Easter in the Cotswolds

I had the fun privilege of traveling with 4 of my friends (2 from work and their spouses) to the Cotswolds for Easter weekend. In the UK, Easter is a 4 day weekend and a lot of people celebrate by doing some traveling, even if it's not far. The train ride we took was just shy of 2 hours, but it was like being in a different world! The weather was "typical" English - cloudy, a bit rainy, with some spots of sun - but that didn't dampen our spirits.

On Friday after a yummy lunch at the pub we were staying in, we took a long country walk on some steep footpaths. The Cotswolds are very hilly and we experienced the hills first-hand while we were scrambling up the muddy paths and trying not to slip and fall coming down! There were lots of sheep around and even though it was raining, we had a good time and felt that we got plenty of exercise so we could justify a 3 course dinner. :)

Saturday turned out to be a gorgeous day! We had arranged to rent some bicycles from a shop in another town so after breakfast, we headed over and picked them up. They gave us a very detailed map with several long rides through lots of villages highlighted. We had a fabulous time cycling up and down the hills (well, the uphills weren't too fabulous), checking out the villages along the way, taking lots of pictures of the countryside and enjoying the sunshine and sheep. I think we visited/cycled through 7 villages and they were all distinct in their way. We stopped in quite a few to do some extra "sight" seeing, including a long stop for lunch and a wander through the church in Chipping Camden.

On Sunday we celebrated Easter in the church in the village we stayed in. It was a traditional Anglican service in a beautiful building and I really enjoyed worshipping there! After church, we had a bit of a wander around, found some lunch and then headed back to London. It was a fantastic weekend and I'm so happy that it all went well and we were able to take a good break from the demands of London and work.

Dover Cliffs

Last weekend I once again started my day trips around the UK. Last year I was able to start doing these almost as soon as I moved here, but this year my work schedule was quite a bit different in February and March so I had to delay until April. Thankfully, the UK has impressed me once again and I am ready for more and more day trips in 2009!

I went with a work friend, Lauren, down to Dover where we explored the castle and took a hike along the cliffs. Thankfully the weather was SUNNY and pretty warm, especially since we were outdoors all day and walked about 10 miles, much of it uphill it seemed!

The castle has been there for hundreds of years, but was especially strategis in WW II due to its underground tunnels and crucial look-out points over the Channel. We toured the tunnels and wandered around the castle grounds some after we had a brief picnic lunch. We were both antsy to find the cliffs and start hiking in the open though.

After getting some interesting directions, we walked about 2 miles, mostly along a country road that wasn't quite wide enough for 2 lanes AND us, until we got to the beginning of the cliff paths. By that time, clouds had entirely covered the Channel so it was very difficult to see past the ferry docks, let alone all the way to France! But we enjoyed a good hike and took some fun pictures - which hopefully you enjoy as well!

Entrance to the underground tunnels

View of the castle from the cliffs

Me on top of the cliffs with the Channel behind me

The White Cliffs of Dover

A view down to the beaches below - the cliffs were literally bright white!

And in case you didn't believe I have a friend......this is Lauren :)