00pm on Saturday - the castle closes at 4:00 during 'off' season - so we had a quick nosy in our magnificent room in the Astor Wing before wandering around the gardens until they closed. First things first - there were so many ducks. It was heavenly as I love ducks (I know I love almost all animals but the duck is in my top 5). There were also 3 swans, including one just over a year old who was adorable. He made this honking noise which was just so cute - I was feeding him by hand on Sunday.
We chilled in our room - 'Hazel' - for a couple of hours before getting ready to go to dinner. The hotel was beautiful; the walls were lined with landscapes and portraits, and there was a billiards room and music room to relax in if we wanted to. Our room was spacious, with a comfortable double bed, TV, tea and coffee set, armchair, desk, wardrobe, and possibly the most opulent bathroom I've ever seen. There were Molton Brown smellies, with a bathtub from a bath-lover's dreams. It was perfect.
There isn't a restaurant on the premises, however the hotel had handily compiled a list of nearby pubs. We chose the King Henry VIII, a two-minute drive down the road (we didn't fancy walking along the winding, black road!). The food was delicious, but what I liked most was that the walls were covered in portraits of Henry VIII, his wives and children. 
Sunday morning, we went to the breakfast room for our Full English. There was also yoghurt, cereal, fruit, porridge, toast, pastries and fruit juice available. This room had beams running across the ceiling and was also full of paintings. Maxx and I barely spoke to each other - we were too busy looking around and eating!
After another short amble around the gardens, we went inside the castle. It's quite a haunting experience, being in someone's childhood bedroom when you know the stark truth of what happens to them. Anne Boleyn's life is overshadowed by her brutal death, and it was hard to forget about that when walking through her old home. There are a few artefacts of Anne's in various rooms, as well as love letters between herself and Henry, original furniture dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries, and old torture instruments from Europe. Included in those were three German beheading swords - the guide told me they were similar to what would have beheaded Anne in 1536.
The Castle is quite small so it only takes about an hour / 90 minutes to explore. With the rest of our sunny afternoon, Maxx and I walked around the grounds. There's an Italian Garden, showcasing many sculptures and busts, as well as a maze, water maze, Japanese tea house and several water features. The gardens were lovely, with a few flowers starting to blossom - I can't wait to go back in summer and see everything in bloom.
Hever Castle is one of my favourite castles in England. I can't really explain why, but I felt a special connection to Hever - I think I'll go back many more times in my life. It was such a memorable, wonderful weekend in every respect and I hope to return very soon. 

Culture: Longleat Part I (collaboration with BeckyBoops)

Last weekend, my bff Becky, her boyfriend Andy, Maxx and I went to Longleat. I've been before, but the other 3 hadn't, so I was super excited to take them - Longleat is a massive stately home, but it also has many other fun things, including a safari. Our all-inclusive tickets were £26.77, saving us 15% as we booked two days in advance online. It was worth every penny.
Adventure Park (written by BeckyBoops)

Aside from the main draw of Longleat Safari, there is an Adventure Park located just behind Longleat House. The park is the main hub of the attraction, with food vendors, a maze, and several animal attractions. There were attractions for the old and the young alike, and some specifically for the young - which we avoided. Like the plague. Though we did have to drag the boys away from it... We collectively decided to spend a bit of time in the adventure park before heading onto greener pastures. After consulting the site map we had a plan of action, and set off into the Jungle Kingdom.

We headed inside, and instantly noticed Meerkats running around - they were very cute and were nipping around peoples feet who were on the path inside the enclosure. The otters were adorable, I'm pretty sure Pip almost cried. We moved around the area, and there were loads of creatures to ooh and ahhh over.

Some of the more unusual animals were extraordinarily cute - in particular the Binturong (third pic along in the strip below) when they were snuggled up having a snooze!

After drinking our fill of the cuteness, we headed through to the Monkey Temple. Unfortunately, there were not many monkeys around that we could see! We passed through into the bird area-desperately trying to avoid being pooped on-and emerged into the area which houses rabbits, guinea pigs, and other smaller animals. The rabbits were gorgeous, but shy - so we weren't able to get a decent pic of those guys unfortunately. 

We eventually found ourselves inside a room which houses a creature that many people have a big fear of. The dreaded tarantula. She was out and people were able to hold her - under the supervision of the keeper. In this area there was also lizards, tortoise and the inside part of the guinea pigs enclosure - there were loads of those little things! 

