The Slaughters!

Thursday September 19^th

Today’s pedometer reading is ? k’s...Oh dear, I seem to have lost the pedometer somewhere today!

 This morning we explored Bourton-on-the-Water the village and even though there was a steady drizzle we thought it was beautiful.

The River Windrush flows through the centre of the village 

and there are five or six pedestrian bridges over it. 

Both sides of the canal are lined with 
cafes, antique shops and gifts shops.

We’ve noticed that all of the houses in The Cotswolds are built 

of the same honey coloured stone…they are totally charming.

Next stop, Chipping Campden the tourist information describes it as a picturesque village, with buildings dating from the 14th century. We agree wholeheartedly and think it is the ‘jewel in the crown’ of the Cotswold villages we’ve visited.

A feature of its beautiful High Street 
is the 17th century Market Hall.

The National Trust has restored the roof of 
the Market Hall using traditional methods.

We had difficulty stopping to take photos of some of the awesome thatched cottages along the way but here are 2 that we LOVED.

If you look carefully there is a fox chasing a hare 
(made from thatch) on the roof of this one!

This is our all time favourite…if you click on the photo you’ll 
see some of the details including the pheasants on the roofline!

Our friends Jan and Noel had recommended the Horse and Groom in Bourton-on-the-Hill for lunch and so we decided to give it a go…

While the pub has been refurbished, the original Georgian features have been kept and highlighted. There was a seriously good blackboard menu on offer and we really enjoyed the meals we chose. One of us had the Dexter beef, ale and mustard pie and the other had a grilled fillet of Faroe Isles salmon, roasted beetroots, horseradish & chive cream. I wonder if you can guess who had what!  I had a glass of wine and Andrew had a pint of the ‘Cotswold Wheat Beer’.

As we walked back to the car we were happy to find that the drizzle had stopped. We were just about to drive out of the car park when the owner came running out with my fold up umbrella…very kind of him!

It wasn’t far to our last stop for the day was The Slaughters – Upper and Lower Slaughter...the beautiful neighbouring villages are located on the River Eye. Small buildings and footbridges over the river are features in both villages and at Lower Slaughter there is a 19^th century corn mill.

This gives you a bit of an idea of the small buildings, 

I would have to duck to enter the front door!

If you look carefully you’ll see the corn mill 
to the left of the little house.

The last photo is an artistic one that Andrew took 
in the church yard…some of the headstones 
so weathered that they were completely smooth.

We’re having a quiet night in and our last home cooked meal for a while…we’re off to Cardiff tomorrow…Andrew is looking forward to the Dr Who Experience…stay tuned for our adventures there!