Our Day Out
26th July 2006
We started with choosing a day to go out to play. Lisa only has a few spaces in her full diary so it wasn't too difficult a decision. Then the rest of us just had to book the day off work. Unfortunately, Dave couldn't join us this time. There was myself, Lisa, Batty, Chris and Martin. Where to go? Well, not too far as we knew it was going to be warm and we didn't want to go out too early. So I chose Chislehurst Caves to be followed by either Tonbridge Castle or Lullingstone Roman Villa. I had been to all three but not been to Chislehurst Caves for many years. I don't think anyone else had been to these places. I printed off instructions from theaa.com for home to Chislehurst Caves, then Chislehurst to both of the others and then directions between the others, just in case. We left Ashford at around 10.30 and arrived in Chislehurst at around 11.
Chislehurst Caves
We arrived just before a full tour was going to start so we had about 45 minutes to wait. We had seen a couple of off licences on the way in so a short walk to find some cold drinks for now and lunch time. We started the tour soon after midday. Down into the cold.
These carvings were done by a girl (from New Zealand?) who wanted to do some carvings. She was taken in every morning by the tour guide and left to work on it for the day. It took a year and a half. It has Spider man and Canary Wharf at the bottom!
This is the haunted pool (above). The ghost is of a woman who was murdered there by her husband following an argument. The challenge in the 1950s was for £5 if you could spend the night there alone. Only two people have managed it. Only one got paid. The one that did the carving of the horse (below). The other got scared, ran and knocked himself out. Being unconscious didn't count. The carvings were done to keep the guy's mind focused.
One halloween night, two cavers wanted to take the challenge. They were kept separate with a tape recorder between them so that they couldn't communicate. One of them they couldn't wake up, couldn't remember anything and was found with a dislocated shoulder. After that Health and Safety say no one can stay in the caves overnight.
The black bits of the wall are the bits of flint that used to be mined.
Throughout the caves there are numbers where the pitches were from WW2. It cost a penny a night or 6d a week. The cave captain would take you to your pitch and show you the way around. If you left your pitch empty for 4 days, you lost it. There were 1500 people in the cave at this time. Bunk beds would have been in the pitches, which was your temporary address, e.g DN12, Chislehurst Caves. If you were really lucky you might get a better pitch. The family in the A1 pitch were the canteen staff with their children. The bunks might have been 3 high with small children underneath. If you were lucky enough to have an alcove like A1, you could have more privacy with curtains to pull across.
As Lisa pointed out, high heels?? In the caves?
The chapel was very small. To make it fair and so they all got chance to worship, they had to hold services 7 days a week so that everyone got a chance. You would have been given your alloted time by the cave captain.
After the caves, we decided that we could do all 3 attractions with Lullingstone
next. Lisa said from Chislehurst to Lullingstone was the distance of her little finger
on the map!! 
Heated Rooms, AD275, extension to the villa
The Baths
Didn't know that José had a new job....
Check out the guy at the back!
Wait thy turn!!!
The squares in the floor here are where the murder holes were above the doorway below
After the castle, we went on a search for somewhere for cream teas but didn't find anything. We went home via Sainsburys and took cream, jam and scones round to Brian's. Much to the cat's delight !!
