Today we had great weather and a wonderful visit to a Castle that had it's roots back to about 1066. It is still the home of the Duke and Duchess of Norfolk (the 18th Duke) and their 5 children. We were going to meet them but they were off skiing in Europe. We were given a tour by John Penny, the District 1250 Foundation chairman and member of Arundel Rotary Club. There is a member of the Rotary club that resides on the grounds. 3 of us were hosted by James who runs one of the farms owned by the Duke, the Duke's butler lived next door.That afternoon we toured Cathedral Works Organization, a stone masonry company that renovates historic buildings. They did the Monument in London, and are currently working on parts of Buckingham Palace. It's quite an art, and we saw small pieces that have taken over 90 hours to do by hand.
We gave our presentation to about 90 people from several area Rotary clubs that evening. It's great to visit with so many Rotarians, and see the great things they are doing in their communities and around the world. As usual, dinner was lovely.
John Penny was AMAZING! Yet another person who shared such a wealth of historical knowledge with us all, and he gave us a personal VIP tour of Arundel Castle as well! This was most enjoyable, and the weather was even starting to clear, which made it even better! John also gave me a boler hat - wish it would have fit though - it looked more like a beanie on top of my bulbous globe - but thanks to John for that as well!
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