Romsey & Salisbury 7.11.2012

So far on our trip, I hadn't seen a Patchwork Shop, so I googled for shops in the area, and guess what !! I I I found 1 about 11 miles away. So off to Romsey we headed and while I spent some time browsing in the shop, John walked around the streets to see if there was anything interesting ! He found the Romsey Abbey, which is actually older than Salisbury Cathedral. It was built on land that had been willed by King Alfred the Great to his wife and daughters, and his daughter Elthelreda is reputed to have been the first Abbess. Also in the area is a cottage called King John"s House. Although we had visited Salisbury on our last trip, we decided that, seeing we were so close we would visit the town again. What a great idea! Such a great place. Our drive back to Lyndhurst was through the New Forrest. Again some incredible scenery, but this time with a difference!! There are parts of New Forrest that are not fenced and are completely open to animals, particularly cattle and horses! The New Forrest Ponies are allowed to roam freely in the forrest and are not perturbed in the slightest by cars or trucks!! we then saw a sign to the Rufus Stone, which we had to investigate !! It was the place that King William II , known as Rufus, was killed in August 1100, by an arrow that had been shot at a stag and glanced off an oak tree and got him in the chest. His body was taken by cart to Winchester Cathedral where he was buried.