From Bourton we moved on to see more of the Cotswolds. