England 2018: Aldworth Giants

In 2016, Dan and I tried to visit a church called, Saint Mary the Virgin in the village of Aldworth. We were able to explore the church grounds, but the church was locked, preventing us from seeing the true magic; the tombs of the legendary “Aldworth Giants.”

Yes, England has giants!

The De La Beche family lived in the area in the 1200’s and they were extremely prosperous. Many of the family members were well-regarded knights and very much involved with the royal family at the time, under the reigns of Edward the second and Edward the third. The De La Beche family was extremely tall, over seven feet, and many of them have been entombed in Saint Mary the Virgin, in what are said to be life- size monuments.

On our 2018 trip, we attempted a second visit to the church and this time, we bought along my mother-in-law, Jan. First, a few exterior pictures of Saint Mary the Virgin, taken from our previous trip. I love the entry gate, which looks straight out of a fairy-tale.

The door was unlocked and we were able to see the giants! If the tombs are accurate, they were very tall people. I was a little creeped-out that the tombs are so close to the pews. I haven’t attended church since I was a child, but every church that I’ve visited in the United States, as been very modern, with no buried bodies inside. I guess burying bodies in a church is not so strange, when you’re in a place to ponder both the meaning of life and what comes next. However, as someone who is not accustomed to this situation, it gave me an unsettled feeling.

The “Aldworth Giants” are interesting, but unless you’re visiting the area, I cannot recommend this as a must-see.

We also visited St. Nicholas Church in Compton, where Dan was baptized. We tried to find his name on the baptism role, but discovered that they only keep the most recent years on display. Although not religious, my mother-in-law helped sew the kneelers many years ago and was delighted to see that they were still in use. We visited as the church was being decorated for a wedding that was occurring later in the afternoon. St. Nicholas Church is beautiful and surrounded by a field with horses.

England has seemingly endless historical sites and I’ve been really fortunate to see much of the country, far beyond what the average tourist would be able to visit. It is doubtful that I would have visited either of these churches, if I had not both, married a Brit and if these particular places had not been near his hometown.

I met my husband in 2012 and prior to meeting him, I hadn’t even visited Europe. I could never have imagined that not only would I visit England many times, but that it would begin to feel like a second home. My heart is in both the U.S.A and the U.K.. It is becoming intimately familiar, especially when we are able to visit local sites that would not be on a tourist’s radar.

England 2018: Oxford

I’m an only child, with no cousins, and part of the joy of marrying into Dan’s family was becoming a sister and aunt to so many relatives in England. My sister-in-law, Ali, is awesome. She artsy, kind, and a lot of fun. Plus, she makes a mean cocktail! I always treasure the time that I get to spend one-on-one with her and during my 2018 trip, we had an afternoon out in Oxford.

This was my first time in the iconic city and Ali, who used to live there, was the perfect guide. Parking in the city is difficult, so we parked on the outskirts of Oxford and took a local bus into the city center.

Our first stop was the Oxford Covered Market. The Oxford Covered Market is an indoor shopping bazaar with off-beat stores, artisans, and delicious food. We refueled with coffee and cake, before browsing. I often keep my shopping light while in England, saving funds and precious luggage space for food items that are hard to get in the states, but I couldn’t resist a small candle that smelled like cotton candy. I’m a sucker for sweet, candy smelling things.

We finished shopping and began our walk around the town. It was a fairly warm and dry day, perfect for sight-seeing.

One of the most famous buildings in Oxford is the Radcliffe Camera. It is a private library for the university and was build in 1737.

Near the Radcliffe Camera, is a gorgeous church named University Church of St. Mary the Virgin. For a small fee, visitors can climb to the top of the tower for a magnificent view of the town. The climb was relatively easy, but the viewing areas at the top are narrow. We had to squeeze around other visitors. I was delighted by all of the sculptures, especially the donkey. These are the types of structural details that you would not notice, unless you visit the tower.

The tower has a display regarding the clock and its clockmaker, Thomas Paris.

After all of that climbing, we settled down for lunch at a pub called Head of the River. It was a beautiful, spring afternoon and we were able to sit outside to enjoy the boats on the water. It was at this restaurant that I discovered the wonder that is Swedish cider. I’ve always been a cider fan, but Swedish cider is just phenomenal. It’s also very strong and one bottle is quite enough to be tipsy. I ate a delicious roast beef sandwich with chips and coleslaw. I highly recommend Head of the River for both food and ambiance.

After lunch, we walked through a pretty green space in the middle of the city, called Christ Church Meadow. Christ Church Meadow provides a burst of brilliant green to contrast with the grey city.

The Sheldonian Theatre takes the cake for having the most expressive busts. I thought they were going to start singing “Grim Grinning Ghosts.”

I was thrilled for the opportunity to visit Blackwell’s Bookshop. Blackwell’s Bookshop has been around since 1879 and is one of the premiere bookstores in England. I own more books than I can possibly read anytime soon, so I focused on bookish souvenirs, buying decorations for my book tote bag. I have quite the collection of buttons and pins from both bookstores and literary landmarks.

