10-25. Today a walk / church day including wandering along the Thames past the London Eye viewing the skyline of London, walking across the Tower bridge past the Tower of London finally sauntering along the boulevard back home. The churches included Westminster Cathedral - the grand place grand things happen in London - marriages, coronations, burials, etc. then St Paul's Cathedral - we think it is the  most spectacular and it is a push which is bigger. We also discovered that fast food and Starbucks has taken over London; every block has a Starbucks and at least two fast food places, and Londoners like to play dress-up, we've seen many penguins walking around.
10-24.  A travel day we packed, then the 15 minute trip to the Weymouth station and the train to London. Arriving in Waterloo Station we were advised to take the tube to Green Park Station then were told to go to Victoria Station; of course, now that we are tube wizards it was no sweat - except the luggage schlepping part. We arrived at our new home, The Crown Plaza Hotel, a fancy schmancy place that's costing less than most of our previous stays because London prepped itself for the Olympics and now has a serious excess of lodging. The rest of the day spent wandering through the big sights - Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, the Parliamentary Building, the London Eye, etc. etc. Unfortunately, part of the hotels business plan is to make money on the Internet connection - $10 a day, so we passed, and are waiting for an Internet cafe. 

10-23 a casual day, we hung around plotting and planning and scheming until dog time; This was the time when we gathered up 8 dogs - 2 whippets, a greyhound, 4 mutts, and an English Bulldog;  only one, Basil, belonged to Rick - and took them for a romp down to the beach. Muck, and slush, and goo still abound so people take care, dogs have fun. Shortly after our discussion of the basic nature of the English Bulldog and decided nurture over nature, I was playing with one of the whippets when the Bulldog joined in- perhaps not totally understanding what play is.  Within moments he bit my leg, let go then bit the other, pulling back and tearing my britches. He wasn't mad, just wanted to play, however, he got a serious scolding for it. After returning the dogs we headed for Weymouth, a lovely coastal town, to be tourists, wander the streets, and alleys, and liste n to Rick's stories about the place (He grew up here). Then on to Portland, a modest sized island just off the coast of Weymouth that contains a couple lighthouses, a Napoleonic era jail, and a fair amount of urban sprawl. Finally out to a 5 star restaurant to celebrate our last night here - 5 stars because we 5 star people were in it - and partook of English fare: lamb shank, fish pie, Dorset apple cake, bread and butter pudding. Finally we watched a DVD of Rick's Slovenia trek, whilst scratching Basil covering our clothes with the added warmth of dog hair.

10-22 A foggy day, in Weymouth Town (A song), and it didn't clear, however you may recall "There's no bad weather just bad clothes", so we dressed appropriately and were off to Stonehenge. We wandered through old English country, hill and dale, and hamlet, etc. discovering many charming sights along the way. In one we happened by a thatcher; indeed, he was thatching a roof! The process is much like putting tiles on a roof except you're using small bundles of thatch (looks like long straw). We were told the roof will last 25 - 30 years, and cost around $13 a square foot. Then on to Stonehenge where we, and several busloads of others listened to our personal hand held talk on its history. It was impressive considering its age - 5000 years - and the picnic area proved quite useful. Then on to the Salisbury Cathedral, a really big Catholic Church with one of the four copies of the Magna Carta, which of course as you all remember is considered the first human rights legal document:) then to a really big food store where we bought more stuff to eat; back home, an English chicken dinner and conversation. One good day after another:)

10/21  drove to Dorchester and Sherbourne castle. Toured the inside- lots of slick furnishings including a clever chair that turned into a step ladder for retrieving books from the 9 foot high shelves. Then toured the gardens and 

lake with dogs in tow and ate picnic by lake in beautiful surroundings.  Then off to Winspit where we hiked out to a rock quarry, returning in dark-luckily Phil had intelligently brought his handy torch. Then to pub - Square and Compass, for drinks and pub food - pies " a pub quiche" and lemonade/coffee. Neat atmosphere and dogs all around (Spider and Harry). Another great day.

