Our girls' trip with Grandma and Aunt Janeil started off with a change in plans of who was driving. I'm not allowed to drive anymore in the UK as we've been living here too long without getting a proper UK driving license. Janeil was brave enough to take on the driving of our trip last minute, even though it's scary! I was so glad and grateful. I hope the trip was fun for them, even with some travel snafus.
Our first stop was Lambourn and the church at Chieveley, where the Lambourne ancestors hail. The headstones are all too worn and weathered to be able to tell who is buried there, but we did find a little girl named Eliza. Our Eliza left her a bouquet of wild flowers/weeds. I'm sure that made the other Eliza smile.
Janeil had a good giggle over this sign.
We then drove into the Cotswolds to a charming village called Castle Combe. We enjoyed wandering around and gawking at all the cuteness. Two movies we're familiar with were filmed here: War Horse and Stardust.
Then disaster struck. We were on the narrow country roads trying to get to another village in the Cotswolds when around a corner came a Range Rover with little heed for the fact that two cars are supposed to share the road. To miss the other car we ran into a rock in some driveway and punctured the tyre. Pooh. We called AA and a tow truck came to save the day. It was a great adventure, if not one we'd been hoping to have. I knew the boys would be so jealous that Eliza got to ride in the cab of the truck. We had an excellent view from so high up and the truck deposited us at our hotel for the night. We missed seeing the other towns and had to spend the next morning waiting for a tire replacement. Not the funnest, but I think we each put on our best attitudes and pushed through.
One of the best things that came out of the mess of the tire was that we rearranged our itinerary and so got the best weather for Chatsworth. If nothing else, that was a blessing. I'm so glad we got to enjoy the grounds and house with the sun shining and before the estate's weekend events made the place very crowded.
Our Airbnb in the Peak District was ideal. It was probably in the top three I've ever selected. The location was perfect, the hosting impeccable. I'm glad we had a nice place to stay to enjoy the area. The little village was so small and sweet. We did get told off by a lady for peeking in a gorgeous bay window (that had its curtains wide open and was completely visible from the sidewalk! That was a funny moment for Mom and me to always laugh about!) but we had a few nice meals and fed the ducks and slept in.
We splurged with cake for breakfast in Bakewell with the famous tart and pudding, as well as the best fruit cake and cheese I've ever had. Then it was off into the drizzly day. We walked along one of the prettiest views of an old railroad line, then down under. We got to walk through a lovely farmyard and over a river. Such an idyllic English countryside walk. Eliza was a trooper, even if she wasn't thrilled about the rain. However, the rain brought out millions of snails and she was delighted about that. We called the place "snail trail" by the end, and I'm afraid we were the reason several snail casualties happened.
Driving mix up and blown tire aside, I had a wonderful trip! I already only remember the best bits clearly and the worst bits with a rueful grimace/smile. I hope the other Lambourne ladies remember our time with fondness as well!
