Stratford-upon-Avon

I've been compiling a list of recommendations from various sources of places to visit in England, and several different folks suggested Stratford-upon-Avon - which will be referred to here at "SoA" or simply "Stratford".  Hyphens can be such a nuisance.

Stratford is in the Cotswold region (dedicated readers will recall that the Cotswolds are a "An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty" north & west of London.)  The train from London took about 2 hours, and our hotel (the appropriately named "Shakespeare Hotel") was another one of those lovely old Tudor buildings built in the 16th century and nicely modernized for the 21st.  The first evening there, most shops & sights were closed, but we strolled around and got our first look at Shakespeare's birthplace, which is of course the biggest tourist draw to the city.  One of Chris's colleagues had recommended an Italian restaurant and it was fabulous - so fab in fact that it was our dinner spot for both nights.  (Well, it was fab, and we found all of our other choices booked the second night, so it worked out well.)

Saturday morning showed the promise of sun and off we went to explore the Home of the Bard.   First stop was the afore-mentioned Birthplace, and it was pretty neat.  Will was born to John & Mary Shakespeare; Dad was a glove-maker and married Mary Arden, who's childhood farm is another historic sight nearby.  The date of his birth (23 April, 1564) is estimated by the recorded date of his baptism; it's known that back then a child was typically baptized within 2-4 days of its birth (unless the poor thing was sickly - then it happened asap!) Will grew up in SuA, and at the age of 18 married the 26-year-old Anne Hathaway, who was - gasp - already with child!  I was a bit disappointed in this fact not because baby was already on the way (I mean, really - who am I to judge?) but because it ensures that the movie "Shakespeare in Love" (one of my favorites) is a complete work of fiction, rather than just a partial work of fiction.  **Sigh**  Anyhoo... Will went on to do all sorts of remarkable things, such as become the greatest writer in the English language.  His plays were being staged in London by 1592 and he spent his career between Stratford & London, where his company founded and constructed the Globe Theatre.  He lived out his days at New Place, the second largest home in Stratford, and died on 23 April, 1616 -  his 52nd birthday.

After the Birthplace, our 3-in-1"Shakespeare Birthplace Trust" ticket gained us entrance to Nash's House & New Place, and Hall's Croft. Nash's house is the still-standing next-door neighbor to New Place, and is a museum; New Place is a very interesting work in progress: the final home of WS, it's currently being excavated, centuries after having been demolished in about 1760.  Hall's Croft was the home of Will & Anne's daughter Susanna and her husband John Hall;  a "croft" is an enclosed area of land.  It's an interesting period home - the Halls were quite wealthy - with really lovely gardens.  In order to bring things full circle, our last stop of the day was the Holy Trinity Church, the final resting place of the Beloved Playwright.  It's on a very quiet and beautiful spot along the River Avon, and I think honors him well.

After a little siesta back at the hotel, we went to meet Mr. Josiah Grubb, guide for our evening's Stratford Ghost Walk, and he was delightful.  We ended up revisiting many of the spots we'd seen earlier in the day, but gained new ethereal insights.  Then it was back to Sorrento, where they already knew our name, and yummy Italian fare, of the Stratfordian ilk.  Sunday found us shopping in a colorful street market, then to the Royal Shakespeare Company for a behind-the-scenes tour, which was really interesting.  The RSC is home to one of the most - if not the most - prestigious Shakespeare companies in Britian; it's been burned down and rebuilt and currently produces multiple Shakespeare productions each year, featuring such notables as Dame Judi Dench, Sir Patrick Stewart, and Sir Ian McKellan.  When we were there, Macbeth was playing, but at a running time of 2:50, we wisely decided that Josiah Grubb was more our speed.

Statford-upon-Avon holds a worthy spot on our list of recommendations.  And so alas, parting in such sweet sorrow, I leave you better a witty fool than a foolish wit; but surely you know that despite the fact that our revels are now ended, we can always be assured that all's well that ends well.  So until next time, my friends... "A horse! A horse!  My kingdom for a horse!"  I know, I know.... "I must be cruel, only to be kind."  And...  oh forget it.  You get the drift.

