It has seemed to me lately that my walking friends have caught a bug. No, not Covid, but the “travel bug”. Many are, or have been, travelling overseas this year. Molly is at present away for a month in Scotland and England, Patrick has been to Belgium twice this year, Vivek is in India and BK has just returned from there. In addition, Brian has been to Sri Lanka twice, Steve has made trips to Vietnam, Anna and Joy went to Ireland and Probus is planning for a group to visit Tonga next year.
It is not surprising therefore that the level of discussion about travel has been higher than usual during our morning walks. Molly’s family visit to Scotland and England has come up in our conversations a number of times, given how special it is in that he has not been back to his ancestral roots for many years. He and Dawn, together with other family members, have been spending time in some of the same parts of Scotland and England which Sue and I visited 9 years ago and of which we have very fond memories.
In 2015 Sue and I did a bus trip with Albatross Tours, during which we had 3-night stays in each of Bath, Ripon and Stratford-Upon-Avon, 2 in the Lake District and in Edinburgh, and 1 night in Leeds Castle. I am tempted to tell you more about what we experienced in some of these places, but it would make this post far too long, so I’ll restrict myself to writing only about our adventure in Leeds Castle.
If you watch the “Antiques Roadshow”, as Sue and I often do, you may have come across some episodes filmed in the grounds of Leeds Castle, which is described by the tour company in its brochure as follows:
“Set romantically on an island surrounded by a broad moat, the Castle, Gatehouse and Maidens tower comprise one of the world’s greatest sites. Tonight the entire castle becomes ours to enjoy! We have included a private tour through the grand staterooms, halls, library, chapel and the 13th century section of the castle. Later, in the Library, we will enjoy a pre-dinner drink before our final farewell dinner in the Henry VIII Banqueting Hall”.
The brochure makes it sound “grand”, and, as far as we were concerned, that was exactly what it was! Sue and I were certainly impressed. Soon after our bus had arrived, we were taken on a guided tour of the castle and given an insight into its incredible history.
Records show that there was a castle in this location in the year 857, and that it had been rebuilt in stone as a Norman stronghold in 1119. Thereafter, it has been replaced and added to a number of times over a period of more than nine hundred years. Henry VIII made improvements to it in 1519 for his first wife, Eleanor of Castille, and it was also, for a time, the home of his second wife, Anne Boleyn. I wish I had read the Wolf Hall trilogy (by Hilary Mantel) earlier than I did, because it would have helped me even more to appreciate the history of Leeds Castle and the dramas which played out there at the time of Henry VIII.
Over the ages so much has happened at this castle. I found it interesting to read, for example, that during World War II it was used as a hospital, to help injured airmen recover from their wounds. Royal guests, aristocrats, politicians, TV personalities and famous actors have also stayed in Leeds Castle and the publicity material mentioned that the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Winston Churchill and even Charlie Chaplin are included in the long guest list. Many films have been staged there as well. It truly was a great setting for our final night of the tour!
What made it even more extraordinary for us was that Sue and I were allocated what was arguably the very best “State Bedroom” in the castle. We had no early knowledge of this allocation, and I think it was just pure luck that we were given this luxurious room, with its traditional four poster bed and antique furniture. To top it off there was a huge marble bathroom, which we were told had been extended to accommodate Luciano Pavarotti during an earlier visit. Yes, the room we were given turned out to be the room where the Italian operatic tenor, Luciano Pavarotti, one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time, had also slept.
Opera lovers would know that Pavarotti, together with Placido Domingo and José Carreras (“the 3 tenors”), recorded what was said to be the best-selling classical album of all time. When Pavarotti stayed at Leeds Castle he also gave a concert there, singing arias from three famous Verdi operas. Some of my older readers here in Sandgate may also have seen and heard him perform, because Pavarotti visited Brisbane in 1965, when he was touring Australia, together with Dame Joan Sutherland. So, sleeping in the same bedroom as Pavarotti was unexpected and something we’ll remember forever.
I should also mention our final farewell dinner, which took place in the Henry VIII Banqueting Hall. As the brochure stated we were looked after by “the Butler”, who acted as “the major-domo to a team of white-gloved staff”. It was a surprise to Sue and me that our tour group was given such “Royal” treatment on this bus trip and I have to confess that we loved every minute of it. However, as is sometimes the case, unfortunately not everyone on the bus was equally satisfied.
Two of our fellow travellers were apparently not happy that they had missed out on being allocated Pavarotti’s room. Sue and I felt embarrassed and uncomfortable, but we knew nothing about this room and its connection before we were shown into it and we had certainly not requested it.
However, this uncomfortable situation did not dampen our spirits. In fact they were lifted even higher when we noticed the following quote from Pavarotti on our paper napkins in “Zizzi Ristorante”, where the two of us had a casual dinner before travelling back to Australia.
Pavarotti said it all!
O.P.
P.S. This is the final post for 2024. Next year we’ll start again, on Sunday, 5 January, and return to Sandgate and our dolphins in Moreton Bay.