WE'RE OFF....FINALLY

 

As the title and picture suggest, we're finally going somewhere.  Having suffered through the lockdowns, canceling trips, and having to put up with all the unnecessary B.S (my opinion anyway) we are finally able to travel to an overseas destination.  Where to, pray-tell?  Well, most of you detectives out there have probably figured it out with the picture of a big airplane, and you're right if you picked the United Kingdom, England more specifically.  We've been there before in 2013 and enjoyed it immensely.  At the time we promised ourselves we would go back.  Now we're keeping that promise.  We are going back to some of the same places that we visited before, but not to worry, we didn't see it all the first time.  So if all goes according to plan, it was go something like this:

In one week fly direct to London from Phoenix via British Air.  Some of you may remember that We've had problems with them before, lost my trekking poles, cancelled a flight due to a strike and another because of Covid, trying to get a refund.  In short their land based customer service sucks.  But they are the only way to fly non-stop from the west side of the country and their on-board service beats any US airline in Premium Economy.  Separate cabin, wider, almost full reclining seats with foot rest, lots of leg room and a much better food selection.  Once on board, I've never had a complaint.  I bought the tickets back in January before airline tickets went through the roof and we had amassed enough points on the credit card to pay for the tickets.  The real sticker shock happened when I went to rent a car.  Prices for rental cars are over the top.  We will spend a month heading to our favorite places staying exclusively in B&B's, most of which are on working farms.

We're not heading into London, having spent a week there on our previous trip.  First we'll spend three nights in Old Windsor before driving north to York.  When we were there before we lucked out and found one of the best, if not the best, farm B&B's.  And we're going back.  On our first stay we hit it off with Netty, the owner (we're both blog writers) and after a couple of false starts we managed to book a room at  Hazelwood Farm  Not and easy task mind you, as rooms are booked a year in advance.  Netty, Pictured below was a bundle of energy, expertly taking care of us and her other guests, treating all of us like royalty.  I am sure in the ensuing 9 years she hasn't changed a bit. 

NETTY

From York we will head to the Lake District for a week and explore some of numerous trails that the Lake District is famous for.  Next, back south to the Cotswolds for another week of exploration, again on the vast network of walking trails.  Our last stop will be in the south of England in Cornwall where we just might get a little beach time.  In an attempt to make the trip a little more relaxing, we will be staying close to a week in most places.  This also gives us more of an opportunity to explore a region a little more in depth.

Anyway, follow along as I will try to keep the blog updated as we move from place to place or when something exciting happens.