10/20.  Went by car and hiking to Durdle Door, a rock arch along the beach with waves crashing through it, then on to Lulorth -a lovely seaside area with a promontory called Bat's head. Accompanying  us were Basil and Bob (a greyhound mix) Then ice cream and off to Twynham (a village that was evacuated during the second world war and never lived in again), enjoying our picnic lunch before visiting the town- the schoolhouse has been well maintained looking much like it did 70 years ago. Then walked down to the beach cliff, hung around until sunset taking photos, back on the road to drop off Bob and walk to neighbors house for dinner with Mike and Rita and another dog named Archie. Had takeout Chinese (we're doing a lot of Chinese food), and Phil and Mike had lengthy and interesting discussion about Reiki. Lovely evening. 

10/19  Caught train from Moreton on Marsh to Weymouth.    Rick picked us up with his dog Basil The Wonder Dog (A wonder dog because: he spends most of his nights sleeping in the back of Rick's car parked out in front of the house, nothing bothers him, and I mean nothing, and he is an expert at energy conservation walking only when absolutely necessary) and took us along the seafront and to the supermarket where we stocked up on lots of goodies.  On to his very nice, close to the beach house where he prepared a delicious pasta/meat dish dinner.  Then we were entertained with a DVD of Dorset area and of his Pakistan trek.

Note from yesterday: it hailed, fortunately observed from inside our B&B.
This day, the last walk of The Great Cotswold Circuit (Newly named by us), began with an extended conversation with some Canadian folks sharing breakfast, and the GCC. Then off we went leaving the well sign posted Cotswold Way, joining the Not so well marked Monarch Way, and got lost. We sought the advice of a nice lady and continued on the wrong path. After another half hour walking across fields and farm we asked the advice of three other nice ladies - they all agreed about where we were, so we believed them and set a course for what looked like a road. Dang, it wasn't - it was a working quarry, but after trying to slog through a treed hedgerow with no success we walked down along side it to a road and the trail:) then down to a small hamlet, Blockley, then on across flat farmland where we joined up with a couple of dozen dairy cows walking with some difficulty with  udderly full udders through muck, and slush, and poo arriving back in Morton-on-the-Marsh and the Treetop B&B. A wonder walk!

We're feeling phthisic, so today's short walk was appreciated. Starting in the 17th century house with no heat we walked back through town looking for the sign post we missed the previous day; to no avail, we missed it again and resorted to the old navigational technique - we asked someone. A sweet little old lady out on her daily constitutional walked most of the way back to the post and off we went up the hill again to Broadway Tower (You may recall a similar tower from yesterday, it's the same tower.) We finally found out where we went wrong, and after passing the tower again we zoomed down the other side without further error. Spectacular views abound as we followed the trail through  farms, along minor roads, into parks, and along streams; with no rain and modest wind the day was delightful ending with a grand view of Chipping- Camden and its surrounds. A short walk down the main street of the town we arrived at our 600 year old B&B.  Chipping Camden is billed as the loveliest of the Cotswold towns and although that's a somewhat subjective claim it certainly is beautiful and quaint.  Some very old buildings, mostly out of Cotswold stone, some with thatched roofs, make wandering the streets a real joy.  And of course we visited the two churches-one being the first Catholic church we've seen in England.

10/16  Last night was sick night; so we stayed in our adorable B&B room with huge bathroom and lovely radiant heat. We both worked hard to sleep with moderate success, so this morn was casual, slow, wander the town, check out the local pub before departure. It was windy and cold, so the chill was serious, but the air was clear and the sun warm. The walk was short, we charged up a hill onto a plateau with a serious view, then back down to an old church (I know, what, another church?!). Outside the church we met a local that told us about the original 13th century church down the road a mile, and the  tower on top of the hill behind it that overlooks the entire valley (Built by The Earl of Coventry so he could see all his property back in medieval times. The tower provides a view of 13 counties.) We opted for the extended walk, and it was great choice. The only down side was that we found out that tomorrow morning our trail goes back up to the tower, oh well it's good exercise. Broadway, our new home town, is billed as the showcase of the Cotswalds. The town is spread along the main road, originally Broadway, and lined with magnificent homes, oh yes, made of Cotswald stone, with handsome well manicured yards, and beautiful gardens.

