July 14 - Oxfordshire to Yorkshire

Lovesome Hill Farm

As we spent the day driving from Kencot to Lovehill Farm in North Yorkshire, today’s entry will be relatively short. We spent most of the day on the motorways so it wasn’t overly scenic (with the exception of the huge coal power plants of course), though we did stop at service centres with internet, allowing me to get partially caught up on updating the blog. Our bed and breakfast accommodations at the farm are very pleasant, the countryside is beautiful, and the owners are very friendly. We had another delicious pub dinner at the Fox and Hounds in a nearby town and spent the evening planning our next three days in Yorkshire.

GWV

July 13 - Bath and Stonehenge

Today was our last day in southwestern England, so after another breakfast at the cottage we traveled to Bath. Situated on top of a natural hot spring, the city was home to an extensive bathing complex during the Roman occupation of Britain. Today, the site has been excavated and turned into a fabulous museum which provides an overview of life in the first century A.D.

Through audio guides and exhibits we learned about the Roman engineering that was behind bath complexes, their practical and spiritual uses, and the people who frequented the baths.

Their system of under-floor heating was truly ingenious (the floor was raised and hot air circulated underneath), and showed how in some ways we really haven’t come all that far. At the end of our tour we were given a glass of water from the mineral spring; it tasted like it had been in an iron pot for several days but was apparently healthier than most of what we drink on a daily basis.

After a delicious pub lunch near the museum we walked into the residential area of town to see the Royal Crescent. Used in several films, it is a perfect example of Palladian architecture, consisting of 30 houses fronted by 114 columns in a huge semi-circular shape.

The houses were really neat on their own, but the sheer size of the Crescent was astonishing – pictures certainly don’t do it justice...

... Largely because it is too large to fit in a single frame.

On the way back to the cottage we drove past Stonehenge, which is just as impressive as I imagined it being. We didn’t walk around the site because it was packed and you can’t actually get very close, but we parked on a hill nearby and managed to get some great photos.

We ended the day by passing through a few military towns in the area searching for a War Graves Commission cemetery. It was the first and certainly not the last research-related detour we took, and although we were ultimately successful we did drive around in circles a fair bit. We stopped at the Riverside Inn in Lechlade-on-Thames for dinner and then returned to our cottage to pack for the drive to Yorkshire.

GWV

July 12 - Gloucestershire

Today was another packed day traveling around the Cotswolds, this time further west in Gloucestershire. We started the morning in Cheltenham, home of the legendary Gustav Holst (composer of The Planets and one of my personal heroes), where we spent over an hour in the Holst Birthplace Museum.

The museum is focused on both his life and his music, and highlights included the piano on which he composed some of his most famous pieces (including Mars and Jupiter) and several original scores. And of course the gift shop was pretty phenomenal (and, like Liverpool, very reasonably priced).

Next was Gloucester Cathedral, which was built around 1100 and is absolutely glorious. Unfortunately, the space was being used for a flower show, so there were people all over the place and most of the architectural features, chapels, and tombs were covered in plants. Nevertheless, it was a worthwhile visit.

One of the highlights of our tour were the cloisters, which were (of course) used in the Harry Potter films. Of particular note is the fan vaulting, invented for this exact structure in the 1350s.

This magnificent vaulted ceiling - about the only thing not overwhelmed by floral designs - was completed in 1242.

And of course where would a cathedral be without an organ? This one, which dominates the east end of the nave, was one of the most impressive instruments we saw on the trip.








We ate lunch in the cathedral café before driving west to the Forest of Dean so Julia could have her picture taken next to a sign (another Harry Potter thing). Thirty seconds later we were driving back along the same road to our last stop of the day: Tewkesbury.

Tewkesbury is a lovely medieval town with a splendid abbey at its centre. As large as Gloucester Cathedral but much quieter (and without the flowers), it was exactly what I pictured a huge old church looking like. It was a cavernous space with some really neat tombs and effigies, and another fabulous organ (one of these days I’m hoping to hear one being played).

We also found a flying buttress, so now you can all see what they actually look like. How exciting!








After a quick search of the town for antique shops we headed back to the cottage, stopping at the Red Lion Pub in Northleach for dinner. It was a strange little place, but my chicken curry was as good as anything I’ve ever tasted.

Tomorrow is our last day at the cottage, and we’re planning on heading west again, this time to Bath and Stonehenge.

GWV

July 11 - Oxford

Today started early with a quick breakfast at the cottage before driving to Oxford, where we parked on the outskirts of town and took a bus in. The city was already packed when we got there at nine in the morning, and it only got busier as the day went on. We started our tour by climbing the St. Mary’s Church tower, and the first thing you see after ascending 137 steps is the magnificent Radcliffe Camera. Closed to the public, it is the principal reading room for the university's undergraduates.

