If you’ve been following my travel blog, you might remember that during a trip to Ely, we did walk around and even inside the cathedral there. At the time, there was a service, so we weren’t allowed to explore as we wished.(https://lldiamondwrites.com/2015/01/03/arrival-in-the-uk-and-ely/) Recently, we made a return trip and paid the admission to go inside the cathedral, which is stunning!
View down centre of cathedral
Columned wall near the entry
The interior of the cathedral is not just a simple church. There are several chapels, ornate crypts, and incredible ceilings to take your breath away.
Upon entering, there is an entry and the breathtaking view down the centre aisle toward the altar, but that is not all. To the side there are amazingly detailed walls of columns, and when you walk up the aisle, you find the altar is overset by another incredible ceiling.
ceiling over the altar
The chapels to the front have incredible detailed walls and ceilings. Each has it’s own character and slightly different look, despite being in the same building. In a way, the chapels are rather incongruous to the rest of the structure. With the smaller detail work of the walls.
ceiling of smaller chapel
Detail work in small chapel
Ceiling of the ladies chapel
I can only say that if you find yourself near the cathedral, it is certainly worth the price of admission!
History of the British Museum dates back to the 18th century, and its artefacts date back centuries further. The large Palladian style building on Great Russell Street in London is enormous and houses some famous and incredible artefacts. I would love to say I travelled the entirety of the place on the day we visited, but the truth is, you will probably see more than one post because the place really is enormous!
One of the greatest aspects of the museums in Britain is that they are free. There is no set admission fee for entry. The museum does have bins placed throughout the museum requesting donations, and honestly, what is even five pounds when you can view the Rosetta Stone and the Elgin Marbles.
We began with the Cycladic exhibit and worked our way through the Minoan, Greek, Roman, Assyrian, and Egyptian exhibits. We did go inside the Enlightenment exhibit for a time, but we mostly got our feet wet in the ancient artefacts.
I have to say that even my mother-in-law, who didn’t think she’d enjoy the museum, loved it.
It’s a beautiful building and there is so much inside to see. I took a Bronze Age in the Aegean class, so the ancient cultures was an incredible place to start. The Cycladic figurines, the Geometric Greek Pottery, the Roman copies of ancient Greek statues–the Elgin Marbles. It was great.
Cycladic Figurines can date back to around 3,000 BCE
Geometric Greek Pottery
If someone had no interest in ancient civilisations and were to ask for the highlights, it would be difficult, but I would have to tell them to see two main things–the Elgin Marbles and the Rosetta Stone.
Parthenon Frieze – Elgin Marbles
I know, I’ve mentioned the Elgin Marbles several times, so what are they. Well, Thomas Bruce, the 7th Earl of Elgin travelled to Greece in 1798. At that time, Greece was a part of the Ottoman Empire. While there, Elgin acquired parts of the Parthenon and other pieces of the Acropolis in Athens. Some sources claim he just took them, and others claim the Ottomans gave him the pieces. Yet, he returned to Britain with them and they now reside in the British Museum–much to the consternation of the Greek government.
In my opinion, the showpiece is the frieze from the Parthenon. The British Museum claims it represents a Panathenaic celebration, but a book by Connelly refuted this and I tend to agree with her interpretation. I highly recommend reading her hypothesis since I don’t have the time or space to cover it all here. Needless to say, it is really interesting–mythology, sacrifices, and everything for entertainment.
Rosetta Stone
The last piece is one my daughter was itching to see, and that is the Rosetta Stone. This is the artefact used to finally translate hieroglyphics. My daughter aside from being a mythology fanatic is a huge reader of Rick Riordan and wanted to see the Rosetta stone since it exploded within the British Museum in one of his books.
Regardless of age or your inclinations, there is something at the British Museum. I’ll update this when I am able to tour more of this amazing place.
I know. I’ve gone from historic buildings and locales to a very modern studio tour, but hey, I love the Harry Potter books and the movies are a great deal of fun. I had wanted to go just to have a look around, but I really enjoyed myself! It was a great time!
