Mother Daughter Time London and the Cotswolds

I had decided for this trip to let the kiddo be the decision maker, at least for the days we would spend together. So right from the start I felt relaxed and also a bit excited to spend time with my favorite person.

Sitting at an airport gate always makes me super aware and present, it is a fun state to be in, soaking up all the energy of the people around.

In England you can drop your luggage off at the hotel, before check in, that is what we did, so we would not have to lug our carry-ons with us.

First place we went to was Highgate Cemetery, which was a bit outside of the central area. We hopped onto a double decker bus, which is really cool. We sat upstairs and every bend in the road the low hanging trees brushed against the side. It was a bit unnerving, but the bus driver never flinched and we did feel safe.

At some stop this man joined us upstairs, reeking of weed and half way down to the back seat his pants fall off. I mean not just slide down, it really came off.

I had to hold it together to not burst out laughing and we kept our eyes fixed at the front for the rest of the ride.

We had not planned to book the tour at the cemetery, but after very little persuasion at the ticket booth, we did and it was lovely. The guide, with his British accent and skillful story telling talent, showed us beautiful Graves and told interesting background to the ones he pointed out.

There was the owner of a Menagerie with more than 500 animals, who had a lion called Nero. He had the statue of this lion on his grave. The Victorians liked to show off who they were and how much money they had by having elaborate graves and visiting them often too.

There was the doctor, called the Fastest knife in the west end, as in those times anesthesia was not really a thing. So quick surgeries was a skill.

There was the grave of Radclyffe Hall, who wrote the Well of Loneliness. And George Michael had his grave there too, next to his mother.

It may seem strange to make the first stop a cemetery, but it was overgrown and lush with vegetation and so peaceful too.

The rest of the day we only walked around near the hotel, until check-in time. A nearby Rosa's Thai was really good and affordable for our first dinner.

The next morning we started with fast food breakfast, which became in the following days a pattern, grabbing something hot and greasy on the way to the Metro.

At the British museum, the line was just too long. We then slowly made our way towards Buckingham Palace, on the way walking through Chinatown and a small lane with special book shops. Emma felt a bit overwhelmed, so we rested at this big space with lion statues.

It was busy with people but not overly crowded, some street artist sang popular tunes and we enjoyed people watching.

After lunch we headed to Buckingham Palace for the guard change. It was the small version, as the big one is only on some days in the week. What confused us, is that everything happened behind the gates, so you could not get really close to the guards, as we had seen in videos. But we still enjoyed the marching and procedure and we could be close without getting squished too much.

We lingered at this place for a good while, noticing all the people, different dress styles and characters. Imagining the same set of people meeting again and again becoming friends.

We then made our way to the horse guards. I was in awe, they were beautiful horses, but the tourists there were the more annoying kind, trying to get that picture.

That night we ended up with ok pub food and mocktails And I had a fizzy wine and gummies at the hotel, nothing glamorous, but oh well.

I did manage to get a blister in my new fancy looking shoes and was mad at myself for having spend the money just days earlier, ending up wearing shoes I already owned.

I get this notion of wanting to look fancy and cool in pictures and feel like I need new wardrobe items, but shoes bought just before vacation never seem to work out for me, and I never look like the people that have professional travel blogs, anyhow.

The next day my friend Claire joined us, after our usual fast food breakfast and an Iced Coffee.

Side tangent: You might know about these and are not impressed, but being able to buy ice in a cup and a pouch of coffee to go with it, my mind was blown! This is off course an invention of Far East, they just have the coolest conveniences.

Back to my friend, she is not just really wonderful, she also knows how to experience the city in frugal way. We had tickets to go up Horizon 22, this really tall tower, which granted us a view all around the city. And perhaps you guessed, it was free.

Then we walked along the River Thames and got so many good impressions, a feel for the vibe of this city. Aside from seeing some big landmarks along the way too.

The market, that she took us to, unfortunately for me was liked by many for lunch, as it was a delicatessen meets flea market thing. This was too crowded for me.

Even though the city was busy, most of the time it was not bad, but this market was not for someone with anxiety around crowds.