We continued our walk to visit Broad Street and The Bridge of Sighs.

Oxford is a lovely and famous city. I look forward to many future visits.

England 2018: Windsor Castle

For many years, Windsor Castle had been on my bucket list and I was finally able to visit it during my 2018 trip. I had been to the town of Windsor twice, including standing across from the castle at a pizza shop, but this was my first time being a proper tourist at the castle.

My mother-in-law, Jan, was my companion for the trip. I had been staying with her at her home in Newbury, (about forty-five minutes from Windsor) and my sister-in-law, Ali, generously drove us to the castle. It was a very wet morning, just a few weeks after the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry to Megan Markle. Wedding decorations still filled the streets of Windsor and I think this lent an air of festiveness to the town. It also meant that there was a lot of security present, so much so, that my family made a comment on it being unusual.

I’m not sure how crowded Windsor Castle normally is, but we waited nearly two hours to get inside. It was jammed. The queue snaked around the town and we got quite soaked from the rain. Thank goodness my mother-in-law, who passed in 2019, was an adventurous spirit and always a good sport about joining me for activities. I have so many great memories of my time with her. One of those memories was from this day and involved carrots. More on that in a minute, here are a few pictures that I took during our time in the queue.

So carrots…during this trip, my mother-in-law received her local farm produce box and it included an abundance of carrots. We basically began to eat carrots for every meal, including one meal that was simply roasted carrots. She brought carrots in her purse for a snack at Windsor Castle and while in the queue, she brought out a full-sized, a straight from the farm carrot and started eating it. I must mention that my mother-in-law was a vegetarian for most of her life and she could be an eccentric personality. She ate half the carrot and stuck the remainder in her coat pocket, forgetting about it.

We continued to make our way to the entrance.

I purchased our tickets, mine was 23.50 and Jan’s ticket (senior discount) was 21.20. We had an audio tour included in the admission price. Jan was not fond of audio tours, so I found myself not using mine either, as I wanted to share the experience with her.

Prior to entering the castle grounds, we had to go through an airport-style security screening. I suspect this is what creates such a long queue and as such, I definitely recommend arriving to Windsor Castle prior to opening. To do it again, I would have arrived an hour before opening.

Jan went through the screening first and they discovered the carrot in her pocket. Instead of throwing it away, she just started eating it, holding up the line. The people behind us were grumpy, but the security guard couldn’t have been more kind. He told her to take her time and that he preferred carrot cake. He gave her a chair to sit on. When she was finished and walked through the screening, he told me that he thought she was fabulous. I felt grateful that he didn't rush us or make Jan feel stressed. it really set the tone for a wonderful visit to Windsor Castle.

The castle grounds are gorgeous. Since we ditched the audio tour, I didn’t know the significance of half of the things that I was looking at, but I admired them all the same. Windsor Castle was built in the 11th century and it is still an active royal residence. It has the distinction of being the oldest and largest occupied castle.

One of the biggest attractions is St. George’s Chapel. Photography is not allowed in the chapel, so I couldn't capture the spectacle and grandeur. It still had decorations from Harry and Megan’s wedding, making it even more spectacular. St. George’s Chapel has held many royal weddings and many members of the royal family are buried inside.

No matter how cold and rainy, ice cream is always a welcomed treat!

We saw plenty of soldiers walking around too. Classic!

We visited the state rooms, the public/ showroom part of the residence and saw Queen Mary’s dollhouse. The state rooms were beautiful, but not necessarily any more memorable than any other palace that I have visited. The impression might have been stronger if I had done the audio tour and had context.

Queen Mary’s dollhouse was amazing. It was also what had made the biggest impression on Jan, when she had visited Windsor Castle many years ago. Built in the 1920’s, the dollhouse is magnificent. This is not a child’s dollhouse, but a one-of-a-kind collectible that was created from the talents of many artisans. It is massive ( the largest dollhouse in the world) and multilevel, showing both the servants and masters living spaces. No detail is left out and it even has both electricity and running water. It is absolutely stunning.

The exterior of the castle was being renovated, but a clever facade kept it semi-concealed.

Our last stop was the Middle Ward Shop, where I purchased a commemorative Harry and Megan heart- shaped Christmas ornament. My husband is from England and I’m American, so we get a kick out of the Harry/Megan, British/American connection. In London, we bought a royal wedding commemorative plate and flag. We have created a Harry and Megan display on our bookshelf.

We spent two hours at Windsor Castle (not including the time spent in the queue) and we could have easily spent double the amount of time. I look forward to returning and doing the audio tour.

Across the street from the castle, we found The Duchess of Cambridge Pub and met my sister-in-law. This is a lovely pub and even though it is named in honor of Prince William’s wife, Kate, it did have decorations to celebrate Harry and Megan.

The town of Windsor is filled with delightful restaurants and shops. I look forward to visiting on a future trip and exploring the area more. If you have young children, Legoland Windsor is a must-do. We visited it twice, when my step-kids were younger and they loved it. Check out my multiple reviews of Legoland Windsor here. Part One, Part Two, Legoland Hotel.