Thursday, August 19, 2010

Surrounding Arundel Castle


Arundel Castle, situated in West Sussex, is surrounded 





by 40 acres of grounds and gardens. The view from the keep is lush and verdant.




There are formal gardens which are a tribute to Thomas Howard, the 14th Earl of Arundel




 with beautiful fountains and classic follies. 


Flowers are abundant, including this thistle, which is the national flower of Scotland.



I enjoyed some of the wild flowers the best



which framed the Arundel Cathedral. seen in the distance.


We found the guides at the Arundel Castle to be some of the most gracious ones ever, and they recommended we stroll down to the Black Rabbit Pub for a late lunch along the River Arun. Perfect, we thought, a little walk down the river would be refreshing.





Paddington got distracted when he found a discarded friend on top of the rubbish bin.



After walking for what seemed like ages, we finally found the pub one and a half miles away



Thank goodness, it was a pleasant afternoon with the castle in the background,



as we enjoyed some typical shrimp and chips



 and bangers and mash. With peas....always.









The town at the foot of the castle was charming


with cute shops and restaurants which would have been oh so much closer than the Black Rabbit Pub.


On the recommendation of a friend, we checked out Spencer Swaffer Antiques, a favorite among many, for treasures to take back home.  We did not find anything this trip that we could not live without, but



we had a hard time convincing Paddington that these "vintage" friends did not have a train ticket back to London with us.

Arundel gets 5 stars from all us, including Paddington!

7 comments:

  1. Gasp! How fantastic are these castle/village shots? Uber fantastic. Thanks for sharing this lovely spot...if only we had the opportunity to steal away to this castle last year the girls would have been enchanted. How was the pub grub? the tiny pea colanders are too cute.

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  2. the colour blue in the wild-flowers is such a lovely foil against the Castle - and you deserved a lovely shrimp and chip meal after walking all that way!
    ~Dianne~

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  3. It's gorgeous! What a wonderful trip!!

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  4. Such lovely places to visit, stroll, shop and eat. When was the last time I could see a castle while out walking? I will have to work on that one.

    Looks like Paddington is enjoying these excursions and meeting new friends.

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  5. This scenery is just breathtaking! What did Paddington have for lunch?

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  6. Marvelous tour and scenery, Debi! I'm so happy to finally see some of the gardens at Arundel. I'm amazed the guide sent you on such a long walk – maybe it's owned by a family member? Anyway, it all looks fantastic. Thank you for taking us along. – g

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  7. Love the fact that Paddington is enjoying your adventures with you. I bet "little miss" likes seeing those posts. And I love the little colander that the peas are in. I am not a green pea fan, but might try them if they were served in a cute little dish like that.

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