In the afternoon ( the tickets were a steal) we got to see "the Great Gatsby" Musical. And as a surprise this one actor from the High School Musical was a main character on stage. The singing, the costume, you got transported into another time. Magical!!

As we filed out of the building still in another world, rain welcomed us. It could have not been a visit to London, if there was no rain, could it?

We headed to the fancy shopping section. I must have gotten into a mood, seeing all these made up, false lips women in fancy clothing, all prima donnas, egged me on. Not sure what it is about them. Perhaps my own insecurities about my current shape also have something to do with it.

But we found a really cool Pub, had ciders and food and the world looked better. Perhaps I was just "hangry"

The next day we met Claire at Churchill 's statue, admired Big Ben and took pictures and then walked along the water on the other side of the Thames to the Tower Bridge.

It was not as humid and we had a lovely time. Then we strolled around the financial district and looked at men in suites. So handsome!

And by accident discovered the Church café. Walking in from the busy street, instant peacefulness.

It was so quiet in there, everyone speaking in hushed tones. And it being a church, there was the atmosphere too.

We got the Leek soup and good bread and coffee there and took respite from the hustle and bustle outside.

The kiddo and I went back to the hotel and packed what we needed for the next few days and headed to Euston train station, so we could hop on a train with my friend, back to her place.

On the way to the train station we stopped and looked at old stamps and rare books in the British library and walked through Pancreas Station. There was a shop with gorgeous tins and packages for chocolate and tea. From there we headed to Pilgrims for pizza and fancy Italian soda. Not a Pizza fan, but this one was great.

The train was delayed by more than 1 hour but we just people watched until it was time to jump on the train to head towards Claire's home. British train stations are like German ones, but also not, it was quite an experience, watching the board like a hawk, then speed walking to the right row for the train.

On the train, to not fall asleep and miss our stop, I told Emma silly things and watched the 3 young women in front of us. They were exuberant and their joy was contagious.

I spun a tail about this imaginary farm and kept adding on animals that must live there, if only this could be true.

Claire's husband picked us up and Emma met the Bichon, as well as my friends sunshine kiddo and her parents.

Next stop the Cotswolds.

Oh I was so excited to see the places I had imagined when listening to Agatha Raisins adventures. I could hardly wait.

First stop Moreton-in-Marsh, how beautiful that name sounds. These quaint little towns and villages are as enchanting and inviting as I had imagined. We walked around the market there and I was thrilled to bits.

We went for a full English vegetarian breakfast, with beans mushroom vegetarian sausage, 2 eggs avocado hashbrowns and toast. It was scrumptious and definitely something I could have more often.

Another item on my list was seeing an English Garden, and my frugal friend secured us free entry to to Hidcote Manor. The Trust owns and maintains it for all the visitors to see, and my those gardens were lovely. They had some struggles with water, due to the hot and dry summer, but it was really beautiful. Around every corner different shrubs and flowers and the sheer coordination of colors and blooms. Unimaginable that this once belonged to a family that maintained all of it. We had great weather and walking around the spaces made the day go by really quickly.

From there we headed to Chipping Camden, all the houses had this golden stone that is specific for the area, but looks radiant in the late afternoon. We noticed several funky door knockers, so whimsical. As some of the shops had already closed the crowds if there were any earlier in the day had gone and we could stroll around and revel in its cuteness without the other tourist.

Isn't it funny how always the other tourists are the issue, so demanding and annoying, but one forgets that one is there for the same reason as the other tourists. Lol.

Then onto Blockley to see Father Brown's Church, I felt nostalgic walking around the spaces and the church, even though my companions could not quite get my giddiness.

It is a bit strange to be at places from the films you watched on TV, but it was also dignified and pretty, even if it had never been on the show.

We had dinner in Chipping Norten, this was one of my highlights. We sat in a area that looked a bit like a winter garden, with light from above and listened in on the pub quiz. I felt transported into my favorite shows and stories, even though we did not participate. We still guessed along for a while.

Then it was time to head to our place for the night. We had agreed, all frugalness aside, to spend one night in a cute bead and breakfast no matter the cost. I had wanted this feel to be immersed in the sheer britishness from all the stories, I listen to and watch on TV, I know it is a bit silly.

