The Midlands

View across Brockhampton Estate

After some time in the bigger cities we found that we all could do with a bit of country air, and looked forwards to finding some winderness and smaller towns to enjoy.

Stratford On Avon was our first stop after Oxford, and we liked the picturesque town (though of course this was rather touristy) but we enjoyed trying to imagine Shakespeare starting out his days in that same place and then retiring there next to the old church. We visited an interactive museum inside a 16th century house where we tried on clothes and lay on a bed like the Tudors would have had, and peered into rooms which the local quack doctor was trying to dole out medicine, and smelled the smells of the pub and the plague of those times.

The following day we needed to get some laundry done, and found a laundrette in a sweet little town called Bromyard - just my kind of village - which was a narrow, bunting clad street crammed with shops leaning onto the street, the buildings all from a range of centuries. The shops resembled something out of the ‘Mr. Men’ books, with a Butchery, Bakery, Funeral Parlor, Florist, Green Grocer, Antique shops and more dotted along the main street. I noticed everyone being so friendly, as it seemed everyone knew each other - greeting each person with “Allo therre”, and “Alrigh therre?’ and to someones dog “Allo Dexter!”

That evening we parked up on the highway next to a long stone wall which we discovered in the morning belonged to a huge old estate. On our map it told us it was a walking track, so we made our way through the woods and up the hills among sheep and established feature trees of oak, ash and spruce to the manor, which was guarded by a very friendly welcoming party, who told us that actually the grounds belong to the National Trust and you have to pay to enter the grounds. But they were so lovely about us not knowing and even rang the man in charge down at the manor and allowed us to enter for free. They also told us about how you can get, for a annual fee, a National Trust membership and if we apply via New Zealand (with it being part of the commonwealth) it will be cheaper for us and will also mean we can visit National Trust places in all Commonwealth countries! So if you’re ever travelling around those countries it is definitely a good way to see the castles, manors, special gardens, forests and historical places for a one-off price. We are so excited to be able to use it!

Brockhampton Manor

The ruin of the chapel that was behind the house.

The Old Manor at Brockhampton. This building dates from the 1400's.

So we walked through the woods and harvested wheat paddocks to get to the very old original Brockhampton Manor which had been occupied since the 1100’s by the Normans, though the house dated from 1400’s. The National Trust had done a wonderful job of creating each room in the manor to resemble how it would have looked from every era of it’s existence, which gave us a good idea of the people and families who inhabited the house.

Miniature Cyclamen growing in the grass at Brockhampton

The next few days we made our way North, where we saw many beautiful little towns, one - Ludlow, sported the title “the most beautiful town of the Midlands” and we loved walking around the little town and through the market where we ‘ooed and ahhed’ over gorgeous things like jugs, teapots and cups covered with William Morris patterns and sterling silver jewelry and antiques. I think the girls and I could have easily filled an entire shipping container with all the beautiful things we’ve seen on our trip!

The William Morris jugs at Ludlow

Another place in the Midlands we visited was a moor called Long Mynd. It was a cold and dreary day and Josh had a hard time of getting us all out of the camper’s warmth, but we all managed to pile out and were happy once we had - joining the surprisingly many other people all rugged up (at least we were!) for a day up on the Moor. When we mentioned our surprise at seeing so many people and cars at the remote location, a volunteer said that a day visiting the Moors for many people was equivalent to a day at the seaside.

Heading up the Long Mynd

And fair enough too, as it was really very beautiful, although not quite bikini weather. We traipsed up a rocky valley and there at the top the hills flattened out and it was a vast expanse of heather, bracken and bilberry (a small shrub like a blueberry) which was in fruit and we all enjoyed a good feast.

It was cold and blustery, but it felt wonderfully authentic for a walk on the moors. We came across plenty of sheep and best of all -wild looking ponies with their foals. They apparently live there all year round with only a little interaction from humans who check their teeth and feet twice a year. The place is made even more special because it was once an ancient highway for travelers back in prehistoric days and there were grave-sites marking the place where they buried important people. It is believed that the graves are 4000 years old!

Josh’s cousins and Uncle live in Shropshire, and so in the weekend we visited with them. They showed us around their neck of the woods - Wellington, Telford, Shrewsbury and Ironbridge (home of the industrial revolution) and showed us a great time in the shops, fed us well and kindly let us all have showers and do our big piles of washing! Thank you lovely family! It was fabulous to get to know you better and spend a great weekend with you.

The bookshop in Ironbridge

Walking in the park in Shrewsbury with the family.