P.S. Pip is terrified of spiders. She faced her fear and held the tarantula! A big thank you to the keeper for being so calm and understanding.

After the Tarantulas, we headed into the butterfly enclosure. They were beautiful! Loads of different kinds, including one absolutely HUGE one. 

After extracting ourselves from the warm butterfly room, we rushed over to the penguins and sting rays. The penguins were playful and seemed happy to wander around people's feet who were on the path through the enclosure. The sting rays also seemed to relish the attention of the crowd, and proved it by sticking to the surface and popping their noses out of the water!
 

After we had our fill with these guys, we headed back to the car to embark on the big game safari!

Pip:  I was rather enamored with the otters. One was squeaking at us - it was like he was saying: “Pip, snuggle me”. I definitely did cry a little bit after holding the tarantula. I have never been so scared in my life, but it was a strangely rewarding experience. She was very soft! And yes, the keeper was absolutely great - he knew how to handle the situation by offering to put her half on his hand, half on mine, then put one leg on my hand, then another, then her body, so it wasn't such a shock. And he didn't make me feel silly for being so petrified.

Safari: 

The Beginning (written by Pip)

The entrance to the safari has a car park, so you can get out and admire the giraffes and zebras close-up. At the moment, there are a couple of young giraffes, who were giddy and liked to suddenly burst into trot – probably one of the cutest sights in the world. There was one particularly lazy zebra, whose friend was trying to rouse him from his nap, and just as we were starting to worry the resting zebra lifting his head for about two seconds!

Once we were back in the car, we had a peaceful drive past an Oryx and three rhinoceroses. One rhino was so close, we could hear him nibbling away at the grass! However, that was where our uneventful safari ended…

Becky: It was amazing to see all of these animals up close - especially the rhino! I could have reached out and touched it if I had wanted to...I also loved seeing the awkward gait of the young giraffes trotting, very adorable!

Feeding the Deer (written by BeckyBoops)

There were loads of deer around, and as we drove up we could see them gathered around the cars ahead of us. At this point we noticed a hut from which you can buy deer food to feed to them - naturally we HAD to do this and bought 2 cups of deer nuts. 

We. Were. Mobbed.

The deer completely surrounded the car, and were so impatient to see if we had food that they would stick their heads in and snuffle about for it - it was all we could do to keep up with the greedy mouths inside the car! It was fun, slobbery, and messy! I think Pip will be finding the deer nuts in her car for the rest of the year now...

"License and registration please ma'am."

Pip:  I would like to say I've cleaned up the car since then... But I haven't. I loved this part of the safari - those deer were not shy! There were heads reaching into the back, heads snuffling me and Becky, and more and more just kept appearing! I could have happily stayed there all day.

Part II coming tomorrow...

Travel Post: Berlin, Germany

Berlin was relaxing, moving, emotional, educational and fun. It definitely deserves it's reputation as a cool city - one third of it's space is 'green', it's incredibly pedestrian and cyclist friendly, and everywhere you look are tattooed, pierced, shaved-headed groups of people (not just teens, either!). We've never seen so few cars in a city!

We stayed at the Ramada Hotel in Alexanderplatz - the staff were really helpful and lovely, the hotel breakfast was incredible (yoghurt, toast, cereal, pancakes, eggs, bacon, cold meats, cheese, fresh fruit...) and the gym was ideal for a basic workout. The room itself was spacious, with a copy of Berliner magazine, a comfy chair, desk and little hanging wardrobe, and the bathroom had a waterfall shower! 

I was warned before we went that Germany doesn't have the best choice of food for vegetarians, but thankfully I didn't find this the case. Near our hotel was Dolores cafe, which does the most delicious vegan, vegetarian and meat burritos, and in the Alexanderplatz station was a Backwerk shop, which has a delicious selection of pastries, fresh bread and sandwiches. We also went to Cafe V in Kreuzberg. So, no problem on the food front. 

I've really struggled to decide which are my top 5 places to visit, as everything we saw was worth seeing. However, for the sake of making this a blog post and not a sermon on the merits of Berlin, here they are...