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Quand les Proches Entré - Deuxième Partie

Oh man, this one will be tough.  Paris seems like a lifetime ago at this point!  But I will do my best to remember the highlights, the first of which occured before we even left London.  We were nearly "down one Grampa" as Nicole so aptly put it, as after we all got off of the tube at St. Pancras station on the way to the train, Sam didn't realize we'd all exited and was still in the carriage after the rest of us had gotten off and the tone was sounding for the doors to close.  Fortunately we saw him just in the knick of time - it was the crowded morning rush hour - and he made it off in time.  Had he not... well, let's just say the Eurostar waits for no one.  Fortunately, it didn't come to that.

Dad was the only one in our group who had never been to the "City of Lights", but we all saw many sights for the first time.  We arrived in the early afternoon on a Wednesday and checked into a wonderful hotel, just steps away from the National Assembly and within a 5 minute walk of the Place de la Concorde.  The skies were questionable to begin with and we started off for lunch in a bit of a shower, but by the end of the day we were clear and dry.  We walked quite a bit - as you do in Paris - and made it to the Notre Dame Cathedral just before it closed for the day.  On the way back to the hotel we stopped for a libation and ordered a cheese board to share at the table.  Sam declared the butter the best cheese on the plate (he really did think it was cheese - must be something in the French milk) so we dubbed it "le beurre fromage" and had a good laugh.  Dinner that evening was fantastic - a bistro in walking distance with wonderful service, terrific food, and even an English menu.

The next day was Bastille Day, and we were lucky enough to catch a bit of the air show and parade right near our hotel.  We then were on the march once again, and headed for le Jardin & le Palais du Luxumbourg.  Mon Dieu, were they beautiful, and well worth the trek.  Also worth the trek was where we went for lunch afterwards: the "Académie de la Bière".  My guidebook had recommended it, and the gendarmes outside of the palace had heard of it, but they gave us directions European-style.  In other words - no sense of distance.  Cinq minutes turned into trente minutes, but at least we were going in the right direction.  Good beer and good food and a good resting spot.  Dinner that night was a bit more of a challenge - no English menu and not many English speakers, so we took the waiter's suggestion and ordered a price-fixed chef's menu for the table.  Smart move.  We might not have been able to name everything we ate, but we can definitely say it was delish.  And what better way to end a French dinner but with fireworks over the Eiffel Tower?  We only caught the tail end but it appeared to be an amazing finale to Bastille Day.

Our final day was picture perfect, just right for a stroll down the Champs-Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe followed by a river cruise on the Seine.  Unfortunately we were on a boat with a roof, which would've been great if it was raining; in our case it prohibited us from really being able to see some of the sights being spoken about in our audio guide.  Oh well... c'est la vie.  Still fun.  Our last meal wasn't a great way to end the trip, due to Chris getting into an argument with the waiter over our credit card use (or banning there-of), but the friendly receptionist at our hotel had us smiling again when we went back to pick up our luggage, and all was set right again.  Two and a half days is simply not enough for Paris - even if you've been before - but even a short trip can pack quite a punch and we all had a great time.

The family's final days in rainy/sunny London were spent at the Churchill Museum/Cabinet War Rooms, and a trip to Harrods along with half the population of the universe.  We did find by default a wonderful little pub in Kensington that had a limited menu of pub-fare pure and simple but it was really good.  And our Irish barmaid was a hoot so it was a good choice of spots to come into out of the rain.  We also squoze (squeezed?) in an early 21st birthday celebration for Kyle plus another dinner of lamb, so our companty left us with some yummy food memories to think about the next day when they were presented their airline choice of chicken or pasta, wrapped in plastic.

We are expecting a whole new slew of company during the second half of August and first part of September; I've thought of hanging a "No Vacancy" sign outside on the balcony but it could send the wrong message to the neighbors.  We're getting pretty good at making the Full English, so maybe considering opening a Bed & Breakfast is in order...   Contact me for availability and online booking options!

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When the Relatives Came...

Well - Sam, Mike, and Nicole finally arrived in London 36 hours later than they were supposed to, and down 2 suitcases, but the point is they made it.  (Most of you know that Sam is my father-in-law, Mike my bro-in-law, and Nicole Mike's girlfriend.)  They were truly no worse for the wear from their preceding 48 hour travel debacle - at least nothing that a full English and a hot shower couldn't cure.  Of course a brief walk around Hampstead and a stop at the pub were in order, followed by a lamb dinner - Mike's favorite from his visit last year.