10/15    Breakfast at the Inn, then to the bakery for bread and treats, and we're off  down the main road to the path to the country side. Out in farm land we walk along amongst sheep, and horses, and cows entering a field sign posted with "bull in field", that got Lynn's attention, and she spotted the big fella immediately. Fortunately he was lying down but the path went right by him and he decided to get up, a real task for his bulk. We negotiated our way through the crowd of females (and cowpies) and out to the gate before the big guy had time to get upset. On we went through sheep country. A word about poop: big plops of cow poop are easy to see and avoid, however, sheep droppings are much smaller and often hide under grass and weeds and in the mud so we waded through the muck, and the slush, and the goo with sheep poopy boots. A mile or so into the walk we joined the National Trail - The Cotswald Way. As a result sign posting improved immensely, and the written instructions became much less important. The trail lead us up and along the hills providing us with spectacular views of the hedge rows defining the quilted patern of the small farms covering the rolling verdant hills. Huge oak trees stood along the creeks and streams lacing through the fields creating a three dimensional effect to the pattern.  Along the way a thousand year old building made of Cotswald stone peaked out from behind the green to remind us of the long history of our surrounds. Then we arrived in Stanton, a post card little hamlet (thatched roofs!) with our 17th century B&B.  The lovely lady who owns it made Lynn a cuppa tea laced with lemon and whiskey for her incipient cold and it seems to be doing the trick.

10-14 Sunday

Breakfast at our pub wasn't until 8:30 so we we got fully packed before indulging in the morning meal. Then off through the center of town, maybe 10 buildings, and into frost covered country side, the sky's clear and still quite cold. Walking through 17th century farms with 17th century houses and 21st century equipment. Then through forest, and birds -lots of birds. The birds were ring necked pheasants and we saw more of them than I have seen total in all my life. The property we were walking through was estates, big estates, that placed pheasant feeders all over the estate, and I'm sure have big shooting parties during pheasant season. None the less, it was thrilling to have them running about, and taking to flight all around, often startling us. Then up and over a hill for the best view we've seen; grand panorama with the town of our destination right in the middle. Then on the the Suddeley castle, a 15th century affair with lots of intrigue including Henry 8th and his women, at least one buried in the castle ( Katherine Parr-his widow). Then on to Winchcombe, and our White Hart Inn, a 17th century building, pub on the ground, rooms on the first floor - very charming.

10-13 back through the town we stopped for resupply - bread, cheese, cookies - and off we went in the crisp clear morning air along the Windrush Way, along the Windrush River; a glorious beginning. Pheasants love it here in the Cotswalds, they're everywhere. Soon we get lost, but happily because we got to wander through some very lovely forest- twice because we had to go back, then on down the now Mud-on-the-Boots trail with sticks to assure that only our boots got muddy. After an hour or so we were joined by a gaggle (maybe 20) locals out doing their Satuday exercise. We bumped into them several times along the trail. Around lunch time we were in Naunton, a small hamlet with a church where we ate, and read grave stones whilst gazing out upon the glorious and charming surrounds. Now raining we moved on over hill and dale, and farm, and the occasional metalled path - English for paved street. Finally reaching Guiting Power, and our home for the night; The Hollow Bottom, a Pub/ B&B with a darling gabled room.

