Day 25 - Return to Evesham

The title of today’s blog sounds like a movie title! Actually it was a day of practical accomplishments. Our flat in Moreton-in-Marsh (from now on I will refer to our new town as MiM) is furnished but it was in need of certain items to make it seem more like our own place.   While MiM has shops that provide most of the basic needs, we really had to go to a town where we could shop at the larger store chains. So off to Evesham (a 20-minute train ride) to find the B&Q (England’s answer to Home Depot) so that we could find a selection of drapes, duvet sets and other items to decorate the flat. We also dropped into some of the more-sizeable charity shops to find “the find.” What do I mean by that? Well, in Canada we have shops like Goodwill and Salvation Army stores which take donated goods and resell them at discounted prices, but in the U.K. there are many charity shop brands: Cancer Society, British Heart Foundation, Sue Ryder Foundation etc., etc., etc. These shops are iconic in this country; and one can find some real treasures, or as I refer to them, “the find.” For us, it was a lovely tea pot which we were in need of -- real china and made in England. 

As would be the case, the B&Q was a 30-minute hike from the centre of Evesham, but the weather was holding up for us, so why not? The location was part of what is termed in England as a “retail estate” but for us Canadians it is not dissimilar to our big box retailer locations where WalMart can be found with Canadian Tire, Lowes, Best Buy…you get what I am talking about. 

Like in Canada, these retail models have killed the High Street (most commercial districts in in the center of English towns are located along the Main Street – as our American cousins would say – and in the UK this section of the town is commonly called the High Street). In fact, in Evesham’s High Street, there is the Riverside Shopping Center which is an inside mall with various exits into the downtown area but it’s retail space is perhaps a third full with former tenants such as Woolworth’s long gone.

The one nice thing about having to venture that far to shop was the fact that it inspires one to fine alternative routes back. In this case, we chose a longer, but more picturesque route, through bike paths and foot paths adjacent to a small stream that made its way into the Avon River. We found the riverside walk and made our way back to the train station, shopping bags in both hands.  

I swear it was only 30 seconds inside our flat before Ange had everything out of the bags and sorted. By suppertime, the new duvet covers, pillows, curtains and various purchased items were in place. Our mark was made.

But one thing was still missing -- a post-dinner evening stroll through Moreton-in-Marsh under a light mist and stopping at the Bell Inn to peak in on the band playing live music. The town was enjoying its Saturday night but at the same time it seemed more tranquil than during the day when it is typically bustling with shoppers and traffic. We stopped at the Black Bear pub for an evening drink and some joking around with the Landlord. I wonder if he realized that he will have six months of these crazy Canucks!

Ale of the Day: Cotswold Gold, Donnington Brewery, Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire

Day 24 - Locking down a home

No pictures from the day, so filling the space
in with flowers photos from various days!

Left our Stroud flat in the rain this morning. Now, you have two ways of thinking about that: either Stroud was sad to see us go, or maybe we shouldn't be heading to Moreton-in-Marsh to take on the flat we have let for the next few months. Hmmm...this is a year of adventure and positivity, so, I'm going with Stroud wants us to stay.

Sorry Stroud. That's not to be.

Stroud and Moreton-in-Marsh lie at opposite ends of the Cotswolds, with Stroud in the south and Moreton in the north. While only about 30 odd miles apart as the crow flies, getting from one to the other can require a bit of convoluted travel given that there aren't any trains through the heart of the Cotswolds anymore. So, with all train changes required, it took us a couple of hours to get to Moreton. But as we were now taking our larger luggage with us too, we needed the extra time.

We arrived in town just before 1:00 and were in our new flat 20 minutes later.

In the UK, most rentals (or lettings, as they are called here) are handled by an agency rather than the owner, often branches of regular real estate agencies. The agency handles advertising, checking references, paperwork, etc. We picked up our keys, then went through the house check. We've opted to rent a completely furnished flat as it is a whole lot easier than trying to find a place and furnish it. This flat was once a holiday letting, so comes complete with everything from furniture to cutlery to paintings. It will need a few touches to make it feel like home, but it is a good size and has room for visitors (hint, hint).

