England 2007: Post archive.

Full trip report:

• London 01: London life.
• London 02: London loves.
• London 03: Revisiting Maida Vale.
• London 04: Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea!


• Cotswolds 01: An overview.
• Cotswolds 02: Walking.
• Cotswolds 03: In between walks.
• Cotswolds 04: Gardens and more gardens.


• Photos: Censored!

UK 2007: Photos.

I think we covered just about everything. ;) But, there are still loads of photos if anyone is interested. Look if you dare, I narrowed over 1,200 photos to just under 500. Enjoy!

London
The Cotswolds

England: Censored!

We got the chance to officially begin "the accidental tourist" photo series on this trip, as well. We busted out the black bar glasses and censored ourselves like crazy in the UK. My personal favorite has to be Shawn stomping out the Model Village in Bourton-on-the-Water. Ha ha!

London 4: Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea!

On Saturday we were fortunate enough to attend a Premiership game for our favorite team, Chelsea! Entering the stadium (Stamford Bridge), it was awesome to see the sea of blue and witness the singing of the fans in person. We were able to hit the Chelsea Megastore beforehand, where you can buy anything from a player's jersey to a dog dish adorned with a Chelsea insignia.

Chelsea was playing Blackburn, who features US Team goalkeeper Brad Friedel. The game was sold out (41,000 in attendance) and our seats were high up on the east side. Leg room was nonexistent, but the steep angle made for nice viewing. Oddly to us, Brits don't go to sporting events with the sole intention of eating junk food and drinking beer. In fact, they couldn't even if they wanted to! Due to hooliganism, beer is quarantined to a small area near the toilets under the stadium. It certainly felt strange without any vendors strolling the aisles.

The fans were great, with loads of chanting, cheering, and excitement. We heard many Russian voices (Chelsea is owned by Russians), but the kids in the crowd were the most entertaining. One boy, in addition to yelling "time wasters!" every time a Blackburn player went down on a foul, pulled out his own yellow card for infractions. The game ended up tied nil-nil, which was a bit of an upset for Blackburn. After the game we hit a nearby pub full of Chelsea fans and had pints of refreshing Kronenbourg 1664 Blanc.


The entrance to Stamford Bridge, Chelsea's stadium.


Us, amongst a sea of blue. It was such a cool feeling walking down the street and suddenly running into loads of fans. Similar to walking into Fenway actually...


Brad Friedel: Blackburn goalkeeper and former US Team starter


This particular night, we got to see 3 England national players in action for Chelsea: John Terry, Joe Cole, and Ashley Cole.


At halftime, they sprinkled the field. Immediately after the game, a brigade of lawn mowers hit the field.


Shawn with Neil


At the end of the match, "Chelsea" started appearing when fans left their seats.

London 3: Revisiting Maida Vale.

When we returned to London from the Cotswolds, we spent the rest of the afternoon walking some more--just in the city this time. We first revisited the part of town I lived in during my brief overseas study in 1995, Maida Vale. Since the neighborhood is also where my invitation business name came from, I wanted to get some photos outside of the underground station. More importantly, I wanted to show Shawn this part of town, as well.

We wandered a bit and randomly came across the pub my classmates and I drank at frequently. Shawn and I stopped in for a drink and I ordered my new favorite summertime drink, Pimm's & Lemonade (sometimes also referred to as a Pimm's Cup). It's a bit like drinking a salad, but oh-so-refreshing!

After our refreshing beverage, we walked over to see Abbey Road Studios. The front gates are covered in graffiti from all over the world. It's a pretty neat tribute that is amazingly up-to-date. We figured the walls must get painted at least once a year given the recent dates by each signee's name. After reading some of these love notes, we crossed over Abbey Road alongside many other tourists there for the exact same reason.

Happy to see Maida Vale is still good stuff.



Inside the lovely old pub at The Warrington Hotel, Maida Vale.


Mmm, Pimm's & Lemonade.


Part of the Warrington's beer garden.


Instant classic.



The gates outside of Abbey Road Studios.

The Cotswolds: Gardens and more gardens.

As if all of that natural beauty wasn't enough, the Cotswolds are also lousy with beautiful gardens! One of our walking itineraries included a stop at Hidecote Manor Gardens. The gardens were actually developed by an American expat, Lawrence Johnston, over several decades. His vision of creating different "rooms" was executed to an impressive degree. Large, uniquely trimmed shrubbery separated several of these outdoor rooms, each with their own theme (tropical, roses, etc.). Because of our tight bus schedule, we couldn't spend more than two hours at the garden. That may seem like a lot of time, but we barely scratched the surface!

The Cotswolds: In between walks.

Each walk took us to a different town (or two) in The Cotswolds [view a map]. Of the seven we visited, here is how we rank them (along with a little recap of each):

1. Bourton-on-the-Water
Our favorite by far! Bourton is one of the most touristed of the towns, but there is good reason for it. Fortunately, we travelled in the "shoulder season". The weather was great, but the crowds were not as heavy as they might be in the height of summer. We spent several hours exploring the neighborhood streets, enjoying tea and scones, checking out the shops, drinking beer, and visiting the Model Village. Until we saw Hot Fuzz this spring, we had never heard of a Model Village, but after we knew we had to see one for ourselves. It was a riot. And there was even a model village of the model village inside of the model village!







