Breakfast was buffet style and lived up to expectations from our previous visit to the White Hart. After breakfast, we loaded the car and made our way to the Salisbury Museum. We had been disappointed on our last visit to find the archaeological section closed for refurbishment and due to reopen just after we returned home. The museum’s archaeological collection is now housed in the Wessex Gallery and it was well worth the wait. We spent most of our morning browsing around the collections.
We had a cup of tea in the cathedral and visited the cathedral shop before returning to the hotel to freshen up ahead of our journey home. A timely missed turning led us to Marlborough which was the perfect opportunity to stop for a lunch time treat of lemon cake. We then retraced our steps and picked up the correct route to continue our journey home.
The weather was lovely and I had planned a nice meal on the patio but Mr C was feeling a little delicate following our previous evenings meal. I had to improvise and think up a dinner for one.
Tags: Cherie's Place, My Oak Tree, Salisbury, Salisbury Museum, The Wessex Gallery, Vacation
I awoke to the delightful sound of cathedral bells before we made our way downstairs for our final breakfast in Stoberry House. Some interesting conversations took place over breakfast including one involving a couple who were thinking of opening a B&B who were seeking advice from our hostess, Frances, on how best to go about getting started.
We chatted to our host, Tim, as we paid the bill and were thanked for making things easy by jotting down the drinks we had had from the honesty bar. Apparently this is unusual and not doing so can lead to some awkward conversations. We said goodbye to Frances who hoped we would be back. As we left the house we checked out a secret lounge that we hadn’t noticed before. Next time we visit this will be our lounge of choice 
On the car park as we were getting ready to leave we got chatting to another guest about Shropshire amongst other things.
We headed off to Stonehenge where we found that, as English Heritage members, we did not have to join the long queue. We chose to walk to the stones rather than take the shuttle bus, taking in the landscape as we made our way towards them. We took a leisurely stroll around the stones which I found quite peaceful despite the crowds. Back at the visitor centre, we shared a sandwich in the cafe and I bought a new book about Stonehenge before we made our way to The White Hart in Salisbury.
We checked in and freshened up before walking to the Haunch of Venison for dinner. This turned out to be the culinary disappointment of the weekend. The service and food quality did not match up to that of our previous visit in 2014. I finished the meal joking about taking the upside down mint from the plate that had been placed in front of us. It was only after I had eaten it that I noticed there was a rip in the foil. It left me wondering if this is why it had been placed upside down…
After this less than desirable experience we walked through the cathedral crescent, enjoying the view of the moon as it rose over the roof of the cathedral. We ended up back at the hotel where we enjoyed a drink in the hotel terrace garden whilst watching the sky turn from blue to black.
Tags: Moon, Salisbury, Salisbury Cathedral, Stoberry House, Stonehenge, Vacation, Wells
We enjoyed another lovely breakfast looking out towards the cathedral before we set off, in brilliant sunshine to visit the Bishop’s Palace. The palace rooms were interesting as was the current exhibition of church robes. The under-croft was set up for a wedding breakfast that was due to take place later in the day. We also visited the adjacent Bishop’s chapel before venturing into the gardens. The gardens are stunning and the location of the wells that gave Wells its name. We took our time enjoying the gardens and walking along the ramparts to take in the views of the surrounding area.
The Bishop’s Table cafe was rather busy so we made our way back into the town for lunch at the Swan Hotel. We sat outside overlooking the cathedral whilst enjoying as poached salmon and dill sandwich.
After lunch I would have liked to have walked around a few historical areas of Wells that I had not seen. Mr C, however was in the mood for learning more about the Battle of Sedgmore, so we set off in the car in search of the visitor centre. After driving around in circles for some time due to the lack of signposts (mentioned in my previous post) we eventually found the right one only to find that the visitor centre had currently been replaced by a signboard explaining the battle site. Mr C didn’t get out to look at it and was not interested in finding the battlefield memorial.
We got just as lost making our way back towards Glastonbury and it was only as we drove past Barrow Mump that I was able to pinpoint where we were and realise that we were travelling in the wrong direction!! I regret that we didn’t stop off to visit the Mump but by this time Mr C had got the hump so I remained quiet as we retraced our steps, stopping briefly at Street Village before returning to Stoberry House.
I took the opportunity to explore the gardens whilst Mr C enjoyed a quiet moment reading. Monty decided to join me, twining himself around my legs as I walked and paused to take photographs. All too soon it was time to return to the room to freshen up before dinner. We dined in the Fountain Inn which serves freshly prepared pub style food. We were accompanied by some very noisy diners, including one group who were quite naive in the conclusion to the political discussion they were having.