We're in a convenient, lovely location. The flat is situation in a market laneway directly off the High Street (the name given to most towns' main street). It is in a L-shape and is above several shops and cafes that line the lane. It's close to the train station with direct trains to London (1.5 hours) and Oxford (30 minutes), and buses to Stratford-upon-Avon (think Shakespeare) and all of the beautiful villages of the Cotwolds.

Of course, you always find something unexpected when you move into a new place. In our case, we were advised that at night, the merchants lock a gate at the front of the lane. However, what we didn't know is that a safety gate also is lowered at the back of the lane. So, essentially, we were in lock down as soon as 6:00 pm hit!

We checked our keys and realized that one of them would allow us to open and close the gate. Nice safety feature, and as a result, the flat is very quiet at night...and if there is any riffraff, they'll have a tough time getting in. But I did get a great laugh out of Phil's description that the warden had ordered the prison gates shut.

He also can't resist yelling out "dead man walking" from The Green Mile when we leave the flat at night.

In a strange way, a quote from another prison movie, The Shawshank Redemption, seems a bit apropos as we start on this part of our travel adventure. It reminds me of what Red says at the end when he sets off to meet Andy:

I find I'm so excited that I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel. A free man at a start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. 

Day 23 - Cotswold Canal - Part II

My apologies for the delay in posting this blog.  We have been settling into our flat in Moreton-on-Marsh for which the details will be revealed to you in the next two blogs.  I should also forewarn everyone that for the next two weeks we will be waiting on the installation of our high speed wifi (not scheduled until October 12th), so the number of pictures we post and the length of our daily blogs will be somewhat abbreviated. 

Before I begin, I want to shout out to my Enactus Ryerson students who I met yesterday in London at the Enactus World Cup. Enactus is a global organization that promotes entrepreneurship by administering competitions between worldwide universities that encourages student involvement in projects related to all facets of entrepreneurship. While Ryerson’s team finished third overall at the Canadian national championship (our environmental entrepreneurship team won the national championship in this category), certain members of the team came to London to witness the global championship. After spending most of the day with them watching the presentations, I couldn’t help but feel so proud of them and their representing of our school. They are the finest of the fine.


However, let me take you through our Thursday this week. As we were to leave tomorrow we used this last full day in Stroud to make sure that, in addition to getting some work done, we would also endeavor to travel east on the Cotswold Canal along the beginning of the Thames Severn Canal portion (see my blog from two days ago to get re-acquainted with the history of the canal).  We started again at the foot of the apartment building we were staying at and joined the canal towpath. As you can see from the photo, we had a glorious sunny day for this trek.


Turning east we came upon where the trainline from London crosses the canal into Stroud.  This viaduct not only provided a way for the train to cross the canal, but also had integrated into it the actual mill. At this site there had been a mill from the 1500s using the water energy from a relatively fast-flowing River Frome. Eventually, the canal was constructed to move boats carrying wool cloth to larger markets. The integrated mill was known as the Capel Mill and the restoration had been completed a few years ago, including the large basin which would have allowed for numerous boats to dock and load as well as room for turning around.

Beyond the Capel Mill we came to the point where the restoration work had reached its furthest point at this end. The canal towpath continued along for use as a foot/cycle path, but the canal itself had been taken over by mother nature. It reminded me of the story where scientists believed that if mankind were to drop off the face of this earth, our cities would be engulfed by vegetation in a very short time. It raised in my mind questions as to whether restoration of the canal at the expense of removing natural habitats was warranted.


However, it also meant that before long the towpath itself disappears at certain villages such ad Branscombe Port, and what was likely the site of a mill, now expanded into an industrial building site, has covered over the canal.  The canal continued beyond but as the Ship Inn pub in Branscombe was not opening until 6 p.m. I convinced Angela that it was time to return back the way we came so that a post-walk ale was in order.

