...and everything in between
I have to confess that I am not a museum-lover kind of girl. Art galleries usually just bore me. Although I dutifully visit art museums, I find architectural art and historical artifacts in their original historical surroundings much more enjoyable. … Continued
Of all the “touristy” places we have visited during our England trip, Hever Castle had the greatest proportion of local population to foreign tourists. A lot of locals were enjoying the sun and the grounds, having picnics, playing with kids, … Continued
When Alex first heard that we were going to do an England road trip, he said, “I want to see the white cliffs.” I googled “white cliffs” and found the white cliffs of Dover. Most images of the Dover cliffs, … Continued
Corfe Castle was the pièce de résistance of our England road trip. I planned our day so we would get to Corfe village in late afternoon and have some time to hike up the west hill opposite the castle. I … Continued
As part of our England road trip experience, we hunted for fossils on Jurassic Coast. Well, we were pretty sure that we would not find anything but we wanted to say that we tried. Unfortunately, our timing for visiting and … Continued
St. Ives As I was going to St. Ives, I met a man with seven wives. Said he, ‘I think it’s much more fun Than getting stuck with only one.’ Roald Dahl Every single guide to Cornwall recommends a visit … Continued
While we were driving from Land’s End to St. Ives, we were passing near a site of another Bronze Age stone circle (there are actually a lot of those in Cornwall). There was no parking, just a small space to … Continued
It is impossible to visit Cornwall for the first time and not want to go to Land’s End. That is where land ends and ocean begins, or something like that. Sounds very romantic. We were warned, however, by all the … Continued
The ruins of Cornish tin mines are on the list of “sites to see before you die” (at least according to CNN). So despite unglamorous historical predisposition (i.e. tin mines are not castles or palaces, no kings were born or … Continued
On the fourth day of our England road trip we finally got to Cornwall. We stayed there for two nights in a small but very cute town of Marazion. We wanted so much to walk the causeway to St. Michael’s … Continued
There is little left of Tintagel Castle — just a couple of walls and doorways. I think the main reason tourists flock to the site is the castle’s association with King Arthur. The legend says that he was born there. … Continued
Glastonbury Abbey fell neatly into the theme of our England road trip — to explore mysterious English sites. This is where in 1184 the monks dug up the bones of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. At least that’s what the … Continued
It took us only 30 minutes to fully explore Nunney Castle in the small village of Nunney in Somerset county of England. A small but very pleasingly looking castle, Nunney is like an amazing museum artifact that is hidden in … Continued
The city of Bath is a World Heritage site and one of the major tourist destinations in England. We spent an afternoon and a night in Bath, visiting the Roman Baths and walking around the city. I did not expect … Continued
On the second day of our England road trip, we visited two villages, Avebury and Lacock. They are both medieval villages and major tourist attractions owned by National Trust, but that is where all their similarities end. Avebury is famous … Continued
England isn’t Iceland. I discovered that when I was planning our England road trip. You go to Iceland to experience unspoiled nature and solitude. Easy. I had a hard time in the case of England, because I wanted to have … Continued
The Cotswolds region of England is “AONB”, which means Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is quaint English countryside with rolling hills, beautiful gardens, and postcard-perfect villages. It is so pretty that it is capable of satisfying your every romantic … Continued
Blenheim Palace was on our don’t-miss list mostly because it is on don’t-miss lists in all England travel guides. It is also the only country house in England that did not belong to a king or a bishop to be … Continued
We have not been able to explore London as much as we explored Paris. I was struggling with back pain and Alex was attending his conference. We had a couple of evenings though that we spent walking along south bank … Continued
I went to see Stonehenge twice. The first time, I was there with a special tour to see it after hours, close to sunset (it was even called “the sunset tour”). Alex couldn’t go with me because he was attending … Continued
We fully expected the rainy weather when we came to England, and it did not disappoint. When we woke up the next morning after the flight, the sky was gloomy with drizzling rain. We visited the Tower of London in … Continued
Tower of London is much more impressive on the outside (especially from the opposite side of Thames) than on the inside. However, it has a lot of historical significance and is definitely worth the time we spent there. The Crown … Continued
Not much accomplished on our first day in London. I had a bad case of back pain which kind of makes everything less enjoyable; that plus the jetlag made us do less than we planned. We went to see Westminster … Continued
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