Deer Stalking & old Fashioned Sweets: Chester 10/501

Last Autumn Nick and I indulged in a day of Enid Blyton based mischief. We packed our corned beef sandwiches and cans of ginger ale with the idea of spending the day in Tatton Park. Alas it seems Tatton Park is closed in the winter (something they would do well to advertise on their website). So we changed our plans and unexpectedly found ourselves in the middle of a deer park. Despite living on the green belt and driving past multiple road signs warning that there may be deers crossing, the closest I had ever gotten to one of these lovely creatures was when peering at one of its distantly related cousins at the West Midlands Safari Park.



Dunham Massey, although not being a spectacular grand house, or of particular historical interest, is definitely a must see. Especially on a crisp autumn day. We had the place practically to ourselves and so naturally pretended to be in our own nature documentary, trying to get as close as possible to a large herd who where huddled together, not unlike penguins. It was a very indulgent and childish morning, but was so much fun. All that was missing was the presence of Philip, Dina, Jack & Lucy.

Nick modelling his Movember Look

We then ventured on into Chester as it's on the list. Being the middle distance (ish) between Nick and I, we had ventured here before and have visited since (both occasions were largely due to our need to visit the wonderful Ice Cream Farm, tucked away in the countryside about 20 minutes outside of town. A definite must if you are in the area, especially for the liquorice and blackcurrant flavoured ice cream.) Having Nick about as we wandered around the town was an advantage as I got to pick his brains about the place's history. We walked along the city walls and I learnt about Roman defence tactics and who proceeded Caeser. The city is very nice, with its chocolate box finish and high end shops. I would recommend investing a guide to the city, or do a bit of swotting up before you go as there is more to this city then meets the eye. Unlike other places though, the city does not readily provide much information for us tourists to devour about its rich history. Alternatively I might start hiring Nick out as a guide (possible new business venture). There is also a very nice old fashioned sweet shop tucked up in one of the side streets that stocked every liquorice delight you could imagine, but unfortunately I have forgotten what it is called and where exactly it is. As for it being a Must See City, I don't entirely agree. The best bits of the day were the out of town exploits and the newly acquired knowledge. If I were to do it all again I would spend an hour on Wikipedia learning about the Romans and then hot foot it to the nearest National Trust house for an Enid Blyton adventure. Long live ginger beer!