Ale of the Day: Big Climb Ale, Prescott Brewery, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire

Day 22 -- From Trainspotting to Lady Jane-spotting

Work, work, work. That's all we do. We really need to fix that.

Today, Phil was off to London to join a group of Ryerson students who were attending the Enactus World Cup 2017, a competition in developing innovative community projects. I stayed in our Stroud flat and worked away for the day, watching the rain fall (so good day to work from morning 'til night).

And that's pretty much all we have to say about that. Boring day.

The mysterious Lady Jane surveying the estate 

So, we're bringing in a guest blogger whose life never fails to inspire or at the very least leave you with your jaw near the floor. You've heard about her in a couple of our previous posts: Lady Jane Tanqueray of Alton Towers. She has kindly offered ("It is my absolute pleasure") to provide the occasional post so, as she explains, she can "help the rank and file understand better the minefield that is English society."

And without further ado, Lady Jane:

Late night for me last night -- it's just one big social whirl! Here's a little taster of my evening:

Lady Jane Tanqueray, drink in hand, spent the evening at the Tower of London, mingling with dignitaries, politicians and senior military figures. Her Ladyship enjoyed a private tour of the Jewel House and further cocktails in the White Tower. She met a number of interesting people and a lady who smelt of Brussel sprouts. [Editor's note: That's what money smells like in England.]

The Tower is the most famous castle keep in the world. Built for William the Conqueror, it was intended to awe, subdue and terrify Londoners, and to deter foreign invaders. [Editor's note: Today that role is handled by Boris Johnson]. 

In 1674, the skeletons of two children buried 10 feet below ground were discovered in the White Tower, during the demolition of a staircase leading to the chapel of St. John. These bones were believed to be the remains of the Princes in the Tower, Edward V and his younger brother Richard, Duke of York.

Next engagement will see Lady Jane, drink in hand, enjoying the last few overs of the England vs West Indies cricket match at the Oval. [Editor's note: Translator!]

Day 21 - Cotswold Canal - Part I

Our holiday flat is located on the top floor of the building in the background

Yesterday we didn't really have much time to check out Stroud, but our accommodation here, adjacent to the Wallbridge Lock on the Cotswold Canal, did provide us with easy access to what has become a decades-long restoration project administered by the Cotswold Canal Trust (and whose office, ironically, sits at the base of the building our holiday flat is located in).



The canal runs approximately 36 miles from the Severn River at the canal's westerly end to the Thames River near Burford on the easterly end. Stroud sits about a quarter of the way along and demarcates the meeting point of what was originally two separate commercial canal systems, Stroudwater Navigation (west) and Thames and Severn Canal (east).






Today we were going to take a few hours out of our day (remember we are working while we are here, so not all fun and games -- okay maybe a little fun...) and with sunny and warm weather (19 degrees) perfect for walking, we began walking west along the canal.

We didn't really have a map to guide us --  it's not difficult to follow a canal -- but we had no idea where we would stop and turn around or whether we would take a different route back.

The footpath/cycle way is really the old towpath for the canal. The Stroudwater Navigation portion of the canal was completed in 1779 and at that time horses and even manpower were used to tow canal boats containing freight and people using the towpaths.


At the time, the canal provided  a convenient means of transport . As it required water to fill it, they built the canal adjacent to an existing, but non-navigable river (in this case the River Frome). The river also provided water power for the wool mills and so our walk took us past a number of old mills, some of which are still in existence. The first were the Lodgemore and Frogmore Mills at the westerly edge of Stroud.  The Lodgemore Mill has been in existence since the 15th century and by the late 1800s the combined operations were the largest woollen cloth producers in the U.K.  It still produces quality cloth today!

