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.

After breakfast we walked the short distance to Salisbury Cathedral.  I enjoyed my visit to the Cathedral and I wasn’t disappointed after waiting so many years to venture inside. One of the first things we saw as we entered was a Live Video Camera scenes of Peregrine Falcon chicks feeding. They are nesting high up in the bell tower. Whilst at the Cathedral  we had morning coffee in the cafe and browsed in the shop where I picked up a couple guide books.

One of the interesting things we learned was that the Cathedral is only built on four corner foundations and silt. When the silt begins to dry out water has to be introduced from the river in order to keep the foundations firm.  The recent flooding had been a worry because the water level became extremely high.  One of the Cathedral  guides showed us how they checked the water level through a small covered hole in the Cathedral floor using a marked wooden stick (a depth gauge).

We then departed towards Mompesson House which is a grad II 18th-century house located in Cathedral Close where we planned to have lunch.  Along the way Mr C flexed the plan and announced he was going to go into The Rifles Berkshire and Wiltshire Museum which we just happened to pass on our way to Mompesson House.  It was to close to lunch time to venture very far so Mum and I elected to visit the museum too. We each enjoyed different parts of the museum.  I enjoyed the section on Afghanistan and the garden with its memorial stones and a fine 200 year old Copper Beech tree.

We eventually made our way to Mompesson House for lunch, which was slightly delayed whilst we waited for a family to stop dithering and milling around in front of the counter. They were not quite making up their minds on what they wanted to eat and drink.  We waited (almost) patiently standing behind them in the queue having already chosen what we wanted. After lunch we strolled round the garden and house which is currently exhibiting a collection of strange modern art which seems to be the craze everywhere at the moment.

Next we visited the Salisbury museum where I expected to see architectural exhibits but found only textiles and ceramics (not quite my thing).  The museum’s temporary exhibition was a biography of Cecil Beaton in words and photographs.  This was very well done. When we had finished looking round the museum we sat in the garden eating tubs of ginger ice cream whilst enjoying the view of the Cathedral. I found out today that the architectural wing of the museum has just opened!!  A few days too late for me to enjoy

When we returned to the hotel I had a long soak in the bath before getting ready to go out for our evening meal.  The meal itself was a disappointment leading to an earlier than usual return to the hotel for a nightcap. The barman found us a rather nice delicate Rose wine to finish off the evening with.