The next morning, the five of us (Kyle was working) were off to Cambridge by train.  (We did a load of laundry the night before, what with the missing luggage and all.)  Chris & I had never been to Cambridge either, and we all really enjoyed it.  It has very much the same ambiance of Oxford, but is smaller, more quaint, and dare I say prettier.  The weather started off a bit on the rainy side (shouldn't be any surprises here) but by the end of the day we were relaxing in a punt boat in the sunshine on the river Cam being steered by the lovely Lucy and it was wonderful.  We spent the afternoon mostly strolling around town enjoying the scenery and dodging the ever-present punt-boat captains in their efforts to give us an awesome deal on a river ride.  By the end of the day, the sun had come out, and when punt-pusher Andy approached us he caught us just in the right mood, so we took him up on it and were so glad we did.  He turned us over into the capable hands of the afore-mentioned Lucy who was back punting for her first day after a bit of a hiatus, but didn't miss a trick.  She gave us a great tour of the colleges & landmarks on either side of the river.  She also suggested a restaurant for dinner and was spot-on with that as well.

After spending the night at a very nice B&B just outside of town, we spent the next day touring the colleges of Kings (the most well know of Cambridge's schools), St. Johns, and Clare, which had the most  beautiful gardens.  And the day was beautiful as well which was truly a bonus.   After doing some walking and shopping, we went back to a pub that we'd been to the day before at the suggestion of a market vendor who not only sold me a shirt and a purse, but who's wife was from Schenectady, NY which is but a stone's throw from where Chris & I grew up and where our visitors were from!  We most likely never would have gone back on our own as we witnessed and experienced ourselves some of the rudest behavior I'd ever seen on the part of the blond, Eastern European waitress when we'd been for lunch the previous day.  However, the vendor told us that it was a well known pub - the Eagle - and that during the war it had been a favorite hang out of both RAF pilots and American service men who had adorned the ceiling with graffiti marking their visit, something Blondie had neglected to mention the day before.  (To be fair, this particular bar was in a separate part of the pub.)  So we went back to have a pint and got a good look at a place that had most likely little changed since 1945.  Very cool.

After waiting awhile for a very nice lunch at a place suggested by the cab driver, we re-claimed our things at the B&B and headed for the train station.  Cambridge was most definitely worth the visit.

The following day was one of rest and a slow start, as the gang needed some down time and it was raining.  We stopped in to Kyle's store to visit him on his work break that afternoon before going to an early dinner at London's version of Joe Allen (which we thoroughly enjoyed) and then on to see the West End production of "Pygmalion" with Rupert Everett as Prof. Henry Higgins - which we also thoroughly enjoyed.  (Spoiler alert:  Eliza marries Freddie in the play!  Who knew?  Who will get the Professor his blasted slippers?!)  As Kyle was unable to join us for the play due to work, we invited Chris's admin, Amina, and it was so nice to have her along.

The next day started bright and early as we were off to take the Eurostar to Paree!  Stay tuned.

https://picasaweb.google.com/swronsky/Cambridge?authuser=0&feat=directlink

Weather def. Wronskys in Straight Sets

(Cue violin music)
So... a few weeks ago, I had just kind of had it with what the latest in British summer weather had to offer.  Temps rarely getting above 70 degrees (21C); rain, then sun, then rain, then su..no - rai.. no, yes - rain, then hail.  And this is all within a 15 minute time span on any given day.  Enough to drive an otherwise happy-go-lucky person like me (ahem... yes - me) batty.  So... I decided that for our next weekend excursion, we would get outta Dodge.  What's close and easy to get to? France.  Paris?  Well, we'll be going again in July when company comes, so what about Lyon?  Sounds great.  The Eurostar goes there.  But you have to switch trains in Lille.  Well....  what about Lille, then?  Only an hour by train and I've heard it's a lovely place.  Lille it is.

Checked the Lille 5-day forecast (does that actually say 80 degrees on Sunday??), checked the London 5-day (60's with sun & rain.  Yup.), found a nice hotel, booked the tickets a few days ahead, and when I looked out the window at the crappy London weather I thought "Heh heh heh.  In a few short days, we'll be in warm, sunny Lille. Heh heh heh."

