Leaving London for the Cotswolds

We took a big, 3 day adventure west of London through the Cotswolds. This is an area which is rural and some farming with awesome little towns. We started by going to Avesbury which is the little sister to Stonehenge. It was fascinating seeing the stones and their formations. We also had lunch in a cute pub and our table was built over an old well! We had to get the infamous fish and chips of England. Then we continued on to Bath and spent a few hours in a spa swimming and relaxing. The city itself was very traditional and beautiful in its antiquity. Then we continued on to the De Vere Tortworth estate where we spent the night. It is an old estate built around 1850 turned into a hotel. This was the coolest, feeling like English royalty. We had a nice dinner there. The next morning we enjoyed squeezing our own orange juice. It was delicious! Then we went outside and explored the grounds and took some pictures. It was really like staying in a castle. 

Then we continued on to more of the Cotswolds. We went to Burton on the water, which was our favorite of all the towns. A cute area with shops and walking and the little river goes right through the town. Then we went to Oxford and took a walking tour, Learned about CS Lewis, JRR Tolkien, Oscar Wilde, Lewis Carroll, and filming sites for Harry Potter. We walked around several of the colleges and saw Christ’s church college where they filmed the outside parts of Harry Potter and the entrance doors. We walked around Mary Magdalene college where CS Lewis taught and Oscar Wilde went to school. They have a beautiful cloister and grounds. We also walked around Merton college (Tolkien) and Exeter college (Tolkien). We had dinner at Eagle and Child, which was really good food and met 2 men from the US and had a nice visit with them. One was speaking at Oxford.We got to sit and eat in the Rabbit room where Tolkien and Lewis and their Inkling group would meet every Tuesday. We got macaroni and cheese and an English sampler plate with breaded poached eggs, (scotch eggs), sausage, We stayed at the Cotswold Lodge hotel that night in Oxford.

The next morning we did a run through Oxford, down by Christ’s church and the covered market which has been there since 1774. We also saw the Carfax tower where they would ring the bell to alert the townspeople of things. The Vikings came via the river and took all their gold. There is a big division between the townspeople and the university (gowns).   Cotswold places, Broadway tower, Bibury, a cute little town with old houses and a small river though it. Old cottages. Then to Burton for afternoon tea. It was so good and very filling! We walked around there and they had some cute shops. 

Broadway Tower

Official English Tea

After tea we headed back to London. We met Dave and Jarrett to see Aladdin which was so good! The sets were amazing, especially in the cave of wonders. There was also a little magic which was cool. Our favorite characters were Jaffar and the genie. They were great! Then we went for a late dinner at a German restaurant and had Schnichel and German sausage. We stayed at the Nadlar Kensington hotel that night.

Day 7: We got up early for a run through Kensington garden and Hyde park, saw the speakers corner and the fountain, and the lake. It is a beautiful park similar to Central park. 

Mark was able to set up a tour of Lloyd’s of London where insurance started. It was so neat to go in the building and see them work. Lots of companies each in a different area and selling all sorts of insurance. Our tour guide does specialty insurance for special events, bands on tour, etc. He also told us that the company almost went under because of 9/11 and all the money they had to pay out. Mark got to sit and watch him work and see the goings on. It reminded us of wall street. Then we headed up the street to Spitalfield market where there are a lot of small artisan shops. We had lunch at Giraffe which was also delicious. I got a burger and fries that were similar to tater tots and they were topped with cheese and shredded beef. We also got some smoothies that were very tasty. Mark got Huevos Rancheros. After that we went to the Tower of London and saw the crown jewels. It is unbelievable how much is there! We also learned a story of the two princes who were killed there secretly so his uncle could reign as king. After that we headed to St. Paul’s Cathedral for evensong. That church is enormous and the singing was beautiful. Then we met Dave & Jarrett for dinner at the Queen’s Head. We got fish and chips and a meat pie. It has been amazing how good the food is everywhere we go! After dinner we  went to Matilda the Musical. She was a great actress and all the kids were so impressive. Our favorite was Mrs. Trunchbull (played by a man) and Mr. Wormwood and Henry Bogtrotter. It was a great production.