Not all those who wander are lost
Date published 12 April, 2019
Narrow Streets in Castle Donington
We watched as the truck driver edged through the gap. Both his patience, and his close quarters skill were good.
But this was not the only thing that we enjoyed here. First, as word about arriving. To appreciate the geography of this great little town on a hill, you have to arrive on foot. Otherwise you will not notice the hill. Nor climb it, to the accompaniment of the occasional plane noise from East Midlands Airport.
Of course, you have heard of Castle Donington. You drive past the sign on the motorways. It is a landmark, and an easy to remember place name, as you cross the border from Leicestershire to Derbyshire.
But you ought to visit. Its a great place, with houses stuck in alleys prettily, some great buildings, and a fairly large church right in the centre. There are some nice places to grab a coffee, and lunch, too. There is a museum, and a market - a fairly big market.
But no castle any more. The original castle was pulled down in 1216, and the replacement castle was left empty until the stones from it were used elsewhere by the end of the sixteenth century. By used elsewhere, I am assuming people broadly dismantled the castle when they wanted to make a rockery. Some of the stonework is still visible, though, in a few of the older buildings.
You will notice that I am largely talking about Castle Hill, which is where the town centre is.
Up there, on the hill, the streets are pretty narrow. It would probably be better not to park on the yellow lines, because I am guessing that the patience and skills of our entertainment are not guaranteed.
We are happy snappers!
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