The canal walk eventually leads into areas of open countryside interspersed with smaller villages and towns that were home to these mills. Along the canal we would come to various locks that allowed boats to be lowered as the elevation moved lower on its way to the Severn River (leading into the Irish Sea). After a few kilometres, we arrived in Ebley where the old mill has been converted into municipal government offices. A fantastic re-gentrification project along with new housing built to match the architecture of the mill.


Not much further along we came upon an interesting site. Four people in a make-shift raft wearing life jackets and floating very low in the water. We had to ask what they were up to and it turns out that this weekend there is a raft and rubber duck race to be held on the canal near Stroud. They were just practicing -- actually, I think they were testing to see if it actually floated. Well it did, but not by much!

Eventually we arrived in the town of Stonehouse, and, as it was early afternoon, a pub lunch was in order. To get to the town we had to cross the canal via the Nutshell Bridge which is integrated with some housing that at one time was lived-in by a canal watcher -- essentially a security guard to watch out for non-authorized use of the canal.

The first pub we came upon looked like it would suit us nicely. The Woolpack Inn was a coach stop on the way to Bath from London and it dates back to the 17th century. Angela and I have now learned that even the sandwich lunches are quite large so we split a baguette and chips while enjoying a couple of pints (hers a lemonade, mine a local -- see Ale of the Day).




Our return trip was not going to be back along the canal, but rather an old abandoned rail line that ran parallel to the canal for most of the journey back. What was amazing is that along the way there were planted numerous types of apple trees.  They were planted not for commercial reasons, but rather more as horticultural exhibits...although I have to admit my curiosity had me reaching up and taking bites from various apples along the way.

Eventually we rejoined the canal at Ebley and made our way home in time to finish our working day -- all in all a somewhat serendipitous, random journey of 14 kilometers, but a very enjoyable outing.

Ale of the Day: Otter Ale, Otter Brewery, Luppitt, Devon

Day 20 - Driving round (and round and round and round and round) the bend

Travel day. This time we are moving from Swindon to Stroud, which is only about 25 minutes away by train. We needed to find a place for another four nights as we wait for paperwork to be finalized for our place in Moreton-in-Marsh.

So, as we leave Swindon, I want to draw your attention to something that will blow most Canadian drivers' minds. Are you ready for this...

Source: See How an Insane 7-Circle Roundabout Actually Works
CONDE NAST: WIRED

It's called the Swindon Magic Roundabout. And yes, it is one giant roundabout made up of five smaller ones. Here's what it looks like from the air, with traffic going through it...

Source: DICKBAUCH/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Boom! Your brain is a mess, isn't it? Just imagine having to tackle this on your driver's test! Our taxi driver, who took us from our hotel to the train station, made it through no problem. At least I guess he did; I had my eyes closed.

It astounds me to even think about what would happen if you plopped down one of these babies anywhere in the Toronto area. Although we have an increasing number of roundabouts appearing all over Ontario, there is one thing in common with all of them -- hardly anyone really knows how to use them. No one in Ontario signals their turn in or out of a roundabout. No one has the foggiest clue who has the right of way. Ontarians basically treat roundabouts as through streets that someone, for some godforsaken reason, has decided to plant a bunch of bushes in the middle of.

Here's a great site that explains how to use this roundabout if you're a tourist vs if you are a local. In Canada, we would just drive straight through the middle...unless we really had to turn left or right...but because it's a roundabout, as I said, we wouldn't signal. If there's a curve in the round, no need to signal that, right?!

In all fairness, this particular roundabout was voted by the British as one of the scariest in the country, and insurance companies hate it (even though everyone drives so slowly through it that the impact from any accident is generally low).

Can you imagine the town meeting where this was approved?

"Yes. You travel anti-clockwise through the series of roundabouts to your chosen exit."

"Won't that be confusing?"

"It might, but probably only to visitors. But if you're confused, you can just drive clockwise around the outside of it until you come to your exit."

"Well now, that seems more than fair. And beside, who visits Swindon?"

