LONDON DAY 13

Today we went to Haddon Hall and Chatsworth. I have been excited to see this for the longest time. Our train arrived in Chesterfield early and from there we headed to Haddon Hall. One of the reasons why I was so excited to see this place was this is where scenes from The Princess Bride and Pride and Prejudice were filmed and where the movie Jane Eyre was filmed.

The first stop on our tour was the chapel. The very first thing that you notice is the horrible smell. I don’t even know how to explain it but it was gross. Our tour guide explained that it was from bats that live in the rafters of the chapel, but don’t worry we would see any of them because they only come out at night and when they are ready to die… We were all just like “ uh….”

After the chapel our tour guide took us into the house. It was really cold and drafty but it was really fun to see at the same time. Everything was hand built and while the doors looked like they were falling off their hinges everything was still perfectly fine. The dining room / main room was very familiar because this is the scene in pride and prejudice where Elizabeth and her aunt and uncle are staying at the Lambton Inn. It was so cold in there and our tour guide told us that back in the medieval times this is the room where everybody ate and then slept. I can't imagine having to sleep in conditions like that.

We moved on to the “private” portion of the house where the family would have lived. Everything was so dark and gloomy. While it was fun to visit I wouldn’t want to live in a place like this. My favorite room in the family area was the long hall because it was the lightest room in the house and the ceiling was beautiful and still original. Our tour guide told us that in the wintertime this as probably the coldest part of the house because of all the windows and there was only one small fireplace set in the middle.

Haddon Hall’s gardens were pretty as well. While they were smaller than all the other gardens we had seen by far… they were cozy and charming at the same time.

After we left Haddon Hall we left for Chatsworth. This has to be on of the highlights of my trip. This house is where some of my favorite movies were filmed. The exterior and some of the interior are in Pride and Prejudice, and The Duchess was filmed here as well which is only fitting because Chatsworth is owned by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire and at one time “belonged to” Lady Georgiana Spencer who the movie the Duchess is about. First we started in the gardens, which were absolutely beautiful. We didn’t have time to see all of the gardens but we went to the Maze, the Coal tunnel, the viewpoint, sensory gardens and it was all so beautiful I definitely wouldn’t mind being the duchess of Devonshire.

After the gardens we ate lunch. I had roast Chicken which was delicious. There was so much food that I didn’t know if I could finish it all, but the girls helped me.

Last went into the house. I think that this was the most beautiful house that we have visited. The Ceilings were painted with stories and the walls were decorated with beautiful patterns, marbled fireplaces, hardwood floors… the house was beautiful. Don’t worry… we also stopped at the gift shop.

We got back to London around 7:30 so a group of us decided we wanted to go to Abbey Road to take Beatles pictures. Its been a long day and tomorrow is going to be so fun because tomorrow is our second set of free days and a group of us are going to the land of the Scots or more commonly known as SCOTLAND!!!