10-12 starting in good old Stow-on-the-Wold we went to Foot-on-the-Path, then to Hide Mill, then Gloucestershire Way and Mud-on-the-Feet (It did rain yesterday), to Upper Slaughter, then to Lower Slaughter, and finally to Bourton-on-the-Water. Whilst in Upper Slaughter we sought the guidance of a local regarding navigation, and made a friend, who invited us to his 1640's home. From California he and his wife moved to the area in 1991, purchased the house as a rundown, dirt floor teardown, invested much money and time, and love over the last 20 years to make it the stunning house that it is today - especially the kitchen! Lower Slaughter is billed as the loveliest village in the Cotswalds, and we wouldn't argue, although it's a close call; virtually all of them are oozing charm. Bourton-on-the-water is the touristic winner so far. The reason is partially that a river runs through it; right smack through the middle with several elegant 18th century bridges going across. It is a lovely town, and we certainly enjoyed our wandering, as well, the Chinese food we found(I know, it sounds like a crime hanging out in stereotypical idyllic English landscape ordering CHINESE food, but it sure was good. Only a spot of rain, and a tad of hail, but the evenings are getting a might chilly, so we made for the warmth of the B&B. Another great day.

10/11 Stow-on-the-Wold.         Had breakfast, an English breakfast, then started out on walk in dry weather, expecting a deluge any time - fortunately it came after we reached our destination. Somewhat misty all day but not much rain :). Beautiful scenery and manor homes, post card views everywhere. First stop Longborough then Donnington then Broadwell, all charming hamlets filled with houses made of Cotswald stone. We stopped to lunch in the St Paul's cemetery, reading interesting gravestone markers, then onto Stow-on- the-Wold, where we found our home for the night, a cozy B&B, four star attraction. The walk went through and along farms filled with cows, sheep, and horses and poop of all shapes and sizes, and occassional views of pheasants running about hither and thither.  After getting lost, Lynn became the lead navigator owing to the fact that this trail is very poorly sign posted and the our best navigation was by written word. The description of the trail was often our only guide and her reading skills are vastly superior to mine. The town of Stow-on-the-Wold is more touristic with several busloads of tourists wandering the streets enjoying the charm - another beautiful town. A great day.

 

Today was a travel day; relaxed morning, last wandering of the streets of Bath, then walk to the train station to buy the 3 last train tickets, then 2 train transfers later and we were in The Cotswalds ; Morton-on-Marsh, the beginning of the Cotswald walk. Thankfully, the B&B is first rate - in suite bath, and the all the walk documents were waiting for us: description, maps, insurance forms, etc. then down to the hamlet of Morton-on-Marsh; a charming village consisting of old buildings and cottages made of Cotswald stone, a yellowish brown sandstone. Had dinner in town then back to the B&B and organizing stuff into carry vs let someone else carry. We're ready!

This was a free play day, so we went shopping for a rain cover for Lynn's ruck sack, and discovered that there are no covers for that small a sack; the alternative being a water proof stuff sack to put inside the ruck sack - we found one of those. Then on to research the 6 mile walk around Bath, and to look for the famous Bath Buns in Sally Lunn's restaurant, the oldest house in Bath. And then the big one - visiting the Roman bath, the best preserved in the whole world:) it is a very special place where your imagination runs wild with thoughts of how it was 2,000+ years ago kicking back in the warm mineral pools. It did rain all day so we were bundled during our wandering which included the river walk, more touristic walking, a walk into the old aristocratic area with large flats, and an assembly room where the elite entertained themselves, no 6 mile walk in the rain. On the way back to the hotel we happened by an opened church and went in, and there on the walls were the sayings of AA - an AA meeting was about to start. We chose to move on but stayed long enough to share with the two guys waiting in the meeting room. Life is good:)

10/08  This was a wander and buy stuff day; started out to find Brasher (New boots for Lynn) and met with success first thing at Millets where found a gorgeous pair of leather lined boots that are so handsome that it was hard to actually use them.  Back to hotel to call about  Cotswald Walk info then on to visitor center and joined the free town tour given by enthusiastic volunteers bubbling over with town pride, but we left after awhile as nature was calling. On our own we went to the Circus and the Royal Crescent and continued wandering the town.  Then it was kind of pig out time stopping for coffee and a luscious lemon tart, some pastys, a brownie and slice of rhubarb cake,   Then back to wandering but too late for Roman Baths so found a really good noodle shop and had a yummy asian dinner.  More wandering capped off with an Italian ice cream. Note: Pigging out is an art form, and we' re fine tuning our skills. 