Will save telling you more about Stroud tomorrow as my head's still spinning from trying to figure how I made it through this alive.

Now you know why we take the train.

Day 19 - Parklife

Sunday morning, sunny weather and thoughts of an afternoon roast bouncing around in our heads meant that today was a day for walking. But before I start down that road, I want to point out to those of you who are music enthusiasts that, even though I did not start off with lyrics, I have titled today's blog after one of my all time favourite band's albums. You will have to look that one up yourselves.

Now where were we? Ah yes, today we were welcomed with lovely weather and a need to get out and see something of Swindon. The town is an example of what was done under the Town Development Act of 1952, a post-war legislation that sought to relieve the congestion of people in places such as London by encouraging the development of smaller towns such as Swindon into larger urban centres through improved transportation links such as high speed rail (trains into London Paddington) and car motorways (M4). Nearby Basingstoke is another example. As a result Swindon has many areas that are high-density, late 1950s and 1960 architecture that is, quite frankly, stark and ugly. So we were not sure if a walk through Swindon would provide us with much.  However, we found a reference to a circular walk that would take us through a number of city parks and along an abandoned railway. In addition, a small lake was not far from our hotel and had a pub near it that would most likely serve up a Sunday afternoon roast. Combining the two walks together meant another 16 kilometer day -- enough calories burnt to justify the roast.

Goddard Manor circa 1900

And what a delight the walk was! Our first stop was an old estate that was turned into a park. Situated on Nob Hill, the "Lawns" estate of the Goddard family had been on this spot with wide-ranging views to the valley east of Swindon since the mid-1500s (although a manor house at this location had been in place since the 1300s). But when the last of the Goddard family lineage died in 1927 and then his wife in 1931, the estate went to ruin. I expect that the high death taxes at the time may have had something to do with it. One couldn't help but think of the TV series "Downton Abbey." Eventually the manor house was torn down and the estate reverted to the town who have since turned it into Lawns Park.

As you exit the northwest part of Lawns Park you pass through a beautiful church known as Christchurch of St. Mary. The boulevard of trees leading up to the front door was picturesque and almost enticed this Agnostic to venture through its front door to the morning service.


To the north of the church was our next stop, Queen's Park. This park is an example of  the benefits of gentrification as the town had taken land that was derelict and converted it into green space within the town. It is a small-scale botanical garden with small ponds and an elaborate path system that make for a perfect escape for those living in the surrounding area. And on this day, this park was filled with families of all cultures spending some together time in a natural environment.

A short journey uphill through terraces of rowhousing brought us to the Town
Gardens. Home of the Lawn Bowling club and the bandstand. Perhaps it was the beautiful weather on a fall day or certain scents in the air, but one felt like they were in the park of Mary Poppins. I had to look around to see if Dick Van Dyke and a bunch of dancing penguins were going to make their way by. The experience was topped off by an ice cream stand that screamed out "you have to have one" and of course we did: salted caramel crunch for me and honeycombe chocolate ripple for Ange.

Next up was the old railway trail. It was originally a working rail line between Southampton to the south and Chippenham to the north. Known as the Midland and South Western Junction Railway, it began service in 1871 and was eventually taken over by its rival, Great Western, in 1923. By 1961, the portion of the railway serving the south end of Swindon with the north end (where the current station is located) was no longer being used and the line was abandoned. Today it is a biking and walking trail which runs along the southerly edge of the town.

This trail took us back to the street leading to our hotel and after a brief break we continued on to Coate Water Country Park. This park surrounds a large water reservoir that was constructed to provide water for the nearby Wilts and Berks Canal system. It was built in 1822 for that purpose, but when the canal system closed in the early 1900s, the reservoir was converted into a pleasure area where people could come and swim. There remains a 10-meter diving platform with an art deco design, but it has since been taken over by various water fowl seeking to dry out or nest (take a look at the pub sign below). As with all the other parks and pathways, we had walked in and on this day, there were many families enjoying a day out. I have to admit, I was missing our kids! When we lived in England, we as a family spent many Sunday afternoons walking through the countryside. And, the adjacent golf course was also calling out to me.

