Castles, Caves & Cappuccinos
We had a little bit of a late start today…maybe the time change is affecting us a wee bit more than we thought initially 🙂 We took a double-decker bus into Nottingham to experience the history and the legends. We walked around the center of Nottingham for a little bit and then headed to see a sweet piece of Nottingham history. We took a tour of Nottingham Castle (picture)– way too much history there to write about here, but super fascinating stuff!! The grounds were absolutely phenomenal and the intricacy of the architecture is breathtaking. We walked around the museum inside and then toured the cave known as Mortimer’s Hole (historical reference). The tour guide was probably the most animated guy in all of England. He was dripping with history and you could tell he loved his job. The caves were phenomenal. Initially used as a route to carry supplies from the river by donkeys, they played an important role in the history of the castle- check them out (picture)! The tour was probably our favorite part of the day!
After the cave tour, we had lunch in the “Ye Olde Road to Jerusalem” pub – the oldest inn in England and where Richard the Lionheart would have a beer with his men before heading to The Crusades. The pub is dug into the rock beneath the castle and it wasn’t until modern times that a roof and walls were built in the front of the pub to turn it into a “proper” pub. Having lunch in an old cave was definitely a once in a lifetime experience! Also in the pub was an old “Pregnancy Chair”. Legend has it that if you sit in the chair, you soon become pregnant. Rich wonders if it works for men as well. Sexist Brits! Apparently Anna can’t read proper English as she actually sat in the chair prior to reading the entire sign (picture).
We met up with Daniel and headed to Wollaton Hall and Park (picture). This part of Nottingham used to be an estate owned by the Middletons. It is now a tourist spot, a golf course and home to many, many deer who are free to roam wherever they please…including the putting green. For those of you who have seen the newest Batman movie, this estate was used in the film as Bruce Wayne’s home!
We headed back home after Wollaton Hall but took a detour through the Victorian part of Nottingham, walking through the old lace district (now a modern shopping center) and stopping for a cappuccino along the way. There is so much history, it’s hard to keep track of it all!!
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