Robert's Stop-over in England

[Hamish]

On Wednesday morning we were joined for the day by my good pal, Jim and soon after his arrival, the garden photo-shoot commenced:


Inevitably, an impromptu attempt at a 'Double Hamish' was exercised - not quite perfect but just look at the positioning of the legs - sheer poetry in motion!


Of course, no visit to Ham Palace is complete without a Pergola Pose, and Robert duly obliged:


Then it was off to Arundel, 7 miles away for lunch and a castle.....

[Hamish]

Arundel Castle is a magnificent building, parts of it dating back almost 1,000 years, and is the ancestral home of The Duke and Duchess of Norfolk (he is The Earl Marshal of England and is responsible for organising all the great State occasions here, such as The Coronations, The State Opening of Parliament, Royal Weddings and Funerals, etc., etc.) It dominates the town of Arundel, much as Windsor Castle dominates Windsor town. In fact, since filming would not be possible at Windsor, Arundel is frequently used as a 'stand-in' for Windsor and has featured in films such as: 'Mrs. Brown' and 'The Madness of King George'. There was no filming taking place on Wednesday, but plenty of photos were taken (alas, none inside the main part of the Castle as photography is not permitted). Here are a few:

A group shot on the town bridge with the Castle behind:


The approach to the Castle:


In the background, The Gatehouse:


In The Lady-in-Waiting's room, Robert could not resist the temptation to seek advice:


The start of the steep climb up into the oldest part of the Castle, The Keep, building of which started in 1068. Once inside this building, the trecherous and dark stone spiral staircases are no more than 24" wide!:


The centre of the circular Keep is open to the sky and the sloping roof in the right foreground covers the entrance steps down to the dungeon:


Finally, we reach the crenelated battlements at the top of The Keep from where there are magnificent views for miles across the rolling Sussex countryside, out to the sea and down to the River Arun:


After 'doing' the Castle, we returned to Ham Palace in Storrington for afternoon tea. Robert was given Part II of the tour of the Kilt Kollection whilst Jim and Henk extracted the photos from three digital camers and burned them onto CDs. The day pretty much concluded with a Fish 'n Chip supper from the Storrington chippie.

Early on Thurday morning I took our honoured guests back to Gatwick Airport for their onward journey to Amsterdam and Holland where, by now, Robin's new R-Kilt will be safely in his hands (or around his waist!)

PS: A visit to Arundel Castle is on the agenda for the Storrington Gathering in June 2008.

[ccga3359]

Thanks for the pictures Ham, I remember seeing Arundel castle from the train oing to and from Dartmouth. I certainly was prominant in the flat Sussex countryside. Never had the pleasure to visit, until now that is. Thanks for taking such good care of SOKS own Robert & Dad.

[Hamish]

.......................................... I certainly was prominant in the flat Sussex countryside. .........................

So, those rumours were true then!!

[ccga3359]

So, those rumours were true then!!

And now I stick out like a sore thumb in .

I missed "t"!!!

Please read as ' "It" (Arundel castle) certainly was prominant in the flat Sussex countryside.'

Thank you Ham for showing that I'm such an idiot. I am somewhat tired of doing that job all by myself.