However, knowing that at the end of our trail that day was the Sun Inn pub and their Sunday roast and a pint of fine ale, my mood improved immensely. At this location there has been a building for over 340 years and it has been known as The Sun alehouse since 1779. It had been closed for most of the early 20th century but re-opened in 1937. It is owned by the local brewer, Arkell's, and remains one of their larger pubs. In terms of their Sunday roast, as you can see from the photo, we were not to be disappointed.

A full stomach and full day of exploring meant a return to our hotel for some rest and relaxation, not to mention watching some NFL football -- gotta love the time difference. My Lions came back to beat the Falcons too!

Ale of the Day: Wiltshire Gold, Arkell's Brewery, Swindon, Wiltshire

Day 18 - Trainspotting, Thai & Tanqueray

You know you've reached an elevated state of relaxation when you can wait in a train station watching people and trains for three hours. That's how today started. After leaving our Salisbury cottage at 10 a.m., we made our way to the train station, found a bench and started watching the world go by.

We weren't in any rush today, and we could get a very inexpensive train fare to our next destination, Swindon, if we were willing to wait. As it happened, our ticket selection proved serendipitous. A tree had fallen somewhere along the tracks on the route we were to take, so the two trains ahead of ours (and at much higher fares) waited a couple of hours in the station until about 10 minutes before our train was scheduled to leave. So, in essence, we would have had to wait anyway, but at least we didn't have to pay more for the privilege.

As we had entered the station, we could hear a steam train leaving. We couldn't see it, but the characteristic chug-chug and whistle-blowing sounds are hard to miss, and even more difficult to ignore if you are at all nostalgic. When we took our seat on a bench on the platform, we noted a large group of trainspotters (the kind with cameras not heroin addictions), mostly older men were hanging about, chatting with each other and station personnel.

A while later, the stream train returned. We learned it was The Cathedral Express and was travelling from Faversham in North Kent, around London and on to Salisbury where passengers could disembark for a few hours to visit the cathedral and the market.

From out of seemingly nowhere, people began to pack the platform to get a look at the train. Serious trainspotters, families and others waiting for their own trains. You would have a hard time not being impressed. So much time and effort has gone into restoring and maintaining the engine and the Pullman-style cars.

There is such romance to travelling in this style. For all our modern conveniences and advantages, we seem to have lost something very special. It's no wonder people clamour to see these beauties.

If you're interested in taking a day trip on one, take a look at the website of Steam Dreams; they offer a range of options throughout the UK over the entire year.

We made it on our train. While not replete with linen , flowers, and fine china on the tables, the scenery outside the windows was beautiful. We travelled to Bath Spa where we changed to a London-bound train that would stop at Swindon, our destination for the next two days.

This evening, we went for dinner at Siam Thai in Swindon with our friends, Lady Jane Tanqueray of Alton Towers, and Lord Keith, or is it Keith of Lords ... I can never remember (it could be Lord Keith of Lords, now that I think about it). Lady Jane regaled us with stories of her latest clay pigeon-shooting charitable event. It involved patrons arriving by helicopter, hands in wallets when bidding on the opportunity for a famous chef to make you dinner, and hands on asses for, well, I never really figured out what that was for. But it was all ever so posh, so I'm sure it all makes sense to the horse set.

Lady Jane and Lord Keith being asked
to leave  Kate & William's wedding for
wearing inappropriate attire.
Photo courtesy of the Daily Mail.

You may remember Lady Jane and Lord Keith from Blog 1, when they greeted us at Heathrow airport with what we described as Marks & Spencers pre-glassed wine. Lady Jane has requested that we clarify that while this may have been in plastic wine glasses, it was of a superior 1969 vintage and that she would even have one of her staff vouch for its superiority when used on chips or as a window cleaner.

