Manchester/Scotland 2025 - Afternoon Tea at Friend's Place

The highlight for my whole day out with my friends was probably this Afternoon Tea at her place! I mean, just looked at the table setting! Wouldn't you say that it's better than having it in some impersonal place like a restaurant or a cafe?

So after visiting Wentworth, the last place we stopped at was at my friend's house. Most of the photos I took inside won't be shown here for privacy reasons. But here are some selection which are more generic, as well as the tea room. Above, my friend at her front door. I love it. I don't know why Asian houses don't have doors like these that is kinda like a stained glass. We always get solid doors. I guess cause it's safer?

Inside, let's just say her house is like a mini museum. It's a house that sits on a private property, so they kinda added on to it as the years went by. So it kinda has 3 storeys, but everything is cosy inside. Each room is decorated with care, just like something out of an Enid Blyton book. It's really exciting visiting an actual English family's home. I mean, I've visited other friends/family staying in other countries, but when they are the same culture as you, the inside kinda tends to look the same as yours too. 

When I say visit, I meant we went into every single room. And the kitchen overlooking the garden was delightful. It was smaller than I imagined her kitchen to be, but it was filled with so many cool items! Later I also discovered that she has another room where she stores her food item! Cause she kept pulling out food from there for our Afternoon Tea!

The sink area filled with trinkets, overlooking the bright sunny garden. I could stand here all day washing dishes! My home in Penang also have something similar, a kitchen sink that looked out into the view of Pearl Hill. It's a joy to cook inside, if only the morning sun wasn't tanning up your skin as you cook!

Tulips were in season. And she has some lovely ones in her garden. They have a huge garden, and even a small summer house. There is also a patio where we could sit, or where Tom would sit and read his books all day :)  Such a lovely set up. I've always wanted a house with a garden too. But as I grow older, I kinda given up on the dream cause it's expensive and troublesome to maintain. Plus all the security you have to factor in too from where I came from. So I ended up in flats instead. I'm still pondering whether to give up my dream of staying in a flat with a sea view..... I guess that is still not too late. 

The grand event of the day, tea! And we'll be having it here in her dining room. I asked her isn't a chore to do all the dusting? But it was so nice to see someone who actually bring out all their tableware to be use! I know it's not just for us, cause I've seen pictures of her Christmas dinner as well. 

The dinner room looks out into the garden as well, so it was a splendid place to have our Afternoon Tea. I was kinda scared that I may break something in the room, it's practically filled wall-high with ceramics and plates and what-not!

Knowing how much I love cheese, she also went to the trouble of preparing a cheese platter! Only, there was just too much cheese!!!! With  that amount, I could easily made 3 or 4 platters that would probably last me for a month! (one platter a weekend!)

The full spread. She got us meat pies, mince pie, scones, macarons etc. It was nice to try those English specific delicacies. I found the meat pie was surprisingly nice. 

Macarons! I love these! In 2025 December alone, I think I ate a total of 14 macarons. TWG was having a 1-4-1 promotion so I went and got 12 from them. I also visited Pierre Hermes shop in Sentosa, and got 2 of their signature macarons to try too.

This would forever be one of the most memorable day out in my trip, cause I knew it was thanks to our friend that I get to have this extremely unique experience in the UK. We'll be visiting them again in two month's time, and although they have gotten older and nursing some health issues now, I hope we can still manage to spend some memorable time together.

Manchester/Scotland 2025 - Wentworth Woodhouse

After our lovely lunch, our host told us that we were going for a walk. I got excited about that. I love long walks, especially in countries that I was visiting cause I find it was the best way to explore a place. The place we were walking to was called Wentworth Woodhouse, or the Big House as our friends call it.

Before the walk, we got some history lesson on the surroundings and a little bit about the Woodhouse. I recall something about some tower that looked like a needle, and something about a camel going through it.... lol. Let's just say, I'm a terrible student and couldn't hear a word he said when there is such a beautiful country side in front of me to run wild in!

It was just a short walk. Above is Tom and my husband walking pass the very large building that was just the stable where they used to keep the horses. If the house for stable looked like that, how big was the actual Big House???

Here is a a clearer front view of the stable.... We did went in on our way back as we saw the doors were opened. More on that at the end of this post.

A small gate to enter into the grounds of the Big House. You could also drive all the way there, but since we just had a heavy lunch, it was nice to walk off the calories! Plus it was so nice to be out in the open, sunshine, cold wind, and just horizons for us to walk on.

