Castle Howard

Today we went to a place called "Castle Howard", owned by the Earl's of Carlisle. It is not a fortified structure, but is a post civil war country house built on the site of a former castle, so hence retains the name "castle". Put simply, this place is as good as it gets. The architecture, art, marble busts, dome, murals, chapel, gardens etc... It honestly makes Kensington Palace look like housing commission. The kids didn't want to go, but I'm sure they'd have to admit it was good. After this we went to a chocolate museum. The boys wanted to go and play snooker again but Bec had already paid in advance. It was actually pretty well done. The kids paid attention to all the historical stuff about the quakers of York starting the chocolate business, and at the end of each section there was always some sort of historically relevant edible treat. My final comment about Yorkshire would be an observation on its local patriotism. In every other part of England you wouldn't know which county you're in. Not here! If you see an ambulance for instance, it's a "Yorkshire Ambulance", and the flag of the white rose is as common as the union jack. I hadn't expected such a difference, but it's a great part of England. We've really enjoyed it.