Deal, Kent is a small town on the English Channel. It lies north-east of Dover and south of the town of Ramsgate (Yes, Pride and Prejudice fans–Ramsgate!). I will say that the drive from London is beautiful. Kent is hills and valleys and at times when the brush clears along the side of the motorway, you …
I know I have quoted this often when referring to Stourhead, but I do mean it. “If it were merely a fine house richly furnished,” said she, “I should not care about it myself; but the grounds are delightful. They have some of the finest woods in the country.” Mrs Gardiner would have had …
In eastern England, there is a swamp region called “The Fens.” The Fens are the lowest lying region in the United Kingdom with some areas below sea level. Roman hydraulics and medieval drainage methods have been discovered in this region but the modern draining of the Fens began in the 1630’s, resulting in what is …
Oxburgh Hall was built in 1482 by Sir Edmund Bedingfeld and despite its castle-like appearance was home to the Bedingfeld family. It is a neat bit of Medieval and Tudor architecture with the ornate chimneys and towers. It has a moat, which was not for defensive purposes, but was a statement of the family’s affluence …
Ickworth House is an estate near Bury St. Edmunds in the county of Suffolk. It is not as old as many of the estates in England, but it earns points for size and style. The building of Ickworth began in 1795, by the 4th Earl of Bristol, Frederick Augustus Hervey. Hervey, who was also the …
Bury St. Edmunds is one of the larger towns in Suffolk once known as Beodericsworth. In the 7th century, a monastery was founded in the town and in 903 King Edmund was buried there, hence the name, Bury St. Edmunds. (There were reportedly miracles performed at the shrine of the martyred king.) This monastery later became …
We arrived in the UK first thing in the morning. We settled in where we would be living temporarily and received a mini-tour of the area. We were also taken to a local grocery store to pick up items we would want. We are not in a large area, so there are larger grocery stores …
How it all began… For those who did not know, I relocated to England from Omaha, Nebraska in May of this year. It was a move we were very excited about, but it was also a rather harrowing move. We had always moved ourselves, taking on four interstate moves in eight years, and I had …
L.L. Diamond 