A Yorkshire Birthday: Part 2

We wake to beautiful blue skies this morning - though yesterday’s chill remains despite the sun. The unavoidable early checkout that comes with self-catering accommodation sees us in Castle Howard by 10.00am, and we enjoy a leisurely long walk around the grounds. 

This is a first-time visit for us, though we’ve planned to visit several times before. There are swathes of daffodils wherever we look, and trees burst with buds or catkins in a festival of early spring. It’s delightful to be sharing this with relatively few others; there are few sounds but for birdsong and the manic squawks of pheasants. 

We’re just days from Castle Howards’s pre-Easter opening, and there are signs of preparation everywhere.  Whilst it’s quieter with the house still closed, it does mean that many photographic opportunities are also unavailable. Furniture removal vans sully a clear view of the frontage - G’s nosiness discovers a grand piano is amongst the new deliveries - and the Atlas Fountain has yet to be restarted so there are no reflective views on offer, a pity as the weather us sublime. 

We sit outside for morning coffee, enjoying the sheltered warmth of the Courtyard, before heading into York where we visit the Minster for the first time in over two decades. We’re impressed by the amount of restoration to both stonework and the medieval stained glass, though we’re less impressed by the entrance cost it must be said. Still, our ticket is valid for a year! I love the lightness of this ancient place, but my favourite area is the 13th century Chapter House. Its structure, floor and ceiling are sublime, and a journey round the stone carvings of the choir is an ‘entertainment’ in itself, so many faces depicting individual portraits, humorous caricatures and terrifying gargoyles often inflicting torment on their victims. 

Then it’s off to Betty’s Tearooms  for my final birthday treat; afternoon tea in the Belmont Room. It’s a truly wonderful - if extravagant - treat; delicious sandwiches, scones and cakes served with old-fashioned grace in the beautiful art deco Belmont Room modelled on the state rooms of the Queen Mary - and with a piano accompaniment.  Even the Ladies is a sublime example of interior design! 

It’s been a really lovely few days, and now it’s time to head for home…. 

My main’s the ceiling of the Minster’s Chapter House, with assorted extras of the day 

(Thanks for all the lovely birthday wishes. I’m afraid I’m still trying to catch up with journals, but I’ll get there - eventually!)