So...  Lille, in the very north of France, is a nice little town, and a nice little place to visit - but not for an entire weekend and not when it's rainy and cool (as it was meant to be in London); and London - where you normally live except this weekend when you chose to go away - is sunny and 80 (as it was meant to be in Lille.)  We did finally see blue sky and feel some warmth midday Sunday, and arriving back home were still able to enjoy the evening in Hampstead.  And the warm temps and sunny skies were forecast for Monday as well, and how wonderful, as we were right in the middle of the Wimbledon fortnight and anyone lucky enough to have tickets to Wimbledon - as we did (for Tuesday) - knows how spectacular a place Wimbledon is in the warm sunshine.  When it's raining, however... not so much.

And did it ever rain at Wimbledon on Tuesday.  It wasn't even one of those fickle rain-sun-rain-sun kind of days.  And when it was raining, it was RAINING - apparently the poor folks under the roof in Centre Court could barely hear the umpire shout her calls due to the heavy rain pelting the roof.  We in the uncovered Court 1 didn't have to deal with that nonsense.  Not us.   We could hear the cheers just fine over the walls from Centre Court while that match played and ours... well, didn't.  Around 4 pm (3 hours after our first match was due to begin) the big yellow thing in the sky seemed to be making an effort, and we actually saw some patches of blue.  So off the cover came and the match started, and it was actually a very good ladies quarter-final match (Kvitova def. Pironkova 6-3,6-7,6-2)... but then the sky brightening ended and it got dark and ominous again.  The 2nd match (Azarenka vs. Paszek) was barely begun before one of the players - not sure if it was Azarenka or Paszek - complained about the court being slippery, so the umpire came down, and a woman with a walkie talkie came out, and they all conferred and decided that the court was indeed too wet and play would... be... suspended.  And thus ended our once-in-a-lifetime Wimbledon experience.  Alack, alas, and woe is me.  Just one more piece of bad timing:  we found out the next morning that the match that got suspended ended up finishing on Centre Court - so we missed that experience as well.  But frankly, by the time play was called we really had had enough and it was time to go home.  In case you're wondering, Azarenka beat Paszek in straight sets.  And no, I am not making these names up.  Remember the easy last names, like King? Evert? Navratilova?

By the way, we did manage to relax with some Wimbledon traditional treats, like Champagne and strawberries & cream.  And even though it didn't turn out anything like we were anticipating, I am still happy to have had the Wimbledon experience.  We also made the most of Lille - they have a very nice fine art museum, the Palais de Beaux Arts, and we had a really great dinner on Saturday night at a Michelin-starred restaurant that one of Chris's colleagues recommended (which we'll be paying for in easy installments until 2012.)  The old town area is really beautiful with some great shopping if you like that sort of thing.  In retrospect, and even if the weather had been good, we really didn't need an entire weekend there and we wouldn't necessarily go back.  But, hey - it's another stamp on the old passport.

We have plans to go back to the American Embassy for the 4th of July picnic on Sunday.  Not sure what the forecast says but in my heart, I know it will be rain.
(End violin music)

View photos (such as they are):
https://picasaweb.google.com/swronsky/Lille?authuser=0&feat=directlink
https://picasaweb.google.com/swronsky/Wimbledon?authuser=0&feat=directlink

The Ancient Town of Rye

Lately Chris & I have been trying to get away about every other weekend or so to places we can either get to easily on the train or that are within an hour or 2 drive from London.  Our last overnight brought us to Rye, which is about an hour train ride south of London.  Rye was once right on the coast, but violent storms centuries ago led to re-depositing of silt and reduction in tidal flow; the town now sits a couple of miles inland.

And is it ever ancient.  Everywhere you look is one building older than the next.  We didn't realize it when we booked, but scheduled in Rye the Saturday we arrived was an air show and 40's festival.  It was spritzing rain here and there, but by 4 pm the skies had cleared enough for the brilliant display of the Royal Air Force's Red Arrows.  Earlier that day they'd flown over Buckingham Palace for the finale of the Queen's Birthday Parade - we actually saw them last year too!  (See my Trooping of the Color blog from last June.)  We also had the treat before the jets flew of seeing the fabulous swing dance troop, the Lindy Hoppers, who perform wonderful Savoy-style classics with names such as "Shim Sham", "the Shag", and of course, the Jitterbug.  What fun to watch!  Earlier they'd had displays of WWII-era military and other vehicles; unfortunately they all disappeared while we were inside eating lunch and I didn't get any photos.

