After going to see my mother's gravestone in Histon Virginia and I then drove up to Stamford to see Burghley House, only slightly held up by a A14 stop start standstill. It was a dull day with dollops of dampness, not good for the camera and I hadn't got the batteries charged properly either. The size of the place intimidated us, we had to drive round it before we could drive into the estate, and then walk a fair distance between the different attractions. The food perhaps wasn't as good as a National Trust place, but the "Gardens of Surprise" was splendid, a set of artistic water fountain themed displays. There were devices you could actuate, trapped doorways which you risked a soaking going through, and eerie Roman busts which moved when you weren't looking.