The second day of my Cotswolds road trip I was up early and heading to The Slaughters. Unlike what the name suggests, The Slaughters, made up of Upper and Lower Slaughter, are not gruesome places. Rather, the name is derived from Slough, which means muddy or wet land. They are not really muddy or wet either, but have a charming little river running through the middle of some very pretty houses. I didn't stop in Upper Slaughter as there was nowhere to really park, but managed a park in Lower Slaughter and got out to look around. It really was lovely. I stopped in the Mill Cafe for a cream tea and to watch the ducks in the river. A nice start to the morning!
The next destination was Stow-on-the-Wold. This, and the next three villages, had been on my bus tour of the Cotswolds. But there's something about doing it yourself that is so appealing. I'd liked the villages when I saw them first, so it was really nice to go back.
Stow-on-the-Wold is a name straight out of books like Wind in the Willows - very English fairytale. It doesn't really have an interesting story behind it however - in Saxon times, there was a guy called Edward who lived there. He was a missionary and helped establish the church, or stow, meaning holy place. It was positioned in a high place, meaning that Stow-on-the-Wold simply refers to a holy place on a hill (the "Wold" part of the name, and Cotswolds for that matter). Stow, like Chipping Campden yesterday, made its money on the wool trade, and is a very nice village of honey-coloured stone houses and churches.
Up next was the village of Burford. Colloquially known as the gateway to the Cotswolds, it is definitely one of the prettiest little villages around. It's much more commercial than any of the others I visited, as its high street is chock-a-block full of nice little shops, including the Oxford Brush Company store where I bought myself a fancy hairbrush when I first visited. This time, I walked on past the shops and up the hill, before ducking down a side street. I found a cute collection of houses, several totally covered in beautiful creeper, as well as a little pub. Burford is such a nice place, would be good for a proper relaxing weekend there, as it has quite a few posh hotels and spas. If only I were rich...
The last stop of the day before I took the car back was Bibury, and in particular, Arlington Row. I'd been here before also and couldn't really get decent photos. This time, however, it started raining, making all the tourists run for cover. I, however, had my trusty waterproof coat and shoes on so wandered around without anyone else nearby to get in my photos!
Apparently this is one of the most photographed places in England. I would tend to believe that too from the number of people there. It's pretty, but I would absolutely hate to live there, poor buggers.
I had a wander around the rest of Bibury, including the church nearby. It's a pretty little place, not much there though, just church, pub and lots of tourists trying to park.
This was the last stop of the day, so I went back to the car and dropped it off at Heathrow. It's one thing I miss a lot while living in London - having my own car - because there's just so much to explore. But car hire is becoming increasingly more of a hassle and buying a car comes with extortionate insurance. So, for the moment, I have to make do with my occasional jaunts out of the city!