The Topography of Terror
This sounds like a miserable place to visit, and while the information boards are harrowing and saddening – they detail the rise of Hitler through to the end of the Nazi regime, including the punishment of SS officers and high-up Nazi officials – the place itself is clean, spacious and modern. The Topography of Terror is a memorial site, which people are asked to remember when visiting, so it is peaceful and gives the opportunity to reflect. It doesn’t seem right to say I ‘enjoyed’ going here, but it’s in my top 5 because the experience was poignant - the boards ran along the length of the site, parallel to a length of the Berlin Wall, almost like a double reminder of the effects of dictatorship. As well as describing the devastating history, there are also tales of hope, of people who fought against the Nazis.
Checkpoint Charlie is right next to the Topography. We visited the Black Box museum, which cost just 5 euros each, and saw an alarming video on exactly how the Berlin Wall defences worked. I don't know a lot about the Cold War, but this museum broke it down into easily understandable events.

The Topography of Terror

The German History Museum
The museum itself is a wonderfully pink building, with several temporary and permanent exhibitions, but we went specifically to see one about WWI which was advertised in Berliner magazine. I was curious to see how the war would be represented, and was impressed with how neutral the exhibition was - neither the Allies or Germany were blamed. It was completely absorbing, with thorough descriptions of specific battles, propaganda displays, and artefacts. After this, we went to see the permanent exhibition on Germany under the Nazis - I was quite upset by some of the photographs, particularly of Auschwitz victims. Again, I admired how the museum didn't shy away from this ugly part of its history.
Berlin Cathedral is in front of the museum. The cathedral's museum has some impressive and detailed models of its development from the 19th century until now. As well as being able to climb to the top and look out over Berlin, you can also visit the crypt. We were offered a discounted entry of 4 euros because we couldn't visit the main area of the cathedral, however the service finished while we were there so we got to go in after all.

German History Museum

Schloss Sanssouci

'Sans souci' translates to 'without worry' in French, appropriate given this was Frederick the Great's summer residence. Situated in picturesque Potsdam, 30 minutes on the train from Alexanderplatz, this royal palace was obviously extravagant, but was much smaller and therefore seemed somewhat homelier. The intricate ceiling designs and floral furniture were truly breathtaking, but the palace was small enough that you didn't become desensitised to the surrounding splendour. Situated a few hundred metres from the palace was a windmill, so we explored that too - I've never been in a windmill before!
There are hourly tours at Sanssouci - you will be told the next entry time when buying your tickets.

Schloss Sanssouci

Schloss Charlottenburg
Unsurprisingly, this was named after Queen Charlotte! We underestimated how long it would take us to walk from the Reichstag to here, but we finally arrived one rain shower and two hours later. On the way, we saw the victory column which Hitler wanted to place at the entrance to Germania, the city he was planning to build, so the walk itself was pretty if not exhausting. Anyway, the palace was beautiful - the silver table decorations and china plates were priceless, but my favourite part was walking through the gardens and relaxing by the lake. Several ducks and little birds came over to enquire if we had any food, and a heron flew over the water while we were looking out - it was a perfect end to the palace visit. I also enjoyed seeing the mausoleum; it was bigger than I thought it would be!

Schloss Charlottenburg

Schloss Cecilienhof

Styled like a Tudor house, this was the last palace built by the Hohenzollern family, who ruled Prussia and Germany until Kaiser Wilhelm's abdication in 1918. It is most famously known for being the location of the Potsdam conference in 1945, where Stalin, Churchill and Truman decided Germany's fate after WWII. It was really special to be in the room where hugely significant political decisions had been made 70 years earlier. There is a peaceful and scenic 2 kilometre walk through Neuer Garten to reach the house, which I'd recommend, as it has woods on one side and a lake on the other.

On the road by Cecilienhof is a bus stop which takes you back into Potsdam in about 15 minutes. 

Schloss Cecilienhof

Useful tips:

You will need to buy a photography permit - 3 euros per time - at most of the historic buildings and houses.

Most places, including cafes, charge 50 cents to use the toilet, so carry change in case you get desperate.

Specify that you want tap water, or you'll end up paying over 3 euros for a small carafe!

The transport is always on time, easy to use and inexpensive.

You will need to book well in advance to visit the Reichstag. We couldn't visit it because there were no free slots until the week after we'd left.

