Dressing Up

My boys gave me an enthusiastic welcome when I got home today.  Rick gave me furry hugs and kisses, Paul made me a cup of tea.  I had been out for the day with two friends from the village, a trip to Doddington Hall just south of Lincoln.

Doddington Hall is an Elizabethan mansion, a privately owned and family managed enterprise.  Rain prevented us from exploring the walled gardens but the house was a delight, slightly theatrical but warm and inviting.  Beautiful paintings, furniture and tapestries but not too much in the way of historical artifacts.  There was a solitary glass cabinet containing a cavalier’s boots and costume dating back to the Battle of Gainsborough in the sixteenth century.  This felt more like a home (albeit a very posh one) and less like a museum.

We wandered freely through the rooms, I loved the teddy bears picnic in the drawing room.  On the top floor the unusual tented room reminded me of an opium den.  The tent was originally made in Cairo around 1900 and used outdoors.  It has recently been restored after years in storage.

Then through a narrow corridor hung with old coats.  The temperature suddenly dropped and we entered into a room full of snow covered Christmas trees -  we had arrived in Narnia.  It was an unexpected and charming scene.  For a moment we forgot we were mature women of a certain age and took it in turns to dress up as the White Witch of Narnia.

friend Jackie dressing up as the White Witch

We had a leisurely lunch in the Hall’s restaurant and then it was time to head home, only half past three but already nearly dark.  A lovely day out.