As you know by now, I am a little bit obsessed with castles and if there is an opportunity to go and see one, I will. We were lucky with Raglan Castle as it wasn't too far from where we were staying and they allowed dogs to enter. It also transpired that we were first ones there, which gave me carte blanche to take the best photos I could in the morning light, it was brilliant!
I found medieval Raglan Castell to have a poetic beauty and the moated tower at the front magnificent to climb and survey all of Monmouthshire around you. It was built by a welshman who defeated the Lancastrians in the War of the Roses and was handsomely rewarded. This was a castle built for entertainment with lots of rooms for people to stay; a great dining hall and huge kitchen to serve lots of people. A lot of the window detail was still in tact and you could feel like how it would have been to be there.
For lunch we decided on another cream tea, it was D-Day 80th anniversary and by chance I found a vintage tea room in the Forest of Dean, which meant we had a chance to drive through this magnificent forest to visit this place. The tearoom was called the Old Dairy Tearoom and it had the most wonderful array of cakes. This time I opted for a savoury cream tea, with cheddar scones, cream cheese and chilli jam. The scone was warm and crumbly the cream cheese cold and smooth with a chilli heat of the jam, it was delicious. The tearoom was very homely, they were playing wartime music. They were super dog friendly too by bringing a cut up sausage for the dog to eat.
The tearoom was in Harts Barn which houses other artisan shops for craft makers and a cookery school, which as luck would have it was filming that day and we caught a glimpse of Marcus Waring, if only I had the balls to ask for a picture or buy a signed book!.
After all those treats we wanted to go for a little walk really so Digby could stretch his legs. Not too far away was May Hill in Longhope so we decided to go there to walk up to the trig point there. The circular mound of May Hill is recognised by the copse of trees at the top with benches which provide shade and the most fantastic 360 degree views spanning to the River Severn, The Cotswolds, The Malverns, The Forest of Dean and the Black Mountains.
As it was our last night I had booked a special meal at a restaurant I saw on TV, when visited by Julia Bradbury. The Black Bear Inn in Usk. There is a delightful seasonal menu, and at this point I had some wonderful hogget and goats curd, beans and wild garlic crostini to start. I finished with a very nice cheeseboard, then not long after driving home I fell into a wonderful slumber.
Next morning we wake to wagons roll home. I had one last surprise up my sleeve for my mum. We had to stop for lunch on the way home, so Diddly Squat Farm seemed like a good distance and well, we are both huge fans of Clarkson's Farm.
I thought also the week after easter it would be quiet, but oh no, it was heaving and camera crews were filming. However, we had committed and were prepared to wait in the queue. To be fair it was around 45 minutes, so not too bad. Sadly we didn't see the big man, or the other great men or lady herself, but we did get to buy some produce from the shop then head to the barn out the back for some Hawkstone Lager and the best beef burger I have ever had. Fact.
It was such a vibing place I could have stayed here all afternoon as music was playing, however we had to go home. I did note however there was a campsite right next door, so that has firmly been added to the list.
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