Newbury, England
On a very rainy day we went out to Highclere Castle. It is only open a few days a month and it was all sold out for 2016. I called the day before to see if we could at least get into the gardens and the lady said we could and it was likely we might be able to get into the castle. So, off we went! Once there, we were able to get tickets for the garden and the castle! Because of the rain there weren’t a lot of people outside, they were all inside, yes, it was wall to wall people. It was interesting going thru, things were different than I expected. For example; the entryway was much smaller than I thought it would be and the stairway is around the corner from the front door, rather than being in a large entryway facing the front door, as I had imagined. After our walking tour Craig & Chelsea went and waited in the car while I went through the gardens in the rain. I wore my trusty poncho, which saved me! The rain got worse as I walked around and when I got back towards the front of the castle I took this photo from under a tree which was protecting me from the rain. At one point I could hear something and I thought there must be a waterfall or fountain on the other side of some near by bushes and then all of a sudden the sound intensified and I heard it come, an even heavier rain storm came into the current rain storm. The rain came down so hard that it came thru the huge tree I was standing under so at that point, with wet shoes, (feet) I decided it was quitting time! It rained all the way back, that was the hardest rain storm I have ever seen! As a Downton Abbey fan, it was worth it, I can now say I have been to Downton Abbey!!
#ENNB1b-0516