10/07  BATH - HAPPY 64th BIRTHDAY Lynn
Woke up to alarm at 5 am, at the train by 6:15; train to Paris 1.5 hours mostly in the dark.  Landing in Montparnasse station, metro to Gare de Nord where we went through customs and had a short wait before boarding Eurostar to London.  What a treat, a real zoom!  Landing at Kings Cross Station then tube to Paddington to catch train to Bath. Had about a half hour so had Mc D's sundae and bought some chocolate chip cookies - we'll diet when we get back. Bolloxed tracks, so had to go to Bristol, then train back to Bath. The stop allowed for more food - coffee and a pasty, then squeezed into train crowded to stand for three stops to Bath Spa and a cab to hotel. On to store for birthday cupcakes and candles, on to abbey, the centerpiece of the town, also saw Roman baths and wandered around stopping at cute pub for fish and chips, then back to hotel for cake and champagne. Lovely birthday.

Our last full day in France :(  We wandered, mostly from one boulangerie to another (A boulangerie is a bakery), turnes put that France really likes boulangeries, and so do we. Between them we wandered into churches, eight total in Chartres, and the Chartres Cathedrial crypt, so we were busy with churches. Fortunately several were quite different, and one, St. Aignan, was truly charming; something I haven't said about a church before. Also, we made reservations for our final French dinner, which turned out to be sumptuous, and scrumptious and a delightful ambience - a modern motif blended into a very  old room, called The Old House (Le Vieux Maison in french.) We left the hotel about 4:00 and wandered prior to dining, and what do you know we found a crepe maker, her work was tested (caramel and melted butter) and found to be extraordinary; it was difficult to just have one, but we persevered. A great last day. 

10/05

On the road again, it was pack up and off to Chartres, and sadly to say good by to our little car. The return time was 12noon so we made no stops along the way, dumped our stuff in the hotel room and arrived at Hertz at 11:52. Then a walk back to the hotel through old town and some churches. This town likes churches, 8 total, including a super cathedral. Chartres cathedral is immense, with soaring stained glass windows.  They are in the process of cleaning the church inside and out so some areas were closed off yet it is still stunning.  We  are very pleased with this town, it's been well maintained, yet maintains the old stuff look. The narrow roads wind all around, rarely straight, it's fun to just walk around. A note about the stereotypical French baguette life style - it is true; we've seen literally hundreds of people walk the streets with a baguette in their hand - mostly at night when they picked them up on the way home. 

Our day began with a 1 1/2 hour trip to Valencay, a grand chateau outside the Loire Valley. It turned out be equal to those of the Loire with Empire period furniture in a Renaissance chateau. Oddly, we were just about the only visitors so could spend lots of time in each room. Note worthy is that the Treaty of Vienna (or a copy)was there along with the table on which it was signed as Talleyrand was part of the Congress of Vienna.  Also, the Spanish princes were exiled there, and Tallyrand bought it with a gift from Bonaparte and lived there for much of his life. The gardens are extensive with peacocks roaming freely and we took an hour walk through the lovely woods. Then a wander of the town found closed businesses, so on to Selles Sur Cher (from the river) another Loire area chateau with a twist: half of the chateau has been repaired the other half has not. The difference is dramatic; the damage done over the last several hundred years is severe, and it goes away with the repair looking beautiful, emphasizing the amount of work and money needed to bring a chateau back to life. Then on the road back to the hotel, where we saw a large number of cars parked along the forest road inside the grounds of the chateau Chambord. It turned out to be an animal viewing platform. The view was amazing; it provided a view of a large open field filled with Red Deer, and wild hogs - an impressive sight! A wonderful day especially since the forecast rain never appeared. 