Across the street from the Camera is All Souls College, whose multiple spires epitomize everything that is Oxford. And while the general public can't enter the college, you certainly get a fabulous view from above.

Now that we had a better understanding of the university's splendour we toured the world-famous Bodleian Library. Pictured here is the Tower of the Five Orders, which stands above the main entrance to the library's quadrangle and displays the five classical orders of architecture (Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite, if you care). Tourists aren't allowed very far into the working parts of the library, but the parts we did see were fabulous.








Our tour started in the Divinity School (seen here), the university's first examination school, and continued through Duke Humfrey's Library (used as the Hogwarts Library in Harry Potter), Convocation House, and Chancellor's Court, both of which are used for official functions.

After a very rushed lunch we lined up to tour Christ Church College, whose Dining Hall was used as a model for the Great Hall at Hogwarts (Julia is forcing these Harry Potter references upon me) and, I will admit, feels pretty magical.

The college's most recognizable building is the Tom Rower, pictured here across the giant Tom Quad (I thought it was almost too big). Off to one side of the quad is Christ Church Cathedral, the only cathedral in the world that is also a college chapel.

Not wanting to waste any time, we quickly walked to Exeter College, where we toured the chapel, quad, and even found my dad's old window. Then it was off to New College; founded in 1379, it's not really new at all. Personally I much preferred it to Christ Church as it felt more intimate and was blissfully quiet.

The highlight of the tour were the cloisters and the quadrangle they enclosed (yes, they were used in Harry Potter). I don't usually like working outside, but I would definitely read on these benches if I had the opportunity.

The last tour of the day was of Magdalen College, which I think was my favourite of the bunch (although it really is a win-win). As with the other tours, we visited the multiple quads, the Chapel, and the Hall.

What makes Magdalen different from the other colleges is that behind the main cluster of buildings is a huge lawn, the fantastic neo-classical New Building, and grounds which include a river and a deer park.

Western has a beautiful campus, but really, this is just not fair. 








Completely exhausted, we headed back to the bus, peeking inside Baliol College, Trinity College, and Rhodes House along the way. Oxford is an amazing place - the architecture is glorious, the city is a true university town, and you can feel the university's history, reputation, and presence everywhere you go. I can't wait to go back, maybe even as a student of some sort! We shall see. By the time we got back to the car it was mid-evening, and after hopelessly driving around looking for dinner we returned to The Plough for another great meal.

Tomorrow, we have another busy day as we explore the many sights of Gloucestershire.

GWV

July 10 - Broadway and Chipping Campden

It was nearly ten by the time everyone was awake this morning so we decided to stay a little closer to the cottage in the afternoon and explore the Cotswold villages of Broadway and Chipping Campden, both of which were charming but very touristy. Broadway (named after its unusually wide main street) was full of expensive shops in lovely old buildings, and while we didn't actually enter many of them (those we did venture in to were hugely overpriced), we did have a very nice lunch in a teashop on the main street.

After lunch we drove to Broadway Tower, which is atop the highest peak in the Cotswolds and offers stunning views of the villages, hills, and fields of the region. And, of course, lots of sheep.

The tower is just a few miles from Chipping Campden along the Cotswold Way, a well-marked footpath, so I decided to reach it on foot while the rest of the family took the car.

It took about eighty minutes and turned out to be a fabulous decision as the views were far nicer than those you get from the road. It was a delightful way to spend the afternoon and made me feel very virtuous and energetic.









The path went through forests, flocks of sheep grazing on hills, and several farmer's fields on a very narrow little pathway.

Like Broadway, Chipping Campden was full of expensive shops and tourists so we didn't spend too much time there, but we did have a lovely afternoon tea in town and explore a fascinating fifteenth-century market building.





We had a delicious dinner near the cottage in Alvescot before turning in early ahead of tomorrow's adventures in Oxford.

GWV

July 9 - Coventry and Rugby

We awoke this morning to our first day of sunshine, and after a light breakfast at the cottage drove north to Coventry. Coventry Cathedral was almost completely destroyed during World War Two, and today only its outer shell and spire remain. A new cathedral was built next to the old one, and together they are poignant symbols of remembrance and reconciliation.

Around the ruins of the old cathedral are the base of a spiral staircase and a First World War memorial plaque that was shattered and pieced back together.

The spire, which survived the bombing on the night of November 14, November 1940, is the third highest in England, measuring 295 feet.

Small pieces of stained glass survived the bombing, and these can still be seen in windows around the cathedral.

Shortly after the bombing the cathedral's stone mason noticed two of the charred medieval roof timbers laying on top of one another, bound them together in the form of a cross, and placed them on the altar. Today, the Charred Cross and the Altar of Reconciliation are found in the ruins of the old cathedral, and several services are still held in the ruins.