We stayed in Hook Norton the Pear Tree Inn, a bit off the route of the more known town, but with so much charme.

The Inn was proper eclectic and wonky, with the right level of comfort. We had one drink at the bar, downstairs, chatted with locals about Bavaria and beer and tourists.

I fell asleep almost instantly. In the morning a short walk to the nearby brewery for breakfast, yes you read this right. On the way over we so one of those lovely huge horses that used to pull the barrels. The gift shop was great I bought lavender from the Cotswolds there. We would have stockpiled ciders, if we didn't just travel with carry-ons.

We then stopped at Stow-in-the-Wold and I have really great pictures with the trees at the entry of the church. It was quiet and quaint, despite this being mentioned in several blogs I read about the area.

My friend drove us all around, which was a blessing, those small winding roads driving on the other side, would have been a challenge for me. Instead I could marvel at the country side, and we drove through several tree tunnels. That is about the coolest thing.

In Germany we have Alleen, roads lined on both sides with trees, very lovely, but I had not seen where the trees and shrubs tangle up above creating this short tunnels to drive through.

As one of my friend"s must do, we stopped at Hawkstone brewery, the dude from Top Gear. We had interesting flavored ciders and then moved to Bourton-on-the-Water.

As one of the favorites and perhaps slightly bigger town, it also was the busiest. There is a very shallow river running through. Kids could play in it and people sat on either side in the gras enjoying the summer warmth. We had to get afternoon tea, while being here and I opted for cheddar biscuit and earl grey tea, served in a cute teapot. We looked at the shops, which was the only disappointing bit, a bit too much plastic and tinneff and not enough treasures.

We dropped Emma at the train station, so she could head back to London. She was looking forward to a few days on her own.

While I spend more time with my dear friend. As the morning brought rainy weather, we ditched our original plans and instead my friend took me to the kids amusement farm.

I have to explain this, she takes her kiddo there and it is meant for young children mostly. But I love animals! There was a similar, fancy place in the Cotswolds, but she is not that excited to see a bunch of farm animals and on top spend a fortune to do so.

So it was extra special to me, that she took me to this version, near her house, and I had a blast. Petting sheep, feeding goats, and checking out the 2 Highland Cows, they had on the premise. Afterwards we had cheap coffee at the indoor playground and talked. You know one of those, where you forget the time and just enjoy the companionship.

Then we did a bit of window shopping and at this little indoor flea market I could not resist and bough cute little iron-on stickers for Emma

On my last night with Claire, I had dinner with her family before heading back to London the next morning, they are lovely and inviting people and I am grateful for such a gracious friend.

The train was only a bit late at the beginning but then there was a trespassing person and I had to sit in the train a good while. They tried to push more cold air in but it only worked a bit. When I finally arrived I was really hot and exhausted and we did not really have time for a bakery visit. So quick iced coffee on the walk, as we had booked fast entry tickets to the British museum. Second time around we did not have to wait too long and we had a plan. Only 4 sections too look at, so we would not get overwhelmed.

I do not recommend visiting museums in London in the midst of summer, though. There really is no air condition in most rooms and that combined with them being free. There are plenty people all around and then the stuffiness.

Being still in the midst of my menopause, I get these hot flashes and it makes it really uncomfortable. But some rooms were cooler and less crowded and I saw quite a few interesting and beautiful pieces of art.

That night we booked a bus tour. And as the weather was unusual warm we sat in an open double decker at the top, just like real tourists. And I must say it was worth every penny, the guide was really good and funny too.

Saturday was reserved for the Natural History Museum. It was nice but going on a weekend in August meant a lot of self absorbed people, screaming kids and no air conditioning. We gave it a good long time, then fled into the garden part to escape and decided we had enough. That night we treated us to fancy Italian food, it was delicious. Then we browsed at Fortnum and Mason, just like the queen used to. And with some souvenirs of the edible kind we headed back to the hotel.

On our last morning in town we visited Spital market, which was peaceful and artistic and we were able to amble about before grabbing our suitcases and heading to the airport.

We saw the guy with his 3 dogs one more time. We noticed him, not just due to the dogs, but he always walked barefoot.

One of the dogs, stopped at the door turned back around, as if to say "Nope not going inside the house, just yet"