We leapt out of bed this morn ready to bag three chateaus- Chambord, Cheverny, and Blois including wandering the town of Blois. Zooming along in our powered skateboard we wound into a dense forest festooned with deciduous trees with fall color, and browning ferns beneath, we spotted a sign warning of wild deer and wild boar (alert). Then, all of a sudden, shazam there they were - a pair of wild boar: big wild boar, and we got pics! (of course we haven't figured out how to attach them) On to Chambord, the largest chateau in The Loire, with a roof line akin to an over crowded chess board, it's claim to fame is that Leonardo de Vinci probably laced out the overall design and designed the double helix center staircase. Then Cheverny - the most magnificently furnished chateau in The Loire; also, it has a large pack of foxhound mix dogs that we were fortunate to see getting fed. It doesn't sound like much but there are maybe 100 hounds and they're all fed together - it's chaos. Finally off to Blois, a fair sized town with an old part along the river, a chateau, and big church. The chateau was virtually empty and resplendent with the opulence of busy renaissance; we thought it would be hard to sleep in the bedroom of brightly colored small flowered wall paper.  Then to the big church - good grief, there really are a lot of really big churches in Europe. Each one is  jaw dropping as well as amazing considering when they were built, and the standard of living at that time. Finally, a good wander of old town, searching for food, and a birthday present for Lynn.

On Monday we left our lovely digs for Tours. As before, we parked when saw Office de tourisme sign and then found that the office wasn't located by the sign, rather, some distance down the road allowing us to enjoy the charming walkway down the center of the main road. We wandered around the old town going into the very large and beautiful Basilica of St Martin of Tours. Then on to Saint Gatien's cathedral where a funeral service was going on, so we lit a candle and left. Hunger came calling so we sat in a square in a medieval area and ate our picnic. Oh by the way, we are in danger of falling into church saturation; a state- of-mind where spectacular churches filled with sacred art pieces, and gorgeous stained glass windows cause only a modest emotional  response. After more wandering in the medieval city exploring narrow cobble stoned alley ways with many more exclamations we drove to Montbazon and checked into the Chateau d'Artigny. It is a lovely property on 24 hecters of land built as a 20th century chateau with all the grandure of days of old, where Lynn's parents had stayed years ago. We wandered  along their several trails before resting for dinner. The woodlands surrounding the chateau are very pretty, but filled with spider webs that have spiders right smack in the middle of the web. Lynn was not amused. Our posh dinner at our chateau was a seven course affair - an epicurean delight in grand French style, and even a full moon. Ah shucks.
This morn we said goodby to our chateau and hello to two others - Chenenceau, and Amboise. Chenenceau, one of the grand Loire Valley structures, was built across the River Cher with magnificent gardens, spectacular architecture, and opulent furnishings. Built by King Henry II for his mistress Diane  de Poitiers, and later taken over by his widow Catherine De Medici after his death - lots of historical intrigue. 
Amboise was an equally impressive structure and originally occupied by Henry II, this chateau bounced around the aristocracy depending who was on top of the power heap. Also of interest is that Leonardo de Vinci is buried in the chateau chapel. After soaking our senses in the grandure of medieval wealth we moved on to our new abode. Our next door neighbor is a nuclear reactor, the giant stacks visible from our window, red lights flashing to deter errant aircraft. The surrounding environs yielded few treasures so we drove to Orleans to wander the streets of the old town. Like Tours, the town was large with an old touristic section next to the river festooned with eats, eye candy, and a really big old Cathedral St Croix rivaling Notre Dame in size and oh my goshness. Joan of Arc grew up here and is eulogized in a dedicated chapel in the church as well as elsewhere about the town. I'm growing fond of my powered skateboard owing to the size of the streets; one more layer of paint and I'd be in trouble.