Brian Holden: The majesty of an unexpected visit

The view of Richmond from the castle, where Her Majesty was also visiting. Photo / Supplied

We are immensely enjoying our stay in the lovely town of Richmond, Yorkshire - and purely by chance the Queen just happened to drop in.

I'm serious. On Saturday, HM Queen Elizabeth II was escorted into the castle grounds just around the corner from our cottage. As royal visits go, they are usually a fleeting affair, arriving almost unannounced (but the word of this one quickly got through the local network) and whisked away after the pomp and ceremony was over.

Rather than for our personal benefit, the visit was actually to do with a special military amalgamation parade in Richmond Castle. Prior to entering the castle grounds to celebrate the regiment's history, there was a grand march through the town and into the castle grounds.

The Queen was then scheduled to follow shortly after but, as the rain began to set in and another 45 minutes went by, the gloss for many started to wear off.

We waited and waited with the And Another Thing reporting team perched precariously on a stone wall, armed with cameras, to catch the moment when Her Majesty would hopefully wave as she usually does. However, this was not to be.

A quick whizz by a black tinted windowed car that we think was carrying Her Majesty inside, above the heads of the cold and wet onlookers, was all we saw.

As you can imagine, the town of Richmond was bursting at the seams with visitors, military, tanks, a range of other weaponry and an RAF flyover.

The Brits have certainly got an army to be proud of, and the incredibly young-looking soldiers were certainly strutting their stuff, proudly wearing their medals that they would have so courageously earned. I must say, though, that some of the soldiers looked rather odd wearing bright green hi-viz jackets over their camouflage gear. This was not a day to take the car out for an afternoon drive. Once out of the town centre, there was no way to get back in after the officials closed it off for the day. Also, had we left our precious park right outside our cottage, it would have been gazumped at the crack of dawn.

We joked with a shopkeeper, saying we could have sub-let our space for a hundred quid on the day, but then of course - where would have we put our car?

The Lonely Planet travel guide quotes that Richmond is one of the most beautiful towns in England, that surprisingly few people know about. For a spectacular drone fly-over of the lovely town of Richmond, go to: http://www.richmond.org/

I've said it many times and I'll say it again, if you want a decent relaxing holiday where you can do what you want in your own time, stay in a self-catering apartment. There are plenty to choose from and they are realistically priced.

This is how a typical day goes for us.

Rise reasonably early and down to the kitchen for breakfast. Pack a picnic lunch with fresh bread and provisions bought from the supermarket down the road the previous day. Get the maps out, set up the ever-so-vital GPS, grab the camera and wallet, then jump in the car. Apart from having a coffee or hot chocolate along the way, we're pretty much self-sufficient.

After a day's outing, which often includes a decent walk, we arrive home happy but tired. After uploading and editing the day's photos, and tapping out a paragraph or two for my column while dinner is under way, we find ourselves crawling up the stairs (there are always stairs) to bed around 9pm. Holidaying is always enjoyable but it can be hard work.

• Brian Holden has lived in Rotorua for most of his life and has been writing his weekly column for 11 years.