From Down Under to South Downs
G’day! It’s the Aussie intern here, I’ve been doing some work with the South Downs National Park and Our Land which involved going on a little expedition to see the sights.
I took over 200 photos along the way, so here’s a run down of my day in pictures! I’ve taken over the Enjoy the South Downs blog today to report on my experiences. To avoid confusion, I’ll do my best to avoid using cliche Australian colloquialisms!
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
Since it was (surprisingly) a lovely day down south, I thought I might walk from Berwick to the church and then carry on to Alfriston. What I forgot was that for some strange reason, even though the UK uses the metric system, they still insist on using miles instead of kilometres. So what I thought would be a brisk four kilometre walk turned into being a six and a half kilometre slog along the highway and walking trails.
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
The first stop on my adventure was the Grade I listed Berwick Church, complete with atmospheric graveyard. The whole place screams history with the church and additions dating from the 12th century onwards. It’s not everyday that a girl in her early 20’s strolls around the church grounds with camera in hand, and on heading to the back of the church I was accosted by one of the local enforcers! …
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
I jest; a lovely lady and her dog came around the side of the building and immediately struck up a conversation. I explained that I was there purely to see the church and the artwork I had heard it held. She immediately took me inside to look at this mural. The murals inside the church are dated from the 20th century, with this particular piece depicting the faces of local villagers during the Second World War. Exciting!
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
After a long walk to Alfriston from Berwick Church, I was absolutely ravenous. I stopped in at The George Inn for a pub meal and as much water as I could possibly consume. I tucked into an entrée of satay chicken skewers, followed by braised shoulder of beef with spring onion mash, butter spinach and mushroom jus. My mouth is watering at the memories.
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
The pub decor was quite rustic with fire places, firewood, blacksmithing tools and a large array of flowers. They also had a nice selection of beers on tap! Cheers mate!
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
Next on the agenda was The Clergy House. I walked around for a good 25 minutes near the St Andrews Church only to realise I had been looking at it nearly the entire time. This rare 14th century Wealden House was the first building to be acquired by The National Trust in 1896.
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
The house gardens are exquisite, complete with orchard, vegetable and rose garden. This was my favourite part of the garden as it looks like the centre of a hedge maze and feels like you’re about to get lost in a secret garden. After I sat and read a book on a park bench for an hour I ventured back to Berwick… by taxi this time!
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
Since it was only mid afternoon I decided to stop in Lewes on my way back to London to see the Anne of Cleves House Museum and Lewes Castle. This medieval house is straight of the era of King Henry the VIII with minimal restorations needed over the years. The history of this place has literally seeped into its foundations and I spent a lot of time trying to uncover it’s secrets.
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
You can explore how the Tudors and Elizabethans lived, worked and even relaxed at home. I could have spent all day here reading the material relating to the house and the era but alas I had one more stop to make!
© Kelsey McDonald 2014
Now Lewes Castle was the place that I was most excited to see, with a great interest in medieval folklore and the history of kings, queens, knights and vikings across the UK and Europe. Unfortunately, with my country being so young in relation to colonisation, opportunities to come across castles and medieval structures is non-existent within our borders. I basically ran up the steps to reach the tallest tower, resisted the urge to quote a number of medieval movies and gazed down on the peasants below.
The South Downs National park truly is a wonder to behold, it is so rich in history that is so easily accessible that it should be explored by everyone (I took the train out from London and covered a lot of ground in this fun day trip).
If you’re after a fun, interesting and educational day out with friends, family or a lone trek, the Our Land – South Downs website has activities to suit all of your needs!