The new cathedral, designed by Sir Basil Spence and consecrated in May 1962, is built with the same local sandstone as the old church but is almost hauntingly modern. It’s an unusual and simplistic building with a huge, airy nave, a glorious organ, and several minimalist chapels off to the side. Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem was composed for the opening of the new cathedral, and the original score can be found in the museum in the undercroft.

Behind the altar is the Tapestry of Christ in Glory, the world's largest tapestry. Depicting Jesus and the four Evangelists, it is very colourful and one's eyes are immediately drawn to it when entering the cathedral.

The giant baptistry window contains 195 panels of coloured glass, arranged to depict baptism and the way in which Christ breaks into human life (I didn't see it, but then again I'm colour blind). In front of it is the baptistry font, a three-ton boulder imported from Bethlehem.

After lunch in the cathedral café we left Coventry and drove the short distance to Rugby for a tour of Rugby School. The school's graduates include Austin and Neville Chamberlain, Lewis Carroll, and Salman Rushdie, and it is one of England’s most well-known public (private) schools. It lends its name to the game of rugby, which was invented and first played on the Close, pictured here.

The highlight of our tour was a Classics classroom which is located at the top of a spiral staircase and has bookshelves that reach to the ceiling two stories above.

Attached to the walls of the room are parts of old desks on which past pupils (including one of the Chamberlain brothers) carved their names. It's hard to tell from the picture, but some of them were as neat as any modern computer font and looked as if they had been professionally done.

This is the organ from the Temple Speech Room, used for major ceremonies and concerts. More schools should have organs in their auditoriums...






We had late afternoon tea in the village, and then on the way back to the cottage stopped in Southam for dinner at the Bowling Green Inn - our first traditional pub meal! Success rate of English pubs so far: 100%. Being Sunday tomorrow we will be relaxing in the morning, so who knows where we'll end up in the afternoon.

GWV

July 8 - Anfield and the Drive to Oxfordshire

Today started relatively early with a buffet breakfast at the Holiday Inn before driving to Anfield, home of my beloved Liverpool Football Club, for a tour of the stadium (the girls went to the Beatles Story, which was apparently very interesting, though you’ll have to ask them about it for more information). Built in 1884, Liverpool FC played their first game there in 1892 and it has been their home ever since. Over the years it has welcomed 18 league titles, 7 FA Cups, 7 League Cups, and 5 European Cups - an overall record unmatched by any other team in England!

Our tour started in the Legends Lounge, which is a press lounge whose walls are covered with pictures of past players and managers. Then came the Press Room, which houses post-game interviews and other major press conferences. It is located in the old Boot Room, which was where the players and managers would meet to discuss matches during the club's glory days of the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. What you can't tell from pictures and televised coverage is how small the room is: there are no more than thirty seats and the ceilings are low. Very modest and very atmospheric!

Next came the home and away dressings rooms, which if anything were even more of a surprise than the Press Room had been. Because of the age of the stadium and the limited space, they consist of little more than a bench for the players to sit on and a pair of physiotherapy tables. This is very different from North American professional sports facilities where each player has their own locker/closet/seat area, and was very refreshing to see (even though we all know how much money these players make).

Last but not least was the walk through the tunnel onto the pitch, where we sat in the home dugout and in the famous "Kop" stand. As I'm writing this after the fact, I can say that seeing the inside of the stadium was one of the highlights of the trip. The pitch itself was as flat as can be, and you could feel the history as you sat in the seats (some of which are still the original wooden ones).

The Kop (named after a 1900 battle in the Second Boer War) is where the most dedicated supporters sit (or stand) during home matches. Throughout its history it has been one of the most famous stands in the world, and the songs you hear during matches usually start there. Next step for me: attend a match!

On the way out of the stadium we passed the turnstiles where match-goers enter the stadium, and as you can see from the picture, they are very narrow. They clearly haven't been updated since the early 1900s, and could very well by the club's own way of combating obesity.

Once the tour was over we went through the club museum, visited the extensive and reasonably-priced shop, and had lunch at the Boot Room Café in the stadium before starting the journey south to Oxfordshire. There was a fair bit of congestion on the motorway so we ventured onto the smaller roads for the first time and spent the afternoon winding our way through the glorious English countryside. We stopped in Stow-on-Wold for a quick dinner and pulled into Asthall Farm in Kencot just after sunset. Our charming little cottage is in an old barn, and has a traditional galley kitchen, a combined living/dining area, and a loft with two bedrooms. Very cozy and quintessentially English (or at least I’m told it is).

Tomorrow will be another early start (I plan on making every day an early start so we can see as much as possible) as we head to Coventry and Rugby.

GWV