First English Roadtrip: Cotswolds!

After getting the driving fever in Ireland, I joined streetcar.co.uk where I now have regular access to automobiles that just so happen to have the steering wheel on the "right" side of the car.  When my Mom mentioned she would be interested in seeing the Cotswolds, it was the perfect opportunity to get out onto the open road here in the U.K.

The Cotswolds are known to be a quaint area of England, just about a two hour drive West of London.  It is a series of small towns, mostly established from the wool industry in the Middle Ages, and the homes/churches are made characteristically of a honey colored limestone.

We picked up our B-mer (never actually tried to type that word before, but is slang for big fancy black BMW) and were on our way.  Slight challenge at the gas station figuring out how to get the car started again, but  no other driving issues - handled the roundabouts in Oxford like I knew what I was doing (thanks to great tips from our cabbie in Dublin).  Not sure why, but I like driving here.

Once past Oxford the countryside appears, with rolling green hills dotted with sheep, many of which had little ones by their side.  I wasn't expecting it, but England also has plentiful mustard fields similar to those I saw in France a few weeks ago, so there were interspersed squares of yellow in the distance.  Beautiful.  Lush.

The route started with Bourton-on-the-Water, and not just for us.  The town was full of touristing families, a bubbling brook with stone bridges, and the perfect spot to sit outside and have some fish & chips for lunch.


From there we drove through Lower and Upper Slaughter, and then stopped in Stow-on-the-Wold, our favorite spot of the day.  The shops were nice to browse through, the buildings were all very old, like you would expect in the area, and as an added bonus I actually stumbled upon a proper dress to where to the Royal Ascot horse race I will be attending in June.

It is classic, historic countryside in England and I would enjoy spending more time in area.  Driving through the hills of the countryside made for a great first road trip here in the U.K.!  Look out!  I'm on the loose!