I suppose the best advice I can give to someone considering the tour is to go the the Warner Brothers website and plan ahead. We booked in December for a date in February (although the week was a school holiday here) for our selection of days and times–Yes, you read that correctly, times. They claim the tour can take up to four hours. There have been people who have spent entire days in the park, but for the most part, I think planning 4-5 hours is an appropriate amount of time to plan when you schedule your day.
I opted to have our tickets posted so we would not have to wait in line to retrieve them prior to the tour. I will say that it was nice when you consider the line to actually get into the beginning of the tour!
Lobby
We drove into Leavesden from over an hour away, so we allowed plenty of time for traffic and roadworks (road construction) in our planning, arriving with an hour to spare. This did allow us to get the kids a small snack before we got in line for the tour. The most that I can do to warn you ahead of time is that the entire experience is madness. The place is busy and it follows the entire tour. It was very smart for them to make appointment times to spread out the people within the actual studios!
Entering the building itself, the lobby his huge and has a cafe and the gift shop to each side with the queue to enter the tour down the centre. You enter the queue approximately 10-15 minutes prior to your time and you wind your way to the doors leading in. All in all, the line moves pretty swiftly, so unless you are with a small child, it isn’t going to be like waiting in line for Ana and Elsa at Disneyworld!
There is some introduction, mainly two videos and then you begin the tour in the first section, the Great Hall. It’s an amazing jumble of set props, costumes, wigs, room sets in the first portion. Things you wouldn’t have thought were actually sets, but were likely green screens stand before you in vivid detail. Sometimes smaller than you would have imagined with explanations that camera angles helped bring the prop before you to life in the movie. (Sorry about the quality of some. They claimed the lighting would be good for the photos, but my camera found it a bit dark)
Scabbers
Costumes
Crookshanks
We attended while they had some of the actual animals there. We saw Scabbers, Crookshanks, Hedwig, Fang, as well as a few other owls in front of Eyelops Emporium in Diagon Alley.
The beginning section also has some interactive things for the kids. They can ride a broomstick in front of a green screen for you to purchase either a DVD or a photo, and there is a spell casting lesson that my youngest children really enjoyed. I will say that the first portion seems to take the most time of the tour.
Offices at the Ministry of Magic
The Hall in the Leaky Cauldron
When you exit the first studio, there is another cafe that serves butterbeer. Just in case people are wondering, we read reviews that claimed it was terrible. It’s not. It’s a lot like vanilla cream soda with a vanilla flavoured whipped cream on top. It is expensive though (£2.75 for a small cup – $4.35), so we purchased on cup and all 6 of us tasted it.
The second half of the tour begins out of doors with some really fun things. Privet Drive, the Potter’s house in Godric’s Hollow, the Hogwart’s bridge, and the Night bus. When you enter the second studio, you begin with masks, make-up, and animatronics.
Amazing artwork
Amazing artwork
The next portion is the artwork, which is amazing. I went to art school, but the planning and talent that goes into something like this is amazing! I even had fun looking at the graphic design work they had for the movie.
You visit Diagon Alley, and then the last bit (I’m sure it’s online somewhere, but it’s supposed to be a surprise.)–I was awed. It is incredible! (Oh, and we spent around 5 hours in the tour. Longer than most, but my children loved the entire thing.)
Anyway, the last bit releases you into the gift shop where everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, you could ever imagine Harry Potter is sold. My children had a field day since their grandmother was there to buy them each something they wanted.
Now, after all my gushing about the experience, I will say my main complaint was the cost. The tickets are expensive, especially when you consider there were six of us. Then there was the butterbeer, which was high, and then you get to the gift shop. Some of the items were priced as I would expect, but shockingly, it was was the candy that made me choke. My mother-in-law initially told the kids she would buy them each one item and then a candy. She back-pedalled quickly when she saw the prices.
A box of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavoured Beans was about £7 and a chocolate frog was £8.75! I know it is the novelty of it, but look at the cost of a chocolate bunny at Easter. Most do not cost almost £9. I loved the experience, but please be warned before you go. Fortunately, my children were old enough to understand, and my husband and I purchased them a box of Every Flavour Beans (they asked for them!) and my daughter wanted this weird lizard pop. My oldest bought her own chocolate frog.
