Hello From The Cotswolds

In December I wrote a post on the places I’m hoping to visit in 2018 and now (only a few months in), I can finally cross off the first one! I went to the Cotswolds – even if you are not from the UK and the name doesn’t ring a bell, chances are you’ve seen pictures of the quaint brick houses in fairy tale-like villages where people seem to live the slow life.

48 Hours in the Cotswolds

And things are definitely slower in the Cotswolds – I get frustrated when I miss a tube/bus and have to wait 5 minutes – but if you miss the bus there you’re stuck for at least an hour if you’re lucky. A taxi came to the rescue and I was joined for a cab share with a local for a short ride to Stow-on-the-Wold where I learned that the recently opened Aldi and hospital are the talk of the day.

Cotswolds are a popular blogger destination so I have read a post here and there, but what no one mentioned was the noise pollution from the constant stream of cars, which is understandable as it’s the main way of going from A to B, but it does take away from the fairy tale/slow life feel.

”Speak, friend, and enter. ” The doors of the St Edwards Church inspired Tolkien’s Doors of Durin – the gates of Moria. Thankfully there was not a monster-filled mine behind these doors, but just a small, peaceful religious spot. It’s also worth noting that a pub in the nearby Moreton-in-Marsh inspired the Middle Earth’s most famous drinking hole, the Prancing Pony Inn. St. Edwards Church is only a few minutes away from the main square and a must stop, even if you are not a Tolkien fan, just to appreciate how the mastery of combining large trees into the architecture.

As I had time to kill before the hotelroom was ready I had the option to go to a pub, have an afternoon tea or walk to the nearby village of Broadwell. As the weather was great and I wanted to find that slow life I went for the walk, which was an easy one – mud is probably your only obstacle, plus the fact that the alpacas on the route are not interested in you and will avoid any form of communication (ghosted right!?). Broadwell itself is tiny, with one main street with a church, bus stop, lots of B&B places and one inn.

My favourite bit of Broadwell was watching these sheep – the one on top of the stone wall seemed to be on an adventure of his own and braved a perilous walk on the wall instead of taking the longer safe route on the ground. Better than anything Netflix released in the last 3 months.

During most of my teenage years I worked in a country hotel/restaurant that would fit the boutique hotel category these days and I love staying in similar places that bring back these memories. The Old Stock Inn did all of that and came with a lovely interior and map art work adorning its walls. There are restaurants/traditional inns in Stow and the rest of the area where you can head to for your lunch/dinner and as well as more afternoon tea place than Pret-A-Manger’s in Central London, but I opted for dinner at the Old Stock Inn where they focus on regional and seasonal dishes. I couldn’t be more happy about the onion tarte tatin and the beetroot/goats cheese starter.

The walking trails to nearby villages are adventures on their own as you have no idea where it will bring you next – Google Maps hasn’t caught up yet, but that’s a good thing. The yellow arrows on gates and fences will lead you from walking next to the main road to a muddy meadow where the horses and sheep come and greet you. More than once you’ll start to doubt the trail and your map and wonder if they are real walking trails or if the farmer will wait for you with a pitchfork. They didn’t.

Which destinations have you crossed off your 2018 list?

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One Comment

  1. I lived in Gloucestershire for a few years and loved visiting the Cotswold villages, especially Stow on the Wold. Your pictures make me want to go back!