You could visit the house inside, with a fee. You could also hold events here. There is also some dining cafe inside. We went into just take a look around the free area. My friend didn't recommend we visit the paid area, so we skipped that. I would rather be spending more time outdoor anyway.  Later that year, I also visited a palace in Hue, Vietnam that reminded me of the Big House and told my friend about it. I did went inside the palace in Hue as I was part of a day tour, and it beautiful inside as well.

Side view of the Big House as we were walking towards it. I could imagine riding inside a carriage drawn my horses up to the main entrance. I've just finished watching Season 3 and Season 2 of Bridgerton  (yes, in that order, it's a long story....), and the Big House was even bigger than their house!

A side profile of Tom leading us on our walk.

The main entrance of the building. It wasn't crowded at all. Perhaps it isn't really a touristy place. Maybe more suited for people who were interested in old buildings or history of local towns? I can't picture a tour bus filled of Chinese tourist coming all the way here, even thought I think I would love it! It's a lot more peaceful here which leaves you being able to enjoy the place better.

The welcoming info sign inside the building. Everything upstairs is with paid entry only. We did managed to look around the gift soup and cafe area. 

We walked around the grounds in front of the building too. 

Here is a view of the Big House from a far. I love the trees framing the photo. From this picture, you could see just how huge it was. I mean, huge as in for a British palace or building, which is kinda cosy. After coming back from the Balkans, I have seen monstrous buildings built by the Soviet Union era showcasing power and wealth. But the European style buildings are a lot more charming, and elegant. 

A full front view. 

On our walk back to the car, we walked by the stable again and noticed that the gates were slightly opened! So we decided to go check it out. I guess this is why you make friends with people who likes to explore, they don't mind walking into any place.

Tom and my husband, inside the stable main gate. Inside, it looked like a ground where gladiators fight. Everything was just concrete. There was a fountain like structure in the middle that servers kinda like a round about. Renovation was being conducted at the buildings surrounding it. I think there's going to be some restaurant there in the future.

 

But just imagine, this as a stable. All the small houses being used to keep horses. And the grounds for them to wander around on. Perhaps the stable boys and workers also stayed in this building? I think it's lovely that I get to visit such places. I think every trip is special to the individual, and each is unique. So visiting this place, this stable made my trip to the country side unique too!

Manchester/Scotland 2025 - The Rockingham Arms Pub Lunch

 

Lovely day for a picnic. We drove around ten minutes away and parked near this beer garden. I would have love eating here! But our host had planned for us to have lunch at a local pub, so that was a great plan too!

The place we head for is called The Rockingham Arms, and I love the name of the place cause it has the word 'arm' on it which reminded me of Men in Arms, a book from the Discworld series. Anything that can be related to the books I love will instantly have a place in my heart. Above is the bar counter.

We were early, and probably the first to be there for lunch. The place was still empty, so I got the chance to walk around to take photos of the interior. It was such a cosy place, like a hotel lounge, or someone's living room. Actually, the place also runs a hotel upstairs, so I guess the deco was suited to be kinda like a Bed and Breakfast type of hotel in the countries. Truly lovely. 

There is even a fireplace sitting area. It was spring when we visited, but it does snow here as well. I don't believe I've ever sat next to a fireplace before! Now why isn't that ever in my bucket list?

Back to the bar counter, showing you some of the ale and beer they serve there. We were still at Happy Hour, and each of us ordered one beer to try. It is, after all, a pub.

Us pondering on what to order for lunch. I already knew what I wanted, something British, like a pot pie or something. It wasn't cheap, not was it too expensive. But I think the fact that we got to dine in a pub was the highlight for me. I don't really how many times we would actually folk out the cash to do a sit in and dine. Most of the time, we were usually on a budget and dine just fine with food we find the supermarket.

Our beer reached the table first. I order just half a pint I think. I hate getting my face all red when I drink. I don't react to all alcohol like that, but I can never tell which one will trigger the red flush. And since it's still early in the day, I would rather not look drunk. I don't really get drunk, it's just that my face would get really red when I react with certain drinks. 

I wonder why the coaster says "Old Speckled Hen" on it. I thought that was the beer's name, but later on I realised the beer, the glass, and the coaster don't really matched. I don't hate it when that happens, but I really really love it when all the three are align! It's the little touch that makes me all excited and happy.

My lunch, I think it's Ale Steak Pie? With mash and so little vegetables. It was delicious, but the serving was really huge, especially the pie crust which was very filling. The mash potatoes and fillings were delicious. 

