In light of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee we were feeling a
little English Pride and decided to take a trip to the English countryside to
get a feel for the countrymen and women who embody Englishness. The bus tour we
opted for took us to the Cotswolds area and Blenheim Palace, one of the UK’s most
historic palaces and, more importantly, the birthplace of Sir Winston
Churchill, one of my top five favorite political leaders.
Upon arriving as Blenheim we were assaulted with the
juxtaposition of a modern day triathlaton taking place on the historic greens
of the 18th century Palace.
As you can see, this was not your typical aristocratic
afternoon strolling the palace premises…
Our entrance admitted us to the State Rooms as well as the Churchill
Story where we could see everything from his famous paintings turned Hallmark
greeting cards, to the bed in which he was born,
adorned by 3 locks of his curls snipped from the five year old Winston’s head
(don’t worry, this part creeped me out too). Fun fact – we saw his US Passport
on display at Blenheim, marking him the first person to become an honorary US
citizen.
The Palace itself was very ornate, and we came to find out
built with minimal state funding, which seemed to indicate some sort of
strained relationship between Queen Anne and the 1st Duchess of
Marlborough. I couldn’t be bothered with that though because I was so
distracted by THIS MASTERPIECE, the largest pipe organ in private ownership in
Europe. I wanted so badly to brush up against it and hit one of the keys.
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| Dining room used ONCE per year at Christmas! |
Lucky
for me, I was restrained by my more refined friends.
Moving on from Blenheim, we were off to the Cotswolds, a
range of rolling hills and villages in southwestern England. Stopping off in
the villages of Bruford, Bibury, and Bourton on the Water I could not help but
be transported to a Thomas Kinkade. Just look at some of these images!
It seriously begs the question….what do these people do for
a living?!?! Other than shear sheep and needlepoint, I honestly don’t know what
there is to do in these sleepy villages. Two and a half hours from central
London we were shown what it means to be in the English countryside.
They even
had a model village replica 1/9th the size of the original just as it was in 1930 using the Cotswold stones, complete with all the dollhouse accoutrements my little
girl self could ever dream of! Sheep and bunting included!
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| Model Village |
The kicker for me, and the epitome of what happens in the
Cotswolds, we were actually lucky enough to be there to witness the weekend’s
big event…Tug of War across the river! Seemed like the whole town of Burton
came out to witness this spectacle, and many opted to take part themselves.
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| Tug of War across the river |
Definitely a worthwhile trip and brought me closer to the
English roots that reinforce a society steeped in traditions. It was a gorgeous
afternoon, although I kind of wished for a few more thatched roofs. I will be
sure to log a complaint with the…sheep?
English word of the day: A phrase I came across at work when
one of our male colleagues told us the women “are as thick as thieves,”
translation = very close. This was a new one for me! Reminded me of Robin Hood
Men in Tights. Might have to take a trip to Buckinghamshire next!
