Day 4 & 5 - Palaces, Castles, and more!

On Friday after my 6 and 9 year old cousins left for school, my Aunt and Uncle decided to go into London for the day, leaving me to babysit my 3 and 12 year old cousins.  We decided to walk to an old palace on the outskirts of town where King Henry VIII used to come hunting.  It was a little over 30 minutes each way but was exhausting because most of it was uphill and I was pushing a stroller (or pushchair as they would call it here.)

To get there we had to walk through the woods and this clearing which is a great view of a classic Southern English view. 

"Built as a palace by the Archbishops of Canterbury, Knole Palace was gifted to Henry VIII, remodelled by the Sackville family (who have lived here for 400 years)."

We got to walk around the inside but unfortunately the inside is only open to the public during the spring. 

On the way home we passed a Lamborghini dealer which I thought was just kinda random to have in a tiny town in England.

We got some lunch on the way home and then took a rest before picking up the girls from school.  The rest of the night was just pretty relaxed as we waited for my Aunt and Uncle to come back. 

Today my Uncle decided to go out with me and all of my cousins to give my Aunt some time alone at home. We drove about 45 minutes away to go see Bodiam castle.  It was really rainy so I only took one picture with Little Lauren (who my three year old cousin says should be called Lucy) and then she stayed in the car for the rest of the time.

It was a gorgeous castle surrounded by a moat and built in 1385 AD.

There were loads of ducks around the moat that my cousins enjoyed chasing. 

Unfortunately during the 100 years war the castle was damaged and never repaired so now it just stands as a ruin.  

After touring the castle and climbing high into its' towers, we stopped by the gift shop and then had some classic English food. 

Peppermint tea and English scones with cream and jam

Meat Pie, Potatoes, Mashed Parsnips, Carrots, and Brussel Sprouts

After lunch we headed into Rye, a historic town dating back to before the Norman Conquest (11th century) on the coast to walk around.  It was a darling town complete with authentic cobblestone roads and where all the streets and old cottages had charming names. 

We then went to the old historic church there where we climbed through the bell tower to the roof to see the amazing view.  

After a long day of sightseeing we headed home.