Today we went on a long trek from Norwich to Sandringham, one of the Queen’s country retreats. It took us a bit over 2 hours, on two trains and a bus! It was a very scenic trip, and well worth it. The house at Sandringham was built in 1870 by the Prince and Princess of Wales (later King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra) and has been passed down as a private home through four generations of British monarchs. The public are allowed to visit the main ground floor rooms and the décor and contents, collected by many members of the Royal family remain very much as they were in Edwardian times. The gardens are absolutely wonderful and spread over 60 acres. I wonder how many gardeners are employed to take care of it all? There is a beautiful church which was built in medieval times, and the Royal family worship there when they are at Sandringham. It is highly decorated and contains a magnificent silver altar and pulpit and a fine 16th century processional cross and a number of memorials to the Royal family. There is a museum which houses vintage Royal vehicles, including the first car owned by a member of the British monarchy, a 1900 Daimler Phaeton, and a host of other displays.
We caught the bus and trains back to Norwich, stopping off at Ely on the way. We walked up to the Ely Cathedral. It is an absolutely magnificent building which started life as a monastery in 673 and evolved over several centuries, including some amazing columns built in the Norman period (1081 to 1189). There are vast areas of brilliant stained glass windows and the ceiling of the nave was painted in Victorian times and shows the ancestry of Jesus from Adam, and ends with him enthroned in glory. You can see Ely cathedral for miles, as the terrain is so flat in this area.
