After breakfast we set off on a walking tour around Cirencester that was based on the recommendations in the information pack the hotel had provided us with. Our first port of call was the Church of St John the Baptist which is situated in the market square. We walked around the burial ground before entering the church building, the oldest part of which dates back to 1115.

There is much of interest to see including a Lego model of how the Abbey of St Mary may have looked. Whilst we were there we were treated to a lovely organ recital. We walked into the grounds behind the church where the original monastery would have stood. Parts of it are marked out with stones in the grass to give an impression of how big it would have been.

We then walked through town towards Cecily Hill and The Great Park. We briefly entered the park before returning to the town to sort out our car parking ticket which was due to expire.

This gave us the opportunity to drive to the nearby earthwork remains of an immense Roman Amphitheatre on the outskirts of Cirencester. Back in Cirencester, we had lunch in the Cafe Mosaic which is situated in the Wool Market. We then continued on our walking tour, adding some additional points of interest mentioned in a walking book that I had bought from the church shop during our morning visit. We walked through the Abbey Park to find the remains of the Roman Town Wall and Corinium Gate where there is only a plaque to commemorate what was once the north-east gate of Roman Corinium (Cirencester).

By now it was time for an afternoon treat so we made our way back to the Great Park where we encountered the Duchess of Bathurst next to her Beano in the Park which is a lovely teashop in a Retro caravan. I chose mint choc chip ice cream and apple juice. The picnic area was full so we retired to a nearby bench to enjoy our tasty delights. We took a scenic route out of the park and made our way to the Corinium Museum which has a collection of wonderful Roman mosaics.

We returned to our hotel to chill out before dining in Piazza Fontana where the experience was as good as our previous visit. Then one final nightcap in The Fleece before it was time to pack our bags for our journey home.

Every abbey had a vegetable garden. The abbey’s gardeners grew a wide range of vegetables for the monastery kitchen such as onions, leeks and celery but also lesser-known vegetables such as winter radish, parsnip or spinach beet. The Parc Abbey was no different.

Up until the 16th century, important parts of the garden slope were planted with vines. Trained fruit stood against the wall around the garden. Behind the coach house was a hop plantation. Hops were used in the abbey’s home brewery for the preparation of beer. Left of the abbey lane, where the hop garden used to be, stood an orchard from the second half of the 16th century. Further up the hill, in a favourable microclimate, lay the vegetable garden that led to a geometrically designed vegetable garden. The walled vegetable garden (approx. 2 ha), also called the abbot’s garden, was accessible via a gate on the farmstead square. Three linear paths cut through the garden from north to south. The vegetable garden was divided into large areas or beds, surrounded by a hedge.

The current vegetable garden was planted in 2002 in the former abbot’s garden, with the support of the King Baudouin Foundation. De Wikke, an employment of Wonen en Werken vzw, maintains the vegetable garden and grows organic vegetables. Standard trees with old fruit varieties have once again been planted in the orchard. *

*From a signboard next to the garden

You may recall from a previous post that the abbey which held so much promise was closed on the day that we chose to visit.

Walking towards the buildings, we noticed that everything looked closed, despite the promotional leaflet from the tourist information office and the Abbey Park’s website, saying it should be open! We found that only the museum was open and were informed, ‘You know the Abbey is closed don’t you? There is a guided tour on Sunday afternoon’. We were disappointed to learn this because we were particularly looking forward to seeing the Abbey’s library. However the museum was very interesting, telling the history of the Abbey, the Norbertines and St Norbert.

Norbertine abbey founded in 1129.

The most completely preserved abbey complex in the Netherlands. The Church of Saint John the Evangelist is also a parish church. It is in fact a Romanesque construction but was converted into Baroque style in the 18th century when it was given a tower. The Romanesque portal in the tower was subsequently exposed.

The monastery buildings of the 16th-17th centuries were built on earlier foundations. Splendid relief work in the refectory and library  (end of 17th century).

Monumental gates of 18th century, including Saint John’s gate and Saint Norbert’s gate.

Monastery barn, farm buildings, Provisor’s house, guest quarters, coach house, water mill, 17th and 18th century.*

*From a signboard near the entrance to Abbey Park

After such a long day  at Waterloo the day before, Mr C overslept a little so I got up quietly and read my book. Our plan for the day was to visit Abbey Park which is on the outskirts of Leuven. My plan was to go to hotel reception and ask about the travel options but this was vetoed so we headed off to the bus station to catch a bus. Just after we arrived at the bus station, a bus to our destination arrived. We didn’t get on it because Mr C was unsure whether you should have a bus pass or if you could pay per journey. After a bit of a kerfuffle (which I won’t go into) and after waiting for the next bus  (30 minutes later), we got on the bus after working out that we could hop on and pay.

I was aware of but didn’t mention the next problem that could potentially arise… Would we know when to get off the bus? I kept a watch on the street names and luckily was able to see the street name as it arrived at our destination stop. I announced we are here and we very hastily got off the bus. We then had a momentary dilemma concerning the direction we needed to go to find the Abbey Park. I (unusually!!) suggested that Mr C used a location widget that he has on his mobile phone, which he did successfully.

As we arrived, we walked up the long drive way to the Abbey Park and were surprised to see a heron in the stream next to the pathway. Walking towards the buildings, we noticed that everything looked closed, despite the promotional leaflet from the tourist information office and the Abbey Park’s website, saying it should be open! We found that only the museum was open and were informed, ‘You know the Abbey is closed don’t you? There is a guided tour on Sunday afternoon’. We were disappointed to learn this because we were particularly looking forward to seeing the Abbey’s library. However the museum was very interesting, telling the history of the Abbey, the Norbertines and St Norbert. When we had finished in the museum we made our way back to the bus stop so that we could have lunch in Leuven.

After lunch we browsed around a few book shops before pausing for refreshments. I had a mint tea which was presented in an interesting way, with mint leaves steeped in boiling water before leaving the customer to add the teabag. Since we were in the pub next to (and supplied by) the local brewery Mr C tried a taster of three of the brewery’s beers. As we made our way back to the hotel in order to freshen up before dinner, the Hush Puppy shop called me back and I made another purchase…

Our chosen venue for dinner provided excellent food and service and the wine selected to go with my meal was a perfect match. The one criticism I have of the restaurant was that we were not asked if we would like a dessert or coffee so, passing on dessert, we made our way back to the hotel for the evening.