One of the ongoing side effects of a worldwide pandemic is that we can't very easily travel for a holiday (at least without risking a full one two week quarantine on return). Having already done the quarantine thing twice (once when husband got sick in March and once on return from Malta), I didn't really feel up to risking that again once I had decided to take a week's leave in October. So I decided to go with the grain and take a staycation in the UK.
Unfortunately, due to a misalignment of timings, I had to come up with a solitary holibob, because husband was unable to take a week off work (although he was at least able to join for the first couple of days). Add to that the fact that I couldn't really go around visiting people, and the knowledge that certain areas were under strong restrictions, and that limited my options could dramatically. I thought about what I wanted to get out of my holiday - lots of exercise and fresh air, incredible food and a beautiful setting. So I didn't need to look far to work out the Cotswolds were top of the list to tick off all those requirements.
I got incredibly lucky, finding a cute little cottage in the village of Kingham in the heart of the Cotswolds. It was rural, there were two outstanding pubs within five minutes walk and crucially, there was a train station with direct trains from London. It was perfect. I planned some walks in the area, got myself a Sainsburys delivery chock full of gin and bubbles and stocked up on waterproofs.
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| Wasn't kidding re: my Sainsburys order |
I've never done this sort of vacation before and although it's not quite the same as trekking through Sri Lanka or the wonderful US road trip I was hoping to embark on this year, I have certainly developed an appreciation for this sort of staycation. I pushed myself hard throughout the week, walking a total of 144 km over six days (24km/day average) and covering some serious ground. I visited many of the surrounding villages, including the tourist hotspots of Stow-on-the-wold and Moreton-in-Marsh. I must admit I often picked my choice of walk based around a particular pub that I wanted to try, and some of these were quite far away! Since it was quite a long week and I don't want to bore you with all the details, I've condensed the rest of this blog into a series of holiday highlights and things I would recommend doing if you ever get a chance to visit this fabulous corner of the world.
Holiday Highlight #1 - Daylesford Farm Shop
Daylesford is a full on working farm, with a farm shop, restaurant, cafe, you name it. I was very fortunate that this was situated a thirty minute walk away from my cottage and was determined to take advantage of it. This was in the form of buying farm fresh eggs, cheese from their dairy and some of the most delicious mushrooms I've ever tasted. Oh and the bread - also completely delicious. I needed to fuel up at the start of each day and there was nothing more indulgent than eggs and mushrooms fried in lashings of butter, topped with plenty of hot buttery toast.
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| Daylesford coffee area (complete with firepit) |
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| Check out this dairy - I was in awe! |
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| An incredible selection of tasty treats... |
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| ...and then some |
Also, I bought some lovely local cheeses which, although I might have needed a second mortgage to afford, were worth every penny. Especially when accompanied by beetroot chutney and their delicious seeded crackers. Needless to say there was a cheeseboard most nights.
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| Just another night on holibobs |
Incidentally, I'm still using Daylesford to supply some tasty food on occasion since they are one of Abel & Cole's suppliers (see previous blog re: delivery boxes)
Holiday Highlight #2 - Local Cuisine in the Cotswolds
I've already mentioned that I was lucky enough to have two pubs in close vicinity to my cottage on this holiday. I was super eager to try the food at these and some other pubs, which had excellent reviews, and sold themselves as having menus full of fresh, seasonal, local food and proper rustic country pub atmospheres. They weren't wrong, and I've got a little list of the best pubs I ate at during my trip.
The Kingham Plough - this was my local and I ate here twice. A great atmosphere, fantastic service and brilliant food. Their black pudding scotch egg was spot on, and I was seriously impressed by their roast guinea fowl with leek and truffle pithivier (dribble)
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| A little reflective wine tasting |
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| Superb food (I'd never had a pithivier before) |
The Wild Rabbit - my other local and I was very fortunate to get a reservation for dinner at this place. The great roaring fire in this pub was brilliant, as was the delicious pheasant schnitzel I wolfed down that night.
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| pheasant schnitzel - picture worth a thousand words |
The King's Head Inn - situated in nearby Bledington (about half an hour walk across fields), we managed to get a reservation here for Saturday night dinner and have absolutely no regrets. This place had a brilliant atmosphere, and was a proper rustic pub in a little village.
The Chequers Pub - this one was located in Churchill (about 45 minutes from the cottage) and was home to both the biggest meal I had in the Cotswolds, but also one of the most delicious. No regrets... |
| The beginnings of an addiction to cheese souffles |
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| Succulent delicious pork |
Holiday Highlight #3 - The Scenery
I have to admit that there is nothing like the pure unadulterated pleasure of having the full day stretching in front of you, with nothing more taxing than a long day's walking and the anticipation of a full pint and big meal at the end of it. It was easy to keep myself entertained, with the beautiful scenery stretching in front of me at all times, a selection of great audio books to keep me from thinking too much and the challenges of navigation.
I learned whilst I was out there that Tolkien was a fan of this section of countryside and could completely see elements of the Shire in my travels. It wasn't hard to feel like a hobbit, starting out on a new adventure after a full breakfast of Farmer Maggot's mushrooms. It was a fun perspective to have, particularly on the couple of days when it rained and it was slightly harder to convince myself that I should be out there.
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| Always a good start to the day |
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| It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to |
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| What could beat this? |
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| A well deserved rest at the end of every day |
And yes, even despite a worldwide pandemic and all the restrictions, life can still go on. A couple of friends of ours who just got engaged don't live too far from the Cotswolds, and we were finally able to celebrate their good news with them, embarking on a walk and an incredible Sunday lunch at the Fox Inn in Oddington. It was so good to have a proper catch-up, complete with a couple of bottles of wine.
To be honest, there are more highlights I could touch on. I have at least 15 selfies of myself enjoying a pint of local Cotswoldian beer, but I've restrained myself from sharing those. I just want to finish off by saying that if you're umming and ahhing over a staycation, or even the scary prospect of going on holiday by yourself, do give it a go, because it can be super good fun. I came back rested and feeling better than I had in a while (despite the need for a bit of a diet) and am looking forward to doing something similar again next year.
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| To friends!!! |
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