Days of sunshine and roses...

Well, the sun hardly shone at all and the day ended with rain but we had an amazing day. We headed out to Anglesey Abbey after a leisurely breakfast at home. Anglesy abbey is in Lode a tiny village outside Cambridge. When we arrived there were loads of people pouring in. I felt a little depressed, not wanting to be amidst lots of people, as I am vulnerable to infections. We decided to have a cup of coffee and see if the queues abated. One delicious coffee later, there were no queues.

We strolled over to the House, I won't bore you with a detailed description, I will applaud the NT for the 'dressing' of properties to the period in which they were last in use. The extra rooms opened at Anglesey include many bathrooms and bedrooms. In one bathroom there were a selection of 1930's hats to try on in front of a vast mirror - great fun.
After leaving the house we walked over to Lode Mill. This watermill was running when we arrived. Mr G used to be a miller of flour so really enjoys exploring mill of all sorts. The ladders to the grinding floor were beyond me. I waited on the ground floor and chatted to the gentlemen in charge of milling. When they realised Mr G and I were VERY interested in the mill, one of the gentlemen took us round to see the waterwheel. This was huge and we were privileged to get a sneak peek!
Mr G declared he wanted to see the dew pond which is on the far side of the estate. As we walked round the house we happened upon the rose garden. Roses are quite my favourite flowers and all those we saw were beautifully fragranced. I spent several minutes walking round the beds sniffing and cooing with delight.

It was a very long walk to the dew pond and most disappointingly it was bone dry. The walk back to the car was hard work and made me realise that two weeks post chemo means limited stamina.
We decided to pop in on a good friend at his work to wish him 'Happy Birthday' and share some cakes. He was pleased and we were also pleased to do something to thank someone who has been a great support over the last months. While on our way from Lode to Isleham, we travelled roads that I reckoned I hadn't used in nearly 30 years. Some parts were barely recognisable, others completely unchanged.
Ely was our next destination. We spent a happy hour wandering round a large antiques shop. After we left the shop we definitely needed refreshment and happened upon Peacocks Tearoom close by. This was a very happy discovery as we had the best afternoon tea ever! Loads of teas to choose from and amazing sandwiches and cakes. We are going back after my next Oncology appointment to celebrate with their Pink Perfection set tea. Look through the linky above!
This day was the first of what we hope will be many more. A bit of culture, a bit of shopping and some amazing food and drink... and above all, fun!