2. Snowshill
See the previous post.

3. Chipping Campden
We spent two nights in charming Chipping Campden (pronounced Cam-den). The main street was a continuous row of honey-colored cuteness. Several houses had actual thatched roofs. It became obvious as we visited the shops and pubs why the English aren't typically very tall--the ceilings were all super low. We watched an England national soccer game in a pub with such low ceilings and limestone for walls. On our final evening, the owner of our B&B invited us to see their family's sheep. It was so cool. The sheep all came running towards us when they saw her approaching. We were able to pet them a bit and learn their names. So sweet!




4. Stow-on-the-Wold
We spent our first two nights in Stow. When we arrived at 7:00 the first evening, we discovered that everything (except the pubs and restaurants) had shut down for the evening. We headed to a small pub where we immediately got a real feeling of community. Locals had the front section reserved for card playing and socializing. When one guy came in, the bartender called him by name and asked if he wanted the "usual". We packed in the back with other tourists and had a nice steak-and-ale pie. The best part about Stow for us was meeting the owner of our B&B. He had loads of opinions to share with us in his witty, sarcastic English way. Plus, he made a kickass full English breakfast for us, too.

5. Broadway
The walk into Broadway was so fantastic that my expectations for it soared. The town's main street was quite a wide thoroughfare, though, with a lot of traffic buzzing around. I was a bit disenchanted with the vibe created as a result. We did, however, find a really cool little shop where we bought a swell tin to store our tea in.

6 & 7. Lower Slaughter & Mickleton
These towns ended up being quick stopping points along the way on our walks. Lower Slaughter was tiny, but lovely, with a sweet little stream, bridges, and a church right alongside the footpath we were following. If we had only had more time, we could have literally spent weeks exploring this part of the country.

The Cotswolds: Walking.

As I mentioned in my previous post, our main motivation for choosing the Cotswolds as our countryside destination was the ease with which you can travel on foot in the area. Many experienced travellers will insist that renting a car is necessary if you're going to visit the area, but we decided to challenge this notion. Utilizing trains, car services, buses and our own two feet, our plan succeeded with very few glitches along the way.

So, we walked. We walked an average of 6 miles per day through valleys, down small streets, across pastures, alongside sheep and other livestock. The villages are close in distance. The ones we visited were roughly 3-4 miles apart. In three days of hiking, we visited seven picturesque towns with wacky names: Stow-on-the-Wold, Lower Slaughter, Bourton-on-the-Water, Chipping Campden, Mickleton, Snowshill, and Broadway. Descriptions follow the photos below:


The many footpaths that run through the Cotswolds are noted with small markers (see above) on fence posts. We were primarily on The Gloucestershire Way and The Cotswold Way. Beer fanatics will be happy to know that there is even a trail (The Donnington Way) to lead walkers to pubs serving the local ale. If only we had known...


Because most of the trails run through privately owned fields, walkers must pass through gates or hop over fences. This was one of our favorite parts of the walks. Each gate or fence we passed was another accomplishment along the way.


The footpaths guided us inside of fields with cows, horses, sheep, and wild birds. It was so ridiculously picturesque that I often found myself cursing in disbelief.


Although the footpaths are well-marked for the most part, we were thrilled to have our #45 Cotwolds Ordnance Map along for reassurance that we weren't getting lost. A compass might have been a good idea, too...



We walked far and wide to get to Snowshill. This town was another filming location for Bridget Jones' Diary. Perched atop the side of a hill, Snowshill was glowing. It is the kind of place that has one place to eat: the pub. We stopped for lunch, drank in the scenery, and headed on our way.



Again, many of the footpaths took us right through sheep fields. One thing I hadn't considered before leaving was the fact that we might encounter some poo along the way. Even if I had thought of it, the sheer number of poo patties right along the trail was shocking. I took my open-toe walking shoes and navigated some fields as if they were filled with landmines! Strangely enough, we also came across an elderly woman dumping one off in the woods along the trail, as well.



If you're interested in visiting the Cotswolds:
The primary thing we learned is that the car services in such rural areas are not reliable and absolutely requires advance planning. Otherwise, a driver might respond to a call by saying he can't come for several hours because of a previous engagement such as a doctor's appointment. The buses doesn't run too frequently either, but careful planning can make a holiday on foot in the Cotswolds do-able.

The Cotswolds: An overview.

We spent four of our nine nights out in the English countryside, something I've been dreaming about for awhile. =) We chose to visit the Cotswolds, an "area of outstanding natural beauty" just under two hours outside of London. One of our main motivations for visiting this part of the country was the abundance of public footpaths that lead you through private farm land, gorgeous pastures, and adorable honey-colored towns. In many ways, it reminded me of Tuscany--super laid back, rich with people proud of their hometowns, and full of amazing scenery. I was particularly pleased with the fact that we were fully immersed in day-to-day English life. London is so diverse that overhearing a British accent seems novel there. In the Cotswolds, we were engaged with the locals--chatting with them on the streets, drinking with them in the pubs, and having tea in their gardens. It was everything I expected and more. Specific, detailed posts to follow.



Above: Stow-on-the-Wold, where we spent our first two nights in the English countryside. The church door is said to be Tolkien's inspiration for the door into Moria.


Above: Our plan to frequently drink tea and eat clotted cream with scones went accordingly!





Above: Chipping Campden, our stop for the other two nights.