Book review: The Secret Keeper, by Kate Morton

The day I moved stables, my lovely adopted sister (as in, I adopted her in my mind. She's not an actual orphan) bought me this book as a leaving present, having remembered that I really enjoyed Morton's The House at Riverton. 

The Secret Keeper
7/10

Before we begin, let me tell you that this book has a shocking, and I mean shocking, twist. My mouth actually fell open and I did a sort-of comedy gasp.

The novel is in four parts, told by Laurel Nicholson, Dorothy Smitham (Laurel's mother) and Vivien Jenkins. The plot revolves around a secret Dorothy has held almost all her life, related to the fateful day her eldest daughter witnessed her murder a man. In Dorothy's old age, she begins to reveal fragments of what happened, but  decides to investigate and find out exactly why her loving mother stabbed a man to death.

Set before, during and after WWII, Dorothy's and Vivien's tales takes place largely during the Blitz (1941). Morton's description of the bombs' effects is stark and thankfully not romanticized - the image of civilians picking their way through the rubble-strewn streets, and the strangely exposed nature of houses with walls missing, where people can watch the intimate happenings of people's privates lives from the roadside, shows how people just had to keep calm and carry on, even though their lives were literally falling apart around them.

What I found most thought-provoking, however, was how Dorothy's boyfriend, Jimmy, questions his role as a war photographer, particularly when his own apartment is hit. Jimmy's desperation to find his WWI veteran father, who suffers memory loss, is devastating - but it cleverly reflects how easily people's role could be reversed. Instead of being at a bomb site to photograph it, Jimmy becomes a victim. This in itself raises an ethical argument over the responsibility of photographing tragic events such as war, and how they should be represented, and even who has the right to represent them.

Morton has many strengths, including writing complex and sometimes unlikable characters - Dorothy being one of them. Her childish plan to seek revenge because Vivien shuns her - you later find out why - and her desperation to climb the social ladder made me think of her as a frivolous, selfish girl, particularly when compared to the resolute and brave Vivien.

The novel became a little slow in the middle, but perhaps this was necessary as so many characters were implicated in finding out the truth about Dorothy Smitham. And trust me, it really is worth finding out.

Culture: Beaulieu

The week before I started my new job which is awesome and I literally can't get over how lucky I am, I had the pleasure of teaching 3 lovely Japanese students. As part of their programme they had to research and organise a day trip, and after examining our options, the girls decided on Beaulieu. I took Maxx there last year for the Bond in Motion exhibition and knew it was a thoroughly enjoyable day out, even if you aren't a car enthusiast (which I am definitely not), so I was looking forward to going again.

First on our itinerary was the Palace House and Abbey ruins. I love a grand old house, and as soon as you walk in you're presented with a couple of enormous portraits and glass cases full of artefacts from the past and present owners' lives. The house is styled in the late Victorian period, 1889 to be specific, so the staff are in costume, the kitchen has a big chalk board with a menu written on it which would have been typical for the time, and there's a picture of Queen Victoria hanging up. 

Sir Thomas Wriothesley was the first owner of Beaulieu, after Thomas Cromwell sold it to him in 1538 (middle portrait)

The staff were really friendly - one gentleman, I believe he was the butler, gave the girls a talk on the house and who would have worked there, what their roles were and a brief history on working in the Victorian era. From a teaching perspective - remember I was actually working that day hard life huh - this was a great listening and vocabulary exercise. 

The first time I visited, I was thrilled to see a portrait of John and Sara Churchill - during my 2nd and 3rd years of University, I studied 18th century literature and came across both of these important figures, so it was cool to learn the connection of the Churchill's to the Montagu family (who own Beaulieu). 

Walking to the Palace House through the gardens

I also love a good ruin, and the Abbey doesn't disappoint - it's 800 years old! You can walk around the cloister and admire the herb garden which borders it, as well as visit the excellent little museum which explains how the monks lived. Again, from my perspective, this was great as the girls learnt a lot of new vocabulary and many interesting facts on England's medieval culture. I hadn't visited this museum before, but was impressed - there is an informative board explaining how the monks' day was spent, over 50% of which is in prayer. All of us found this fascinating.

Although the weather was drizzly and a bit cold, it was atmospheric walking around the Abbey ruins and Palace House. The girls certainly brightened the place up with their array of colourful brollies!