And on a final note for the day, and in our "Just Keep Saying Hello" style, we'd like to give a shout-out to Chloe at the Siam Thai. We asked Chloe if she had a Canadian connection, and other than meeting us, she said she did not. However, on reflection, she said she had a friend who visited family there every year. Close enough! Once again, we've proven that you are never more than 1 degree of separation from knowing a Canadian (take that Kevin Bacon). Thanks for the fabulous service, Chloe. We had a great meal and a wonderful time, and it was a pleasure to meet you.

Day 17 - A sunny day on the Nadder River

Sun is shinin' in the sky
There ain't a cloud in sight
It's stopped rainin' everybody's in a play
And don't you know
It's a beautiful new day, hey hey

From time to time I'm going to start the daily blog with the tune that jumps into my head when I wake up to the new day.You must guess who the band or musician is. Did you get Monday's when you read it? Well, it was the Mama and the Papas. For today, the lyrics above were so apropos! You see, England sometimes has an unfair reputation for it raining all the time. A look at weather statistics, however, would show that the entire UK gets on average 133 days of rain or snow a year totalling 33.7 inches - when the snow is measured as rain  (https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/United-Kingdom/average-yearly-precipitation.php), while Southern and Central Ontario get far more days of rain or snow (157 days on average totalling 38.3 inches) https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/Canada/Ontario/precipitation-annual-average.php. I guess we Canadians see more snow and that'a perhaps why we believe that it rains all the time in England. However, I would rather walk in wet, milder temperatures than in cold, blowing snow.

So today, when the day dawned into a completely blue sky, there was no debate -- it was time to get out and go for a hike. Of course it helped that Ange had already been up before me working away and that we would be back from our walk around the time most people in Canada were just getting to work.

The plan was to follow a walk that made its way out of Salisbury and went west along the Nadder River and then through some small villages and countryside south of the Nadder before making its way back across the river and into the village of Wilton.

One of the villages, Netherhampton, had the most delightful pub (the Victoria and Albert), but even I felt it was too early for a pint (shock and dismay ripples through the readership), although once again the British humour emerged in the signage outside of the pub.

Closer to Wilton we came across an equestrian centre where I was able to meet one of the horses from the Budweiser commercial -- the one where the horses pull the beer wagon. They look so much bigger on TV.

The village of Wilton has a history that dates back to the middle ages and is where one of the early English kings, Alfred the Great of Wessex, fought the Danish Saxons and his early success led him to support the creation of the Wilton Abbey. The name of the county, Wiltshire, is because Wilton had become the major town of the region. However, the construction of the cathedral at Salisbury and major transportation routes intersecting there eventually helped Salisbury overshadow Wiltshire so that the latter is now only a village.

Yet, Wilton has the most amazing Italianate church which we had to venture into. It is the Church of St. Mary and St. Nicholas and was built in the mid-1800s to replace another St. Mary church that had fallen into disrepair in the centre of the village. As you can see from the picture, it's not your traditional Church of England design, but when you walk inside you find many of the traditional features, most of which were recovered from other churches across England and Europe.

However, Wilton was also the home of English carpet making. When Henry VIII destroyed the abbey (no ruins remain), he gave the lands to a local Lord who built Wilton House and created a significant wool carpet weaving industry in the mid 1500s that grew to be the most significant carpet producing area in the UK. Carpets are still produced there today, but the major mill closed in 1995. Today, the buildings have been converted to shops and restaurants while maintaining the original outer facades.

With Skype calls scheduled by Ange and me to Canada for mid-afternoon, we enjoyed a quick lunch and made our way back to our cottage in Salisbury. All in all, 16 kilometres and total sunshine. Who could ask for anything more? Wait a minute...that sounds like another song coming on!

Pint of the Day: Temperance Sessions Ale, One Mile End Brewery, Tottenham, London