Lately I have been thinking about the differences between small town USA, where we used to live, and a village in the Cotswolds, where we live now. I have been comparing my daily life here and to my life in the US. The differences are not big, but there are differences and I think they are caused by the way the towns and villages are situated here. The physical layout of this place affects how … Continue reading
We spent much of this year looking at houses for rent. We had not intended to stay longer than a year in the first cottage we rented, but we ended up staying a year and a half because we could not find something that we liked better. I came to England with a North American sensibility towards housing. It did not matter that I had stayed in many vacation rentals on many vacations. I did … Continue reading
Last year in England it was sunny and warm – even hot on some days – from mid-May to mid-September. Our rain jackets never left the boot of our car. I wore short sleeves all summer long. It rained for a few days in July, but we were traveling in France and missed it. For us it was the perfect British Summer. But people said it was not a good summer. The school holiday schedule … Continue reading
We were here in the Cotswolds four winters ago. January was cold and it snowed once, but it melted the next day. In February we had spring-like weather. We were test-driving England in winter and it passed. However, each winter since has been cold and snowy. This country is not prepared for snow. It seems like people hope these three cold winters are coincidence and not a change in weather patterns. The snow falls and much … Continue reading
If I have to be up early for some reason, I set the alarm, but I always wake up ten minutes before it goes off. My internal body clock keeps track of the time. It is the same with flights. We were scheduled to fly back to Colorado last week. We decided at the end of June that we were going to stay until next May (or longer), but I kept our booking in case … Continue reading
People are really into their gardens here, and by “garden” I mean what I would call a “yard”. I figured out this wordplay recently. To me, a garden is a part of your yard where you grow flowers or vegetables, but here “garden” means the area surrounding your house and “yard” is a measurement. This is just one of the verbal mistakes that I make here on a daily basis. I am at that point … Continue reading
Summer in England 2010 – one of my best summers ever. The weather has been perfect and we have walked miles and miles through the Cotswolds. In the last few weeks we have had some overcast days, some drizzle and now there are hints of fall in the air. Today was warm and sunny and felt like June, but rain is heading our way tomorrow. Wendy and Richard were visiting for the weekend and as … Continue reading
One of the things that I love about traveling in England is the density of historic sites to visit. Last week our friends Wendy and Richard were visiting from London, so we decided to do some local exploring. We have all traveled in this area and have seen most of the villages and historic sites, so I pulled out my Cotswold guidebooks and maps to find some things we had not seen. This is what … Continue reading
In many ways living in England is very much like living in the US, but there are small differences. The longer I stay in a new place, the more I get used to things and forget the differences, so I am making a few notes here while I still see them. I have been working on this post for two weeks and am giving up and publishing when I still have a lot more to … Continue reading
For the past several years Steve and I have been planning to do “A Year in England”. We love England for many reasons – the beautiful countryside, the abundance of good walking and hiking trails, the charming villages, the people, the tea – and we want to do a longer stay. We spent five months in England in the late 1980s (fall and winter) but did not return until 2000 when we spent a month … Continue reading