Rachel's!

Hello all! I know it's been long and far between posts, but it's really only worthwhile posting something when we've actually been somewhere or done something. Ok, so where we left off...

Returned from Scotland on Monday afternoon. Woke up Tuesday morning to my BIRTHDAY... Thankyou all too for the Skype calls and messages, a special shout out to Michaela who even sent me flowers! My darling Harry surprised me with a bottle of Pimms and fresh fruit in the morning, and received lovely (!!!) cards from John and Harry both. Was taken out to lunch by John, Harry and Angela which was great, and received a gorgeous silver and peridot bracelet from my favourite dynamic duo. Then went shopping with Harry in Bournemouth. Visited the Pandora shop to pick out a birthday present (check instagram, alissa_anna) and then went to the Body Shop and drooled a little, you should see how cheap it is over here! Message me with requests. Was taken out for Chinese dinner too that night, which was dericious, and also great because we didn't have to cook/clean up on my special day!

Thursday went to Salisbury as John had a quick job to do, had a fab time just rambling through the countryside in the van-- England really does fulfil its cliché of tiny roads and hedgerows! Thursday afternoon we got to pick Percy up from school and have a mini party belatedly for his birthday, as he was away in France on the actual day. We packed up a picnic and headed down to the beach, where miracle of all
miracles the sun actually shone! We have been having awful weather for summer, not terribly cold at 18 or 19C, but persistent drizzle, rain and overcast skies. I JUST WANT SOME CONSISTENT SUNSHINE!!! Straight after Percy was dropped off at his mums we headed straight to Rachel's in Devizes (again, google maps it). Had some delicious dinner (our entire time with Rachel was marked by glorious food!) and off to bed. Woke bright and early Friday morning, first stop; Farleigh Hungerford castle. Old ruin, not much standing but in a very picturesque spot. By my record, this is castle number 14 on my lifetime tally, but I don't think I'll ever get sick of seeing Harry's smiley face :) Onto Glastonbury for lunch, site of the famous music festival, but also a weird little town full of hippie, pagan, alternative shops and people. Very quirky, very fun. Enjoyed my first experience in a vegan cafe and ate a delicious meal. Stomachs full and the crappy weather still not deterring us, we climbed Glastonbury Tor (or BIG ASS HILL in English), on top of which sits a very stoic and ancient tower. This has been a religious spot for over a 1000 years. At the top you can look over three counties. On a clear day I'm sure you can just see for miles and miles, however it was rather rainy that day, but made for amazing atmosphere. A must do if you are over here. On the way home we passed Westbury white horse. The white horses are a specialty of Wiltshire, giant equine pictures carved into the side of the chalky hills of the county. They look amazing from a distance, some hundreds of meters tall and wide, and very old. Drove to the top (looks a bit wonky up close), and experienced some very blustery weather from the top of that hill. Cold, wet and tired from our busy day we headed back to base to light the fire (not for cold, just for comfort), a glass of mead and curled up to watch Death at a Funeral. Bliss.

Saturday morning we went to the little town of Lacock (pronounced lay-cock, rather than la cock, you dirty bastards) where we wandered around a very old abbey, or what was left of it. It was sold by Henry VIII during the dissolution of the monasteries to one of his courtiers (Tudor fans put yo' hands up!), who proceeded to build quite a large house, but thankfully didn't tear down the majority of the abbey. Parts of the abbey were used in the filming of Harry Potter, and I almost pissed myself with excitement when I got to hug Snape's massive cauldron, actually an original from the abbey kitchens. We also got to wander around the house that the courtier built, very big but not very grand in parts, but still occupied by the same family from the 16th century up until January this year-- pretty cool. Lacock itself is a very medieval, untouched looking town, and was also used to film the BBC version of Pride & Prejudice. Double score!!
After Lacock we headed back to Rachel's to wait for her boyfriend Jack to pick us up. We had tickets to a music festival called Avebury Rocks, where Harry's other sister Esther lives and his nephew George was opening the show... Even though we were late and missed him playing-- Smith time strikes again! :P It was a little miserable to begin with, we had a sludgy field and pouring rain competing with the bands. We spent the first three hours huddled under an umbrella avoiding the rain. I was surprised there was still a turnout at all, this kind of weather in Australia would have most people hiding inside, but the English don't let rain deter them (they really can't, or they would do nothing all year!), slap on some gumboots, raincoats and an umbrella and you've got yourself a wild night out! The weather did clear up for the final and headlining act, The Levellers. Very big over here and the crowd went off. Hard not to get infected with a party crowd like this, and soon we were all dancing a jig in the mud too! They were very Celtic festival, would have fitted in a treat. Think Mumford & Sons cross Gaelic Storm for those in the know ;) Crowded back to Esther's for a cup of tea to warm up and dry off. Had the most amazing pork sausages from their own pigs. Amazing the difference from the crap you buy at the supermarket. We then went back to Jack's for the night.

Dawn breaks on Sunday for a walk in the Savernake Forest with Jack's dog Doodle (called so because he has one). A big BBQ was planned that afternoon, a bit of a family reunion. Harry's sister Esther and her three boys, Harry's nephews George, Arthur and Felix came... Little weird thinking of them as his nephews as they are only 5-10 years younger than us! John also came up with Percy, so we had the full lot. Bit of sunshine, and more food and drink. Good to catch up with everyone properly. Monday (today still by our time) we went to Longleat House, a manor house of EXTRAORDINARY proportions. When I say massive, I mean... Massive. And grand. And... Think Pemberley and Mr. Darcy. We got to walk through this amazing house, or rather part of it. The rooms you are allowed in I'm sure only scratch the surface, and the Marquess of Bath still lives there besides. HUGE. What on earth anyone needs that many rooms for, I'll never know, but sumptuously decorated and furnished. Just... Gobsmacking. One of my highlights!!! And that brings us to now. We are tucked up in bed frantically trying to finish this as we head to London tomorrow and I'm sure I will have forgotten everything if I wait til we get back on Friday. Wednesday we are booked in for the Harry Potter studio tour (I think I'm gonna wee) and Thursday we are catching up with the J.C. Cornwall for a sly trip to Madame Tussaud's. I'm going to have my photo taken with all the celebrities, woo! No other real plans, going to play it by ear and fill in some of the gaps we missed on our last trip to the great city. Suggestions welcome!