Almost 5 months have passed since our last blog but the
Grand Adventures have not ceased! We have simply not found time to share them
with you, but look forward to catching up on some of them very soon.
After 30 days spent in TLF (Temporary Living Facility) on
base, we finally moved in mid-September to our first British home in the small,
quaint village of Weeting, also known as Weeting-with-Broomhill. We are
approximately 7 miles from the base surrounded by large farming areas, the
slightly larger town of Brandon and other small villages. Weeting covers an
area of about 9.7 sq miles and as of 2001 had a population of approx. 1800
people. I would venture to guess the population has not grown much in the last
decade.
Weeting Village Sign
All Villages have Unique Signs in the Center of Town
The village today consists of a Village Hall, a Primary
School, a small grocery store (like a convenience store), a Fish and Chip's
shop, a Pub, and a gas station/car repair center. Historically, Weeting is most famous for its
castle, which is one of Peyton's all time favorite places to visit. Standing
behind the church of St Mary is the ruins of this castle, which is actually a Grand 12th Century Manor House. All that is left at this time is ruins, but
you can easily make out where the Great Hall and other rooms of the house would
have been. There is a standing ice house and a large moat. You can visit the
English Heritage history on Weeting Castle here: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/weeting-castle/history-and-research/.
Today the castle grounds are open to the public and are visited frequently by
those with children and dogs. Both Kosmo and Peyton have found many friends
there.
Reading all about the Castle!
St. Mary's Church
Main Manor House Ruins
The majority of Weeting neighborhoods consist of older/small
British homes. However on the edge of the village there are several streets of
'somewhat' larger, newer homes. This area is where we found our first home, on
Victor Charles Close. The house we live in is only 7 years old, but is still
very British in its character and features.
It is a 4 bedroom house with approx. 1300 square feet and a one car
garage. While we have loved our time here in this house some of it's more
British features have not grown on us, such as: small British appliances, Washer/Dryer
in the kitchen, gas heating, no ceiling fans, tiny bedrooms, lack of closets in
most bedrooms, and the Keys that make me feel like I'm searching for a secret
garden....just to name a few. One of the best things about our village
neighborhood is the people. Everyone
we've met from here (both British and American) have been extremely friendly
and helpful.
Our British Home
Kitchen Complete with Washer and Dryer
House Keys or Secret Garden Keys?
The writing of this blog comes at a strange time because we
have just recently decided to make the move into base housing. A lot of things
helped to make this decision but overall we are just excited about a more
"American" home that will be closer to what we are accustomed. When
we first moved here we wanted base housing, living off base was NOT for us. But
now that we've lived off base for a short time I am very glad that we got to
experience living in the British economy, I'll always have wonderful memories
of our first British home. And we still have several years to make trips to
Weeting Castle to play!
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