Kenilworth Castle calls us back and we heed the call when a dear friend visits for a long weekend.
From the inner keep, you can get to the gardens through this doorway. Just take the stairs all the way through and you’ll find it. That’s what I told her.
This is the first thing she saw.
She walked to one end of the terrace to see what she could see from there.
As she crossed to the other side, she paused to take a look at Dudley’s Bears.
Then she turned to finish crossing the terrace and hesitated for a moment, wondering if this was what Elizabeth saw when Dudley brought her here.
As she went down the stairs she realised that her gaze was drawn always toward the marble statue at centre.
The aviary is empty today, as it’s too late in the season for many of the birds that live there during the summer months.
She had forgotten how lovey autumn berries can be.
The early Autumn garden is muted, like old tapestry colours. Still, the statue calls her on.
Although it’s empty, the shadows in the afternoon sun make the aviary magical.
Eyes caught in the late afternoon sun, she listens for a moment to the gentle trickle of water in the fountain.
Laughing as her cheek is tickled by spray, she looks up to follow its path.
She turns from the fountain that has called her and looks back to the entrance and Dudley’s bears.
Kenilworth is more than a castle, it is a labour of love. Dudley designed this garden for his love, Elizabeth I. It is full of symbols, joining them in this garden as they could never be joined in life.
We have seen this garden in May, and now in September. Next year, we’ve promised ourselves a visit in high summer to see it in its full glory.
***
A Canuck's Eye View 