Terry
100+ Posts
By teaberry from USA, Fall 2012
September 22 to October 3, 2012 Terry and her husband spent three days in London and a glorious week in the Cotswolds, touring, hiking and visiting with friends.
This trip report was originally published on SlowTrav.
Arrival
We landed at Heathrow at 10:02am; it started to rain at 10:03am. That marked the start of a recurrent theme throughout our trip. But we were not deterred from thoroughly enjoying Great Britain, both in London and in the Cotswolds.
Jetlag hit us a little harder than usual, so our first day included limited activity. Our trip from the airport to our accommodations was an easy (and cheap) hop on the Piccadilly tube line from Heathrow, getting off at Green Park. We loved our hotel (a Holiday Inn) in the Mayfair section of London. I got a great rate at this higher end hotel (do not think American motor lodge), thanks to a successful PriceLine bid – yea bidding! Located on Berkeley Street, it was just up the block from the Ritz, and we found the entire neighborhood to be quite upscale and fun to walk around, even if it was raining.
We were prepared with our rain ponchos and umbrellas, and strolled around the area’s backstreet nooks and crannies. Also went along Piccadilly Avenue, where we enjoyed the many chi-chi shops, and considered our time well spent exploring the famous Fortnum & Mason’s – a shopping playground for the rich and famous, including the Queen. Later, we landed at Le Comptoir restaurant for dinner, where they serve up delicious Mediterranean fare. Still damp and chilly from being outside, we couldn’t have enjoyed our homemade tagines any more if we tried. Lemonades flavored with pomegranate and orange blossoms were the perfect foil for the meal, and homemade baklava with minty tea rounded out the dinner just fine. A good night’s sleep was had by all.
September 22 to October 3, 2012 Terry and her husband spent three days in London and a glorious week in the Cotswolds, touring, hiking and visiting with friends.
This trip report was originally published on SlowTrav.
Arrival
We landed at Heathrow at 10:02am; it started to rain at 10:03am. That marked the start of a recurrent theme throughout our trip. But we were not deterred from thoroughly enjoying Great Britain, both in London and in the Cotswolds.
Jetlag hit us a little harder than usual, so our first day included limited activity. Our trip from the airport to our accommodations was an easy (and cheap) hop on the Piccadilly tube line from Heathrow, getting off at Green Park. We loved our hotel (a Holiday Inn) in the Mayfair section of London. I got a great rate at this higher end hotel (do not think American motor lodge), thanks to a successful PriceLine bid – yea bidding! Located on Berkeley Street, it was just up the block from the Ritz, and we found the entire neighborhood to be quite upscale and fun to walk around, even if it was raining.
We were prepared with our rain ponchos and umbrellas, and strolled around the area’s backstreet nooks and crannies. Also went along Piccadilly Avenue, where we enjoyed the many chi-chi shops, and considered our time well spent exploring the famous Fortnum & Mason’s – a shopping playground for the rich and famous, including the Queen. Later, we landed at Le Comptoir restaurant for dinner, where they serve up delicious Mediterranean fare. Still damp and chilly from being outside, we couldn’t have enjoyed our homemade tagines any more if we tried. Lemonades flavored with pomegranate and orange blossoms were the perfect foil for the meal, and homemade baklava with minty tea rounded out the dinner just fine. A good night’s sleep was had by all.