After the air display, and with the thought in mind that we have not been to the seaside at all in England, I really wanted to get to the beach overlooking the English Channel.  We were told that from Rye Harbor there was a walkway to the sea.  The nice lady at the Tourist Information office gave us the bus schedule to get to and from Rye Harbor from Rye, but also said we could walk if we wanted.  When we saw the sign that said "Rye Harbor 1&1/2 miles" and since by now the sun was shining we thought a good ole stretch of the legs sounded fine.  NOT.  The first half mile or so of the narrow road didn't have sidewalks, so we had to scoot to the shoulder whenever a car came by.  The rest of the walk - which seemed at least 3 miles - was, in a word, ugly.  No scenery to speak of; instead we passed storage facilities, factories, and a water treatment plant.  I did my best to convince Chris that once we reached our destination, waiting for us surely would be a picturesque harbor well worth the effort.  He never did believe me and good thing, as what awaited us was nothing worth even taking a picture of.  We did find the walkway to the beach and started to walk it, but quickly realized that making it all the way to the beach would mean missing the last bus back to Rye and we just couldn't justify making the walk back.  So a seaside scene still waits for us somewhere along the coast of England.

We did make it back to Rye by bus, then walked the town a bit more and had "a cuppa" at a nice little tea shop before  heading back to the hotel.  Have I yet mentioned the hotel?  Quite a place, the Mermaid Inn of Rye.  Thought to be built in about 1156 (then rebuilt in 1420, following the burning of the town by the French in the late 1300's), much of the authentic details and decor from that era remain.   During the 18th century, the Inn was a well known harbinger of smugglers who caroused and smoked their pipes and did unspeakable deeds, to be sure.  In 1982, Elizabeth, the Queen Mother stayed at the Mermaid  upon her installment as Warden of the Cinque Ports (of which Rye was a member.)  Alas, the room we stayed in was, I'm sure, far from any of the grandeur the Queen Mother probably experienced.  It really didn't seem to have been updated since the original plumbing and electricity were installed - and who knows when that was.  The bathroom and bedspread both looked to be circa 1970 - not a year known for it's forward thinking interior designs.  We did eat at the very lovely and atmospheric restaurant for dinner, but again, disappointingly, the service was very stuffy and the food, tho presented beautifully, was only mediocre.

All was not lost, tho' because the pub was pretty awesome.  From the hops hanging from the ceiling, to the fireplace that took up an entire wall, you could almost imagine the Highwaymen over the years who must surely have come knocking, knocking, knocking up to that old inn door.  Now is a good time to mention another tidbit about the Mermaid Inn and its history of harboring smugglers.  One of the most famous was a man named Christopher Syn, who was immortalized in the classic Wonderful World of Disney series, "The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh", which any baby boomer worth his or her salt will remember.  Click here!  The town of Rye sits in the wetland area of Wallend Marsh, part of the bigger Romney Marsh.

Sunday started with a nice breakfast at the hotel (same stuffy service, tho') then a walk around in a bit of rain to do some shopping and visit the Rye Castle Museum and Ypres Tower, originally built as a fortress in 1249.  To be honest, exhibits at both of these places (to which you can buy an inexpensive joint ticket) are somewhat amateurish at best, with displays of folding particle board (like you might see at a school science fair) and facts typed on paper, laminated, and taped on the wall in some cases.  It all just felt a bit sad in a way, which was underscored when we inquired about purchasing some  pottery, for which Rye is known, and were told that most of the potters have gone out of business and their goods hard to come by.  We definitely got the sense that the tourism industry is Rye's bread and butter, and that the community - like many others - is dealing with underfunding in some important areas.

So despite a few glitches, I would completely recommend a day or overnight trip to Rye.  We enjoyed ourselves, and could almost smell the salty air... sigh.

https://picasaweb.google.com/swronsky/Rye?feat=directlink

Kew

Kew Gardens are the Royal Botanic Gardens in London.  I've been meaning to visit, and as we recently had an above 80 degree day, we took advantage.

They are a lot like Longwood Gardens near Meg (outside of Philly) but a lot more acreage.  I really didn't caption the names of the plants for the most part - except for some of the heritage trees.  Some of them you will know, as I did; a lot you won't, as I didn't, but they were all lovely.  The Brits really do know how to turn a spade - the gardens here are outstanding!  The first botanic garden at Kew was established in 1759 and despite a down period during the 19th century, it's been "growing" ever since.

