The Scenic Route

LORD LEYCESTER HOSPITAL, WARWICK


GARGOYLE IN CIRENCESTER

We hit the road shortly before 8 a.m. on a gray overcast day with spots of rain here and there. We decided to break up the trip by making a couple of stops along the way. By 11 a.m we were in the heart of the midlands and decided to stop in Warwick where we hoped to visit the castle, said to be one of England's most spectacular medieval fortresses. When we saw the stiff admission fee (£13 or about $25 per person) and the hordes of children (it is half-term in this part of the country) we thought we'd just take a look at the outside. Some clever landscaping assured that we could only get one tiny glimpse of the castle through a fence near the entrance gate. Oh well, we'll have plenty of other opportunities to visit castles before we leave England. We had read about a nice tea room called The Brethren's Kitchen housed in a 14th-century building called Lord Leycester Hospital. The building was originally an almshouse until Robert Dudley, earl of Leicester, founded a home for aging soldiers there in 1571. The Hospital is still used as a facility by ex-servicemen. After a pleasant stroll through the town we found Lord Leycester Hospital but, alas, the tea room was closed for the winter season. No worries, there were other cafes and tea rooms to choose from. We settled into the Tuckery Cafe and ordered Cornish Clotted Cream Tea. The tea was served with a huge scone that looked as if it could have served as part of the foundations of Warwick Castle. It was tastier and and not nearly as hard as it appeared and the clotted cream and strawberry preserves were simply scrumptious.

Back on the road we continued south, this time swinging through the Cotswolds. We drove through one quaint village after another and noticed how the landscape changed. Craggy dales gave way to gentle rolling hills or wolds as they are known here. Instead of the gray stone typical of Yorkshire we saw walls and buildings made of the golden stone that is characteristic of the Cotswolds. We began to see half-timbered houses and thatched cottages. We made another stop in Cirencester, a lovely little town known as the capital of the Cotswolds. I really enjoyed walking through the picturesque town full of quaint houses, antique shops, a lovely market square and inviting cafes. We stopped into The Polly Tearooms for more refreshment (we go into hobbit mode while on vacation). I had some delicious spinach soup while Brad had a big salad. We were back on the road again around 3:30 p.m.

We approached Bath about an hour later. I was surprised by how hilly it was. We were staying at a B&B on the far side of town and we climbed down and down into Bath, took a road on the outskirts of town and climbed back up to where we were staying in Odd Down. The B&B wasn't quite as nice as we could have hoped but it was adequate. The rooms were rather plain and ordinary, but clean. We were situated next to a park and ride so never had to drive into the center of Bath; buses ran every 12-15 minutes and it only took about 10 minutes to get into town. To get to our other destinations we headed away from Bath.

That evening we took the bus into Bath and walked through the city center. Brad had been here many years before when he toured Europe with his high school choir and he remembered many of the sights in town. For dinner we chose an Indian restaurant, Jamuna. We hadn't had Indian food for a while and it was a tasty treat.