We escaped the noise and returned to Stoberry House where we enjoyed a glass of wine whilst sitting on a bench in the garden. Mr C had fun trying to take a selfie of the two of us (the camera focused on anything but us ) whilst, on and off Monty came to supervise us 
This was our last night at Stoberry House and it seems that love has turned into joy…
Tags: Bishop's Palace, Gardens, Joy, Love, Stoberry House, Vacation, Wells
The bed was so comfortable that I drifted off to sleep very quickly. I woke up to lovely morning light glowing through one of the windows, I quietly got up and read the guide book to Wells whilst Mr C slept a little longer. Breakfast was served in the orangery which has a fabulous view looking over the garden towards the cathedral. There was a beautifully presented fruit platter on the table when we arrived. Stoberry House serves a substantial continental breakfast with artisan bread, scones, pastries fruit, cereal, local cheeses, meat, fish, jams and marmalade. It was all home made or locally sourced. We learned that the breakfast was Michelin starred and we could see why. Mr C had opted for the optional cooked breakfast which was served on a platter.
After breakfast we drove to the bottom of the drive, parked the car and walked into Wells. The weather didn’t look very promising so we chose to visit the cathedral first. We took our time enjoying the space and the impressive scissor arches. I was pleased to discover that Wells cathedral also has a chained library. Chained libraries fascinate me because they remind me of a time when knowledge was wealth. We watched the cathedral’s medieval timepiece chime 12 o’clock; this was followed by a reflective prayer. I also lit a candle for my dad and remembered him on his birthday. I browsed the cathedral shop before we having lunch in the cafe.
The weather was still dark and mizzly so we decided to leave the Bishop’s Palace and Gardens for a day when the weather was less questionable. We made our way back to the car and set off for Glastonbury. Due to the lack of signposts and some very slow traffic it took us about 45 minutes to do what should have been a 20 minute journey! We visited the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey but didn’t have time to visit it the Tor. Maybe next time… Before leaving Glastonbury we had a cup of tea in the Abbey Tea Rooms and shared a florentine.
Back at Stoberry House I relaxed in the bath with a glass of sherry before heading to Goodfellows for dinner. The food and service were excellent and we ended up on a table next to our fellow residents with whom we had been chatting the previous evening. I chose the Mediterranean vegetable tart and, for dessert, Mr C and I shared a strawberry and cheese tartlet which was served with strawberry sorbet. By the time we left the restaurant the mizzle had stopped . We returned to the B&B and enjoyed a cool glass of wine in our room whilst reading before retiring to the comfortable bed for another good nights sleep.
Tags: Glastonbury Abbey, Stoberry House, Vacation, Wells, Wells Cathedral
As is often the way we set off on our travels slightly later than intended. Along the way we stopped off at a garden centre for a cup of tea, it wasn’t quite time for lunch and the menu choice was limited. We were almost in Wells and it was well past lunch time when we saw a sign advertising a book barn and cafe. The cafe turned out to be vegetarian, the food was freshly prepared and delicious. I opted for tomatoes and basil cooked in olive oil on thickly cut toast. The book barn was nowhere near as tempting as the food. I came away empty handed.
We traveled the last few miles to Wells, spending a couple of hours viewing the cathedral and bishops palace from the outside before making our way to our B&B Stoberry House. We were shown to our delightful room before being served with afternoon tea in the garden. The owner of the B&B came to greet us and gave us lots of hints and tips and some handy leaflets so that we could enjoy Wells with ease, including the best place to park (at the bottom of the long drive) to walk into town. A sweet cat came to say hello and we were informed that she was Monty and that she like to accompany guests around the garden.
After we had finished afternoon tea we took advantage of the sunny weather and set of to discover the garden. As we walked down to the lower part of the garden Monty joined us, even leading us to a spectacular view of Wells cathedral. It was soon time to go back to the room to freshen up whilst enjoying a glass of sherry from the honesty bar. We made our way to the bottom of the long drive, parked the car, carefully navigated the cattle grid by foot and walked into town to the Italian restaurant that we had booked earlier in the day. Wells was a little quiet so we made our way back to Stoberry House where we enjoyed a glass of chilled wine whilst chatting to a couple of other guests about politics and Brexit.
When we returned to our room, the bed had been turned down and there was a cute goodnight plate containing book lights, Love Letters and sweet dreams pillow spray. The bed was so comfortable that I drifted off to sleep very quickly
Tags: Portrait, Self Portrait, Stoberry House, The Bishop's Palace, Vacation, Wells, Wells Cathedral
My gardening project and blog migration have distracted me from organising photos from my recent travels to Wells. I am nearly there…
Tomorrow with a bit of luck, I will share the first day of my holiday adventures with you. Today I share a spectacular view from the B&B that I stayed in. More on the B&B later
Tags: Glastonbury Tor, Stoberry House, Vacation, Wells, Wells Cathedral
And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
John 1:5 (KJV)
Tags: Cherie's Place, Cherie's Place Thought, Gift, Light, Shropshire, Sunflower
