Sunday was a very mixed day weather-wise. It started off nice and sunny without being hot, just perfect for a stroll across the artisan market held on Ripon‘s market square that day. The three of us (my sister-in-law, my sister and myself) enjoyed browsing the stalls, and I even found a pair of delicate silver earrings in the shape of tiny foxes to take home.
The wind was picking up quite a bit, and by the time we arrived in Ripley (a short journey by car from Ripon), grey clouds had begun to gather.
We were hungry and enjoyed a late lunch at the Ripley castle tea rooms/restaurant, and almost as soon as we finished, it started to rain; a drizzle at first, but developing into proper rain soon.
We decided against walking in the grounds around Ripley castle, as two of us were wearing sandals, and it is not much fun in the rain, even if the grounds are really beautiful in all weather. We‘ve been several times before, and no doubt will be back again in the future.
The church in Ripley is always worth a visit, and so we did that before making our way back to the car.
We had tea and millionaire‘s shortbread (bought at the Ripley village store, and utterly delicious!) with my sister-in-law and her husband before she took us back to our cottage.
By then, the rain had stopped, giving us the chance for an evening walk. It started to drizzle again, but we were now ready to go in and start on our evening meal.
ReplyDeleteYou're getting our full weather experience - just a bit of frost and snow needed now! You can see why the English are always talking about it.
In the well over 20 years I have been coming to England regularly, I have rarely had weather that was so bad as to affect my holiday. And it is by no means just the English who talk about the weather all the time - in Germany, it is often the first topic of conversation, and in Sicily, too.
DeleteMy British mother's maiden name was Ripley. She used to joke about being related to the Ripley Castle crowd. However, she was born in London (near the beginning of the last century), so acknowledged it was highly unlikely. Sorry the rain interfered with your plans to walk the castle grounds. Hope the weather improves for the rest of your stay.
ReplyDeleteFunnily enough, the family who have been living at Ripley castle for more than 700 years are called Ingilby (sometimes spelled Ingleby).
DeleteIt was alright; the rain has altered our plans only for that one afternoon - not bad for 2 weeks!
Nice place Ripley. In the days when I still drove I often met friends there for lunch.
ReplyDeleteIt‘s beautiful, and very well kept!
DeleteIt sounds like one always should be ready for rain when visiting there! But you know how to adapt and make the best of it.
ReplyDeleteWe usually know not to wear sandals when rain is forecast, but in this case, my weather app was wrong and the rain arrived earlier than expected.
DeleteRipon...Ripley...Ripponden. I wonder what the prefix "Rip" means? To answer my own question, I see that the area around Ripon was inhabited by the Hrype people - perhaps an Anglian tribe - probably in the seventh century. The names Ripon and Ripley are very likely both derived from that name.
ReplyDeleteThank you - I didn‘t know that! On old tombstones in and around the cathedral, Ripon is sometimes spelled Rippon.
DeleteI always thought Ripon was the opposite of Ripoff.
That gave me a wee chuckle 😊
DeleteChristine, NZ
Oooh, I would love to see a picture of those fox earrings!
ReplyDeleteI am wearing them as we speak, Laura :-)
Delete