The March photo on the Slow Europe Home Page, taken last summer in the Cotswolds (England), is a Norman doorway in the church in Windrush. The day I took that photo, we visited two villages with exceptional churches – Swinbrook and Windrush. Swinbrook Swinbrook, a small village on the River Windrush east of Burford, was made famous by the Mitford sisters who grew up in nearby Asthall in the early part of the 20th century … Continue reading
My favorite part of the English countryside is the Cotswolds, an AONB (Area of Outstanding National Beauty) in the heart of England, two hours west of London, between the popular tourist destinations of Bath (to the south) and Stratford-upon-Avon (to the north). The Cotswolds has picture-perfect English countryside with gentle rolling hills, fields of crops, large wooded areas and valleys carved out by flowing rivers. Tucked away in these valleys are historic Cotswold villages, with golden Cotswold stone … Continue reading
We are having a fantastic vacation, but I have not felt like blogging. Well, I have felt like blogging, but have not made the time for it. I will summarize what we have done so far and then try to fill it out a bit later. This is the first trip in years that I have not kept a daily journal and I look back over a week and cannot remember what we did. It … Continue reading
Hotel Review by Wendy Ashworth, May 2009 Lords of the Manor, 4-star hotel in Upper Slaughter in the Cotswolds, England In December 2008 Wendy and her husband Richard spent a weekend at the Lords of the Manor hotel in Upper Slaughter, in the Cotswolds (England). Arrival at Lords of the Manor Upon arrival we were greeted and welcomed most warmly and shown up to our room: Chadlington at the far end of the group of … Continue reading
The Cotswolder Accommodations section is launched! This section has my list of favorite vacation rental resources for the Cotswolds, notes on what to expect in English vacation rentals, reviews of places we have stayed, lists of best towns for hotels and B&Bs, and recommendations of places to stay when flying in or out of London airports. I have not listed all vacation rental agencies for the Cotswolds, but have listed the ones that I think are … Continue reading
We left the Nailsworth cottage on Monday around noon and drove to Gatwick. It was a three hour trip: two and a half hour drive, half an hour at a M&S motorway stop for a sandwich. This was my first time driving this close to London and on the M25 (London area ring road). The driving is more intense closer to London – more cars, faster drivers – and the roundabouts are less casual. You … Continue reading
The last week of a long trip is always a strange time for me. When we first started taking yearly trips to Europe in 1996, they were eight to ten weeks long. A few years later, when we were both busy with work, we shortened our travel time and took four to five week trips. This year I wanted a long trip, a mini “moving there” experience, so we did a nine week trip. Instead … Continue reading
A quick post to say what a great trip we are having! We had a week of sunshine and mild weather, but now it has turned colder. Today was sunny, but cold. Our friends Valerie and Bryan, who used to live near us in Albuquerque but now live in Italy, came for the weekend during the great weather. We spent a day touring this area, a day up to Stow-on-the-Wold exploring that area, and a … Continue reading
Eight weeks seems like a long time when you are booking it, but now that we are here the time is going by in a flash. We are already past the half way point and I don’t even know Nailsworth yet, let alone the Cotswolds. On Saturday we walked across town to the Ruskin and Horsley Mills on the south side of town. They are in a narrow river valley with pretty neighborhoods of old … Continue reading
The weather has been wonderful for over a week. There was a bit of rain last night, but before that our last rain was a week ago Monday in London. I don’t even bother bringing my rain jacket on hikes. But this changes tomorrow and I am ready for some rain. I am reading a great book: Sebastian Faulks “Engleby” (2007). I am knitting mittens – trying the knitting them flat pattern vs. knitting in … Continue reading