We started off by going to a place called Alfriston, to see of all things, the Alfriston Clergy House, who knew? It is a small house with a thatched roof, situated beside the church in a very picturesque setting. We had a wonderful chat with one of the stewards, an older Dutch lady who seemed fascinated that we were Canadians. She called over the temporary gardener, who had done a canoe trip in Algonquin park in Ontario, to chat with us as well. The house was really small. I took some pictures showing how Jan just barely fit through the doors.
We then went into Brighton, but found that the city public parking area wouldn't allow us to park for free with Jan's handicapped sign. (other places clearly say those with a displayed sign don't have to pay. When we didn't have enough change for the machine, I saw a parking cop coming by. I asked if he had change and he said no, but since we had a handicapped sign, we should be ok without paying. He wanted to verify with his dispatcher, who advised him, "we would have to check with the council and get permission" (that's like the regional district in Canada). We decided this was too much trouble, as all we wanted to do was find a pub to eat lunch, not settle in town.
We went on to our next stop, and found a really nice hotel/restaurant/pub somewhere along the way in Lansing. It was a little expensive,, and we couldn't figure out exactly what we were eating, but it was reasonably good. We sat beside an older couple (well a little older than us really) who were from the area, and had a great chat with them, talking about our trip, and about Canada. The restaurant was directly below the Lansing college campus.
Following lunch, we carried on to the town of Arundel, where interestingly, Arundel castle is located. The Dukes of Norfolk and their ancestors for over 900 years reside here. The Duke of Norfolk is the premier or highest ranking Duke in England. The castle was impressive, especially the keep where I went on my own as Jan wasn't able to navigate the narrow, steep staircases. A couple were so narrow that I could barely fit through myself (I know I'm a little overweight right now, but still....). There were some great views from the top of the keep. Part of the castle is closed off to the public as the current duke and his family lives there.
It was getting quite late and we had to get on to our next hotel. Our trusty blonde was merrily giving me directions, when my "gas low" warning light came on. I thought I had plenty to get to the hotel, where I knew there would be a gas station, however, now I'm panicking, as we are in the middle of nowhere, and gas stations in England are few and far between. Finally we got the brainstorm to ask blondie to search for the nearest gas station, and happily I was able to fill up and get to the hotel without further problems.
I love driving on the roads....!!! Have I said that before? More tomorrow....
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