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Oxford & the Cotswolds

It was already nearly 2 weeks ago when Chris & I took advantage of the 3-day annual End of May Bank Holiday weekend (there's a mouthful) and took the train to Oxford, a stop that's been on the list since day One.  Once again, I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the place, both the amazing architecture of the ancient buildings and the impeccably kept gardens.  Oxford is of course the home of Oxford University, which is itself made up of over 30 different colleges.  Nearly everywhere you walk you are within yards of a campus, with varying names such as Trinity, Wadham, Nuffield, and the most famous, Christ Church.

We arrived in the rain to a very unpromising weather forecast but vowed to make the best of it.  Our hotel was probably the most unique of all of our stays so far - a former prison.  Originally part of the Oxford Castle, which dates back to 1071, the facility was actually a working prison up until 1996.  I read after the fact that executions did take place there in medieval times - kind of glad I didn't know that little snippet until after we were safely checked out.  The developers used the old elements of the jail wherever they could, but they stopped short of locking us in our rooms at night.  It was a rather cool place.

After checking in we ventured off in the rain to find our recommended lunch spot and had a nice meal overlooking the Oxford Canal.  We decided to take our time eating as we started to catch some hints of the sky brightening, and sure enough, by the time we were through the sun was making a valiant effort to shine through the clouds, and eventually it won as you'll see in the pictures.  We spent the rest of the afternoon strolling and just looking at all of the beautiful scenery around us.  After unpacking at the hotel, we later walked to a nice little French bistro for dinner.  On the walk back we encountered lots of students in sweatshirts and flip flops, drinking beer and having fun and it was clear that in the end, Oxford is after all very much a college town.

The next day we opted to stroll into town for breakfast at a cozy little cafe, then got down to some serious sightseeing.  First stop was the Botanic Gardens and they were gorgeous.  We got rained upon just a teensy bit a the start but were able to duck into the green houses; the rest of the visit was dry, and then the sun was back out (more or less) for the rest of the day.  Story of my British life!  Many - but not all - of the colleges in Oxford are open for touring so we picked just two to actually pay and go into.  The first was Magdalen College (for obvious reasons) (although the correct pronunciation is "Maudlin" - hmph) and the second was Christ Church, being the most well known.  Really, how could I visit Oxford and not take in the very sight of where scenes from the first few "Harry Potter" movies were filmed? Both campuses were beautiful and worth the few quid it cost us to get inside.

After some pub snacks we continued to walk around the city and literally happened into an alleyway that happened to hold The Chequers - a pub where Chris happened to discover his favorite English beer!  What are the odds of that?  (It's called Thornbridge Ashford, by the way.)  So we were diverted for a bit.  Then we set off for a river walk along the Thames and back to the hotel.  Dinner was tapas at a chain Spanish restaurant, but it was right next to the hotel and we were tired.  We had decided earlier in the day to poo-poo the dire weather forecast for Monday (we'd been happily misled so far) and booked a van tour of the Cotswolds which we looked forward to as we went to bed.

And of course we woke up to rain that didn't stop the entire day.

But it was OK, because the tour was still lovely, despite the miserable weather!  I can only imagine how this "Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty" looks on a sunny day.  An "AONB" as it's called is an actual designation by the British Government of "a precious landscape whose distinctive character and natural beauty are so outstanding that it is in the nation's interest to safeguard them."  I just love how British that is!  So anyway, the Cotswolds are a designated AONB.  A well deserved designation for this region of southwest England, consisting of villages, hills and rolling pastures, a "cot" being a sheep enclosure, and a "wold" being a hill.  This place is full of both.


We were in a van with a very informed guide, John, and 2 couples from France who spoke little English (which was nice as we were more in the mood to sight-see than chit-chat.)  John drove us through picturesque villages with awesome names, like "Bourton-on-the-Water", "Stow-on-the-Wold", and "Moreton-in-Marsh"which coincidentally is the same village Dad & Darlene stayed in on their train tour.  The scenery was amazing, especially when we stopped at a few of the mentioned villages and toured a church, ate lunch or just strolled along the High Street.  I recently enrolled Chris & I in The National Trust, which has several properties in and around the Cotswolds.  I hope to get the chance to go back, perhaps on our own, perhaps on a better day weather-wise as it really was outstanding.


Then it was back to Oxford, back on the train, and back to London.  Another item crossed off the Ole' British Bucket List.


Pix in 2 separate albums:
https://picasaweb.google.com/swronsky/Oxford?feat=directlink
https://picasaweb.google.com/swronsky/Cotwolds?feat=directlink