Minety and Bibury

Warning - this is a very floral post.

Had a lovely, happy day being thoroughly British. The village of Minety in Wiltshire was holding an open garden day to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.

We started off at The Old Vicarage, which had an impressive display of opium poppies.

 

 

 

Then we took a wander across the back field to the church, which you could see from the garden. A short commute for past pastors. 

A child called Lettice?

Oh, those cruel small pox.

Impressive Organ

 

There were so many beautiful houses and gardens to explore, and plenty of tea and cake. Everything was in bloom.

Rhubarb

Artichoke

  

Asparagus

 

 

 

 

Hops from which you make beer.

 

These smelled fabulous.

 

Little and Large

 

And the final house on our tour... This one apparently belongs to Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull fame!

 

 

 

 

We reckon this patch of lawn has been landscaped to look like a record player.

We rounded off the day in a tea shop back through Bibury, supping on a full cream tea with English Breakfast and scones with jam and clotted cream.

 

This is how I like my scones with cream tea (and I pronounce in scon, by the way, rather than scone). However, there's a very heated debate in England:

Cream tea has been served in the UK since the 11th century and arguments surrounding the order of spreading the scone’s traditional toppings have ruminated ever since.

While those in Devon typically spread the clotted cream first followed by jam, the Cornish tradition is to spread jam first followed by cream. - Indipendent

So, I subscribe to the Cornish method. But, just to be fair, I decided to put it to the test and try it both ways round. Even after due consideration, I still prefer jam first.

If you're from Devon, you eat the top side.
If you're from Cornwall, you eat the bottom.

The tea shop was called the William Morris, because the textile designer William Morris once described Bibury as 'the most beautiful village in England'. Probably due to Arlington Row, a row of extremely pretty little cottages that tourists line up to be photographed beside.

If this post still hasn't given you your fill of all thing bucolically British, check out my dad's blog.