A dragon at Bodiam Castle

We’ve recently had a few days away with MOH’s family in East Sussex, staying in an AirBnB which looked out over Bodiam Castle. We spent more time indoors that first day than we planned, thanks to Storm Benjamin but as the day went on, and I think the rain finally ran out, we headed to the nearby castle built in 1385 by Sir Edward Dallingridge and his wife Elizabeth.

And it is the fairytale castle with a moat which was once part of a working estate with farmland, wharf and watermill. The site was ‘waterscaped’ by Sir Edward who built this castle with Elizabeth when they married. The purpose of the castle has been debated by historians and it’s believed to have been built as a defence, a status symbol and a home.

The castle had had a bit of a makeover for Halloween, and for the half term. The dragon was a great touch, because every castle needs a dragon, right?

The big kids amongst us also couldn’t resist a quick game of quoits, which was way harder than it looks. That quick game became a battle of wills, as we couldn’t leave until we’d scored at least one - and here’s evidence of the one I scored. I’ll just say that I was the only one to manage this…

No wonder the dragon was looking over us - there were also dragon eggs hatching in the courtyard!

Bodiam also plays host to one of the most important bat roosts in the UK - they’re everywhere once you start noticing them - with three types of bats roosting here: Natterer, Daubenton and the tiny Pipstrelle which we see in our garden at twilight.

As I said it had rained a fair bit, and the lower half of the kitchen was wetter than I suspect it would have been in its day - and I bet cook would not have been amused.

But I bet that large fireplace (one of two in the kitchen) would have been a roaring every day. There’s actually 33 fireplaces built into the walls at Bodiam Castle, and most of them are on the side where the Lord and Lady slept, and not on the servant’s side.

The original portcullis here is made of oak and is one of the oldest in the country, and walking underneath it really does make you wonder about its history, and what it would say if it could.

I took the photo below just above we left the castle, walking under the portcullis and it struck me that they couldn’t be more different, but were just metres apart.

Pausing as we wandered back across the moat my eye was caught by the trees arching to frame a smaller oak tree in the distance. It as a good reminder of just how wonderful nature is and how calming it can be, and how quickly that calm can be restored after a storm.

Small and perfectly formed

The cabin we stayed in at Downash Wood Treehouses couldn’t have been better named and it was a perfect place to escape to for a long weekend.

And it was pretty special on the inside too, though if I’m perfectly honest the pink fluffy artwork and ceiling light weren’t my cup of tea.

The kitchen fitted snugly alongside the bathroom, and it was great to have a proper oven.

And in between the bedroom area and the kitchen there was a small lounge area, but given the weather it got very little use during our stay.

Who’d have known what to expect from the outside?

On the other side though, that really was where the magic was. On the decking there was a table and chairs, a couple of adirondack chairs, a firepit BBQ and the big draw a wood fired hot tub. Which we made plenty of use of, we were less successful with the firepit BBQ though, apparently setting and tending to one fire was plenty enough for MOH.

A great weekend away, a great place and we almost didn’t notice that we didn’t have the internet. Almost.

The kitchen garden at Gravetye Manor

At the start of the month we headed down to Sussex for an early celebratory meal at Gravetye Manor; it's somewhere that's been on my radar and to visit list for a while and I'd heard the afternoon teas there were just fabulous. Although when I looked at the sample menus, everything looked fabulous and we quickly upgraded ourselves to a proper meal. We'd hope to book a dinner reservation, but by the time we remembered to actually book they were full for the dates that worked for us, so we opted for lunch instead.  

It felt slightly strange, but quite decadent, to spoil ourselves on a Tuesday lunchtime, but it actually worked out really well as despite being full of gorgeous food we were able to wander around the gardens and beautiful grounds in our finery, which wouldn't have been an option after an evening meal, and let's face it it'd be highly unlikely that we'd get there early enough to do it beforehand (although on reflection that is probably the best advice I can give you!)

After cocktails, three courses and coffee with petit fours and some relaxing and recovering in the lounge we headed out to the gardens. I'd read that there was a walled garden, so that was incentive enough. I'll admit though it's the first garden I've explored in heels, but given that this exploration took place after a gourmet lunch, I think it was the lunch more than the heels that slowed us down.

When I saw these gates, the entrance to the walled garden, I knew we'd made the right choice to get up and explore. Aren't they beautiful?

Inside the walled garden we were to discover the most bountiful of gardens which is used to supply fruit, vegetables and flowers for the hotel and restaurant, and that explains why there were such mounds of rhubarb and artichokes. That's quite a responsibility to grow enough to satisfy a restaurant dish.

RHUBARB

GLOBE ARTICHOKES

The garden is oval in shape, or elliptical if you want to be formal about these things, and the path leads and encourages you around the garden. It's one of the few remaining Victorian walled kitchen gardens that remains in production and covers 1.5 acres of what Gravetye Manor say is "the most beautiful soil imaginable" and I suspect they have a point.

What surprised me was the number of flowers being grown, but on reflection and learning they supply the hotel with cut flowers it's not that surprising. It did remind me that I should grow more flowers in my allotment and this year I'm determined to add a cut flower bed. 

FOXGLOVE

LOOK AT THOSE PURPLE STEMS

Part-way round the garden I spotted another gate, and I think this one, even more beautiful than the entrance gates. Its design, the clematis clambering over it and the lichen covered sandstone walls all contributing to the prettiest of pictures.

As we continued to walk around the walled garden it was the flowers and flowering herbs that caught my attention, and I'm rather pleased with some of my iPhone shots.

POPPY

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CHIVES

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FROTHY FRONDS

It was good to see the apple blossom, I think it's slightly longer lasting than the cherry blossom which has already been and gone in our own garden and is often the blossom "snow" so prevalent in April and early May.

APPLE BLOSSOM

And there were berries too, that will no doubt end up on a fortunate diner's plate. We were curious though as to what colour these would turn out to be, and it's unlikely we'll ever know.

A STRING OF BERRIES

As we left the garden there was a small brick hut right by the entrance which was covered with roses and clematis entwined and it made what is no doubt still a functional space pretty and seem completely at home in its environment.

CLEMATIS AND ROSES ENTWINED

So a great wander around a fantastic space, and my fascination for walled and kitchen gardens remains in place, there really is something special about them, but when there's a walled kitchen garden to explore, it's totally something else!