The Abbey ruins and cloister

After a lunch break, we visited the Motor Museum. If you like history but not cars, you'll still find the museum interesting - looking at how cumbersome some of the old vehicles were, and how they transformed over the last couple of centuries, is somewhat strange. Some of the first 'cars' could still be pulled by horses if they stopped working! 

On the first floor is an array of vehicles from across the world, but the ground floor is where speed demons might find most exciting, as that's where the record-breaking land speed cars are held. There's also an old London bus which you can board; this is a perfect picture opportunity.

There was also a chance to preview the next exhibition, which is on motorcycles - a great advertising tool, as there are already a multitude of bikes from across the globe. I think that'll be one to take Maxx to, as he loves motorbikes and watching the Moto-GP. 

Overall, this really is a day out for everyone. If the weather's nice, you can stroll through the gardens and Abbey ruins. If it's cold, you can stay warm in the House or Motor Museum or Abbey museum. The food is fresh and tasty, and the gift shop is well-stocked with a range of mugs, models, keyrings etc. 

For travel details, click here, and for prices and opening times, click here.

My personal favourite (red car, right)

The True Story of St. George's Day

Once upon a time, in a land not very far away from France and Ireland, there lived a brave nation of people who had a slightly eccentric dress sense and a penchant for tea. Every April 23rd, however, they were forced to sacrifice a child from the village to a ferocious fire-breathing dragon.

During the oddly temperate April of 1089, on the morning of the 23rd, the King's daughter was chosen as the sacrifice. Even though he was really sad, he still didn't get off his bloody arse to fight the dragon and save his own child, so it was left to Georgina the Great to don her finest fighting gear, saddle up her noble steed Ernest the Excellent, and fight the big scary dragon.

Georgina rode at a gallop towards the spot where the King's daughter had been left to meet her grisly fate. Ernest had other ideas, however, and galloped past the abandoned maid (this was a time before vodka and clubs, remember) into the forest.

"Oi!" said his rider, tugging frantically at the reins and remembering a rather exciting cross country competition they had entered two years previously.

"OK OK, sorry about that. Just got a bit excited." said Ernest, slowing to a bouncy walk, which actually wasn't that slow at all.

He stopped suddenly and Georgina almost banged her nose on his neck. In a glade in the forest, green light casting spots on the ground, the dragon lay sleeping and snoring very loudly. 

"Bloody hell." said Ernest. Before Georgina had a chance to check whether she actually had wet herself, her noble steed wandered forward and biffed the dragon right on the nose.

The dragon jumped into the air with a shriek. "Christ! What the hell was that for?!" yelled the startled mythical beast, in a voice not dissimilar to the current monarch.

"Back beast! Back!" shouted Georgina, unsheathing the badminton racket (she couldn't find her sword when leaving the hut that morning) and waving it aimlessly in the air.

The dragon raised an eyebrow and sat down on a nearby log. "Hi. I'm Lucky."

Rather than being a rather serpenty-looking monster, the dragon had a large white face with one bright blue eye and one brown eye. Her scales shimmered in the sunlight, and Georgina noticed there were daisies plaited into the long mane which ran the length of Lucky's neck.

"Um... hello, I'm Georgina." she stepped forward to shake the dragon's surprisingly hoof-like paw. Instead of being leathery, it was baby-soft - the nails were a delicate shade of pink. "Are you... are you going to eat that girl out there?"

The dragon laughed so hard she accidentally set fire to a nearby branch. Georgina smiled despite being more confused than the time in Maths class when they were learning algebra. Ernest, meanwhile, was grazing on a rather luscious patch of grass. 

"I'm a vegetarian. Why do you think I live in the forest? There's lots of herbacious foods for me in here. I just let the people go... most of them move to the big village Londendon to find better work opportunities but some of them stay living in the forest. Every Sunday I cook a big meal and invite everyone." Lucky explained. 

After a lengthy chat, Georgina the Great persuaded Lucky the Dragon to come into the village and explain that she would prefer if the village offered her the largest apple they could find, rather than a person, every April 23rd. Once that whole debacle was resolved, Lucky returned to the forest, promising to keep in touch with Georgina and Ernest.

A recreation of events... yes, that is a dragon slipper.

That's the true story of St. George's Day!

PS - Happy World Book Day and Happy Birthday Shakespeare.