Relaxing Weekend - Part One

Come with me through a lovely door .....

... and enter a magical garden.

With tiny gates that only a stooping child could pass through, in beautiful old walls that hint at what lies beyond.

I've just arrived back from a lovely relaxing weekend in Berkshire, staying with Lovely Hubby at his weekday digs and visiting two National Trust properties on Saturday.  First we went to Grey's Court,  near Henley on Thames which is described on the National Trust website as 'a family home with delightful gardens in an idyllic setting' ... I couldn't agree more!!

The gardens are interlinked with gates and doors, some kept closed that means you open a door up not knowing what lies beyond, each and every time there is a pleasant surprise awaiting you.

Benches are  dotted around everywhere .....

... and looking closer even these are magical.  

This one is a pair of owls supporting a row of hedgehogs who are making for the centre where there is a plant to nibble for supper.

What lay beyond that little wrought iron gate above?  Well once we had meandered around a few different areas we came upon this and realised we had eventually got to the other side of the gate.

This photo shows part of the kitchen gardens with row upon row of vegetables and fruits, interspersed with flowers,  the greenhouses were laid out with plants ready to fill the gaps as crops were harvested and made me think of home and the progress we are slowly but surely making.

Fruit bushes were heavy with red currants and other delights, and Lovely Hubby may have partook of a cherry or twelve as we wandered through cherry trees lined up as though soldiers on parade and we passed through arches dripping with plums mingled with Wisteria.  The seeds of the cherries seem to have arrived home with me, who knows maybe we will get one to germinate, what a wonderful momento of a lovely day.

We sat on rustic wooden benches and waited for the house to open to the general public, there had been organised tours earlier but we prefer to wander through rooms at our own pace rather than be 'taught' history on our journey. There is always information if you wish to know more, in the form of room attendants or printed leaflets and sometimes we look, but unless you have a real interest in the history of a particular house we like to look and absorb what we see in a more casual way.

We had a wonderful morning and once we had seen all we wanted to see we went back to the car and headed just five miles down the road.

Oh and of course there was a little bit of  .....

 Peeping ....

... and sleeping.   :-)

Sue xx