What a lovely countryside! We drove from London about two hours north to the Cottswolds - quaint little old towns with thatched roof homes and pastures of sheep. The first town we visited was Chipping Campden (love these names!) and after walking the Main Street we found a gate that led to this beautiful pastureland with lots of sheep and newborn baby lambs bleating. It was breathtaking.
Next on the list was another Cottswald town "Stow-on-the-wold" with more quaint shops, a church with a tree-trunk door frame and some old stocks in the square that mom thoroughly enjoyed making dad take a picture in.
We also visited a town called Lacock (we continue to argue about the pronounciation), it is known for being a set for various shows/movies. We learned that the man who invented the photographic negative lived here - go figure! I loved the craftsmanship of this cute little town...so much handmade goodness in the stores and on the street corners - like this setup for selling preserves.
We tried to stop at Stourhead, of Pride and Prejudice fame, but it was raining buckets and closed by the time we arrived. We had a long drive back to London, fortunately past this little gem (taken from the freeway - can you believe it?! It was closed, too, or we would have stopped).
The English countryside did not disappoint. It's definitely a place I hope to come back to explore more someday, hopefully next time with my sweetie.