Chatsworth House

Chatsworth House grounds

Today Lindsay and I traveled by bus from Sheffield (where we are staying) to Chatsworth House, which is a leisurely hour-long ride through the gorgeous English countryside and an adorable town called Bakewell. Bakewell looks like what you would picture in your head as an "English town" for a movie. True to its name, Bakewell had an old-timey shop selling artisan bread loaves that made me want to stop and taste. Carbs are my weakness! But I stuck to the plan and we continued on to Chatsworth House.

The staircase featured in the P&P movie

Chatsworth is a huge house with even bigger gardens. I believe the term "house" is a little bit of an understatement for a building like this. This house is rumored to be the inspiration for Jane Austen's Pemberley, and it was used as Pemberley in the 2005 Pride & Prejudice film starring Keira Knightley.

Mural above the grand staircase

Wood-paneled wall carvings

We started exploring the inside of the house, where each room seemed to be more beautiful than the one before it. Almost every ceiling was an exquisite mural with a Roman theme, usually gods or angels surrounded by more gods and cherubs. The rooms were all impressive, starting with the grand staircase in the main room and continuing through to the elaborately carved wood-paneled room with busts made into the walls. This room also contained a letter composed by Elizabeth I, which was an unexpected surprise. The hallways are lined with statues, paintings, and artifacts of all types including large rocks, urns, and Egyptian carvings.

Veiled Vestal Virgin

In one of the long galleries, there are several marble statues that are so life-like you almost believe that they will move if you stare at them long enough. The most impressive statue was a woman wearing a veil over her face that manages to look sheer because you can see her features "through" it. The craftsmanship was so amazing that I didn't believe at first that this wasn't just a statue with a cloth draped over it. The statue is formally called the Veiled Vestal Virgin and was carved by Raphaelle Monti in the mid 1800s. This statue, the ceilings, the house's front staircase, and the gallery were all briefly featured in the P&P movie.

The formal dining room

Part of the library

The library that the statue is housed in would make any reader insanely jealous. It was converted from a long gallery originally used to showcase paintings, then spills into the next room and the next smaller room connecting it to the formal dining room. And all of the splendor inside is magnified by the view on the outside. The house overlooks rolling hills and fields with a river running through for the many sheep roaming around to drink from. There are several ponds and fountains on the property with the most impressive ones being located near the house. There is one behind the house called the Cascade, which is located on a hillside and made up of a series of waterfalls to follow the hill's descent. The other impressive one is a huge, geyser-style fountain on the side of the house with a large reflecting pool. This is so lovely that I would have had the roads redone so that this side of the house would become the front. It's what I would want people to see when they drove up.

The Cascade

Stowe House

Stowe House

Today after another journey via motor coach our class arrived at Stowe House in Buckinghamshire. Stowe is a large and beautiful eighteenth-century house and garden that has been used as a school since the early twentieth century. The history of the house and its library was fascinating and read much like a BBC drama! Carol Miller, the librarian at Stowe House, told us the tale of the Temple-Grenvilles and their money problems which led to the house's colorful history. The contents of the house were sold off three times to pay off debt, and then when the last family member perished the house was sold (empty) to the organization that turned it into a school. The school started in 1923 with 99 boys and has grown to its current size of 780 students of both genders.

Stowe library

The library itself has a varied history -- it started as a ballroom, was divided into two rooms, and then was made into one large room once again. The third incarnation in 1797 is when it became a library. Non-fiction and reference books are housed here, and fiction is in another adjacent room. The £86,000 ceiling was added later, and shines with 23 1/2 karat gold leaf. The ceiling is gorgeous and rivals the ceilings in many of the palaces in and around London. Because the books were all sold off, old books were donated in the 1920s to serve as shelf fillers. Some of these books are still on the shelves today.

Gothic Temple

Me and Liz

While the house is impressive, the grounds are even more so. There are 40 monuments and temples in the gardens, which are now under the protection of the National Trust. There are several classically-inspired structures throughout the grounds, each with its own theme and style. We weren't able to explore all of them during our time on the grounds, but one of my favorite temples was the Gothic Temple. I'm a sucker for Gothic architecture in general, but I loved how the building felt remote even though it is a part of the larger network of Stowe. You can rent the Gothic Temple for a vacation, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't tempted to go back! There was also a monument to British heroes like William Shakespeare, John Locke, and Sir Isaac Newton, but I was most excited about getting to take my picture with the bust of Queen Elizabeth I.

Ireland Day 6: Cliffs of Moher

Cahergal Farmhouse B&B

The farmhouse was a lot nicer than we thought it would be. We had to wake up early (around 5am) to make it to the airport, so we missed the full breakfast experience. The family who runs the B&B were nice, and the animals roaming their land were fun to watch.

The Cliffs of Moher were awesome, but I didn't see any of the puffins. =( I bought a Claddagh ring in the gift shop, so I will always be able to remember the day. You feel so small when standing on such large cliffs that have stood for hundreds of years.

Ireland Day 5: Castles and Ring of Kerry

Blarney Castle

Well, I kissed the stone above the Blarney Stone anyways. We hiked up the narrow, winding staircase and it was scary. By the time I was lowered to kiss the stone I felt like I was as near to death as I wanted to be that day. You have to be held over an open space and bend over backwards to kiss it and I couldn't get down low enough. It was too scary to go farther.

Lakes of Killarney

Then we went down the winding roads of the Ring of Kerry, which includes the Lakes of Killarney and an old fort from around 400 AD. The old lane leading to the fort was only big enough for one tiny European car, but it was a 2-way street. That definitely made the journey more interesting!

Staigue Fort

Ballyseede Castle Hotel

Then we drove into Tralee, which is the town closest to the Ballyseede Castle Hotel. The castle is on 30 acres of land and is very beautiful. They have a big Irish wolfhound that's like the hotel mascot, and it's the biggest dog I've ever seen. Every time I saw it, he was lying down. I guess I would be lazy too if I had to haul all that bulk around!








Now we're on the road again to the Cliffs of Moher in Shannon. After that we go to the farmhouse B&B in a town called Newmarket-on-Fergus.

(11:15am Ireland time)

Dublin Day 3: Kilmainham Gaol & Croke Park

U2

Kilmainham

The Script

Yesterday we went to the jail (Kilmainham Gaol) and the U2 concert at Croke Park. The Script and Bell X1 opened for U2, so the concert took up a good chunk of the day (and night). The energy of the crowd was amazing, even though some of us were ready to punch someone for not respecting our personal space. Standing for 7 hours with no refreshment or bathroom kinda sucked though.


Now we're lost in the Irish countryside looking for Cork. We're in a little town called Maynooth, which is cute and looks like the typical Irish town from a movie. We didn't know the scenic route would be quite this scenic!

(11:16am Dublin time)