That said, I would love to go again. I don’t know that we will because of the cost involved, but I’d still hope for a windfall! Perhaps in a few years. I understand they’re opening a new part of the studio, so we might get to see more!
Have you ever heard of Lavenham? If you’re not from the UK, you might not. I hadn’t until I was searching through the National Trust guidebook for places to take the family. Even then, a guildhall did not really interest me as I thought it might, so I continued to pass it over for other attractions until the Trust sent out an email chronicling places of interest from movies. So, what was so special about Lavenham? Well, the Guildhall is the basis for the Potter’s house in Godric’s Hollow.
Lavenham Guildhall
The Potter’s House set (Harry Potter Studio Tour)
Yes, my family and I are huge Harry Potter fans, and once I found that tidbit out the Lavenham Guildhall was on the to see list.
For those who like me were unfamiliar with Lavenham, it was one of the wealthiest medieval villages in England with the Guildhall of Corpus Christi at its’ hub. The Guildhall was once believe to be several homes that were combined to form a centre for the Wool guild and eventually a meeting place for the town; however, because the foundation of the guild was based on religion, it was disbanded with the dissolution of the monasteries under Henry VIII and was later used as a prison and a workhouse.
Today many of the half-timbered homes in Lavenham remain crooked and leaning in some places into the streets. We walked around the town a bit just for the feel and enjoying the decent winter weather on the day we visited. The town is truly picturesque with the gently rolling hills that surround the quaint town. If it had not been for the cars and the modern clothes everyone wore, one could almost feel as though they stepped back in time.
We initially missed a turn to the Guildhall when we entered town, noticing the amazing church just along Lavenham’s edge, which we walked to once we had taken our time through the Guildhall and walking down a few of the small roads surrounding the town centre.
St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church was once probably a wooden church before it was built in stone in the 14th century. Like many of the cathedrals in England, it has been added to over the years, but none of the additions have detracted from the grandeur of this site. I think it reflects well the prosperity this community once had as it is such a grand church in a small village.
St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church
Interior
The exterior and interior of this building are just lovely and I found I enjoyed touring it as much as the Guildhall. The exterior has a great deal of Gothic detail to the architecture and I always enjoy the tall ceilings in the chapels. The columns and the different ceilings are all so interesting. Some have similar elements, but they are each unique in their own way.
Lavenham may not appear a great destination at first glimpse, but it is definitely worth an afternoon to walk around. I think I would enjoy returning in the late spring or early summer when everything is in bloom and it would be pleasant to take tea out of doors at one of the tea shops in town.
To start, we have the lovely Zoe Burton for Ask the Author. She is offering a copy of her e-book I Promise to… to one lucky winner, so stop by the call for questions and ask something–get your name in the bucket for a chance at that e-book!
February is a busy month over at Austen Variations as well. If you haven’t dropped by to see our facelift, then please do! I love the new look, and we timed the unveiling with our Anniversary celebration. Yes, Austen Variations is one year old, and to mark the milestone, we’re having a month-long party on the blog. Have you ever wondered what our favourite Jane Austen characters were doing one year after their marriage? Well, you can read our ideas at Austen Variations. I am writing a scene with Mr. and Mrs. Collins, which was a lot of fun to write.
Are you a Persuasion fan? Then, don’t forget Persuasion 200 at Austen Variations as well. I am contributing two posts this month to that wonderful endeavour, and I hope you’ll stop by and read my scenes and leave me a comment! (There is a blog button on the side to take you directly to the page! Go ahead and give it a click when you’re done.)
The Expat has been a bit busy lately, but she has a lot of outings planned and will be returning soon. Some locations of interest include: The Harry Potter Studio Tour (I know. Not JA, but I love HP too!), the Tower of London tour, and the British Museum. I don’t know if I will get to blogging them all this month, but I’ll definitely blog them eventually!
Lastly, my new posts, Sources of Inspiration, will take you through the Antebellum houses of A Matter of Chance. If I have time, I will also give you a sneak peek of Darcy’s estate Sagamore in An Unwavering Trust. It’s an amazing property, and I wish it was open to the public. I’d just love to be like Elizabeth Bennet for a day and ramble the grounds!
Anyway, I hope you’ll join me for a great month of Jane Austen, travel, and inspiration!
