Sudeley Castle and The Swan Inn

We had lazy morning since it was raining.  It didn't improve any the rest of the day and in fact got quite foggy in some places.  We didn't let that stop us.  We decided to head to Broadway and Winchcombe.

There are fresh flowers in every room!

We wound up at Sudeley Castle before we knew it and decided to go in since it was on our HHA free admission with our membership cards.  You've gotta love that.  We didn't know at the time how far we would have to walk in the rain (without our umbrella) before we started but on a sunny day the gardens here would be breathtaking!  As with Highclere, the present day heirs still live in the castle and we got to see some of the rooms they use,  This castle dates back to Katherine Parr and has quite a history.  She was later buried in the chapel here.  There are a few pictures included that tell the story so I won't.  After our tour we asked how we could get back to the main entrance without having to go all the way around as we did when we came in and he directed us to a path by the church and it took us through another garden and then through an area with pheasants from all over the world.  I took photos for you Debbie and of Mr. P who was perched on a fence as we passed through.  As we exited we went through several smaller gardens and water features with some rather large koi.  Even though it rained on us until we were very soggy and wet, it was a fun experience.

The history...

Lady Kay banishing me to the cone of silence!

The queen preparing to receive her subjects!

More history...

Sadly...the end.

Katherine Parr is buried here.

Can you tell I love tulips?

Mr. P for you Debbie!

This was beautiful...even in the rain!

Our next stop since it was after 3 was to get some lunch and we had wanted to try a pub.  Kay had asked one of the workers in the gift shop to recommend a pub which he did but we couldn't find it on our first pass through the narrow streets of two way traffic and we decided to find something else.  We were going the wrong direction to head towards home so we found a place to turn around and headed back through the narrow street town (Winchcombe) and headed to Broadway which was close to home.  This was our first time here and we decided we must come back on a sunny day as there are lots of cute shops here.  We had lunch at The Swan and it was a delightful place with a bar in front and restaurant to the side and back.  The food was good and the desert too pretty to eat,,,but we ate it anyway!  We stopped at the local Co-Op on the way home to pick up a few things and Kay is either napping or has had enough of me for one day and is in her room.  It is still cold and raining so there doesn't appear there will be an evening walk to see the lambs tonight.  I'm going to post this and if I can get up the nerve, may try again to describe our day in Stratford.