I think 3 of us ordered pie, and only my husband order some stew. All the food was lovely. And it was nice to finally sat down and talk and catch up with one another.

Lovely tables looking out into the streets. I just love the sunlight shining in reflecting on the wooden interior. Very cosy and warm.

Before we left, I also managed to go to the toilet, and snapped the above photos. I love the decoration inside. I think I love dark colours, like green and black with white. And the floral tiles on the floor, lovely. Love plants in the toilet too. We should always have plants and art in our toilet. I hate seeing cleaning items inside a toilet, mainly cause I can't stand the smell, and secondly, it's such an ugly sight.

While we were at the carpark, my friend casually showed me her car plate number, and I laughed. No wonder we were became friends! There was just something about them. We actually met on a cruise, and I was started talking cause our table was just next to each other. I liked that they were always exploring the port we were calling on by themselves instead of following an excursion tour. The cruise was from Singapore and went around Malaysia, Philippines, Hong Kong and Vietnam. And they were 20 years my senior and doesn't look like those backpacker type of people either. So I respected them a lot for exploring South East Asia and Hong Kong on their own. 

Manchester/Scotland 2025 - Elsecar

Finally reaching Chapeltown, the first place our friends took us to was to a park! Elsecar Park to be exact. We were going to have a morning tea there. But first, a walk around the park. I love the photos in this cover, of blue skies and trees and chairs at the park. Just imaging sitting there looking down! Lovely.

We managed to get some snacks and tea at the only shop at the park. It was pretty crowded inside, and it's dog friendly. Except for a short period where one dog couldn't stop barking inside the shop, the rest of the dogs inside were pretty well behave. We got some brownies, and I learned that a blondie was just a brownie without chocolates! Ha! We got tea too, but I think they ran out of ceramic cups, so we ended up with paper cups which wasn't ideal for my first tea in the British countryside! I think my friend was kinda disappointed with it, but it was alright, I was just happy to be there. It was only my 2nd day here, I'm sure I'll get a chance of some decent English Tea somewhere else along my trip.

We managed to see a lot of ducks during our walk at the park too. It was more of an empty ground area than a park. It looked pretty wild or 'natural' for me who comes from Singapore where every park is almost man-handle to some point. 

Just a short walk away near the park, was another open air industrial themed park which was free to enter. One of our friend was a History teacher, so I guess we're bond to learn some history along our trip!

Here is a map of Elsecar. I find it interesting when my plans for the day says 'visit friend' and I have no idea what my day would turn out to be. So being here in Elsecar was new to me! For a start, I don't even know anything about the town or it's iron and steel industry.

The park area was free to enter, mainly hosting old buildings that used to process iron and steel. But the minerals have all been mined, so now it's just a shell of it's glory days. 

Here's a photo of our friend Tom telling us a little bit of the history of this place. I quickly went to walk next to his wife Trish after that cause I didn't want to be quiz about the history at the end of the day!

Saw a red telephone booth there and had to take a photo cause it's so British!

There are shops and seats where you could have something to eat too.  It was such a sunny day!

Love chimneys, something I also don't see often. Scenes like these reminds me of Oliver Twist and the boys who cleans chimneys from my childhood books!

Noted also the lovely emerald-gold looking clock hanging at the old building. Love the colours!

We walked past some shops at one section, and it looked kinda like a thrift shop. 

I saw some lovely ceramic wares outside, selling by the boxes! And they were pretty cheap too! Like one pound, or two pound. Oh if only I could carry them back! I would love having these and using them for my tea ritual! I wanted to go into the shops to take a look, but I wasn't sure if we had time. I have no idea what our friends have planned for us. But luckily, Trish might have felt what I hoping for. She took me inside the shop. I guess she loves walking thru thrift shops too.

Inside the shop was an amazing arrays of cabinets filled with treasures! Everything was probably 2nd hand, but it was so fascinating looking at everything. And unlike a second hand shop in Singapore where it's cramped and dusty, the shop here was spacious and pretty airy. 

I thought the sign above was hilarious. Haha. And it looked like they do have everything!

Every corner, a treasure. Reminds me of 2nd hand markets in Paris, where everything there was filled with art and beauty for me that I wander why people threw these things out. I guess a westerner would feel the same when they come to the East and see chopsticks and rice bowls.....

It was a lovely morning, but soon it was time for lunch, and our friend drove us to a nearby pub for some local English food :P I saw some nice churches on our drive there. The roads were pretty unique too, with small houses and cottages and small alleys. But we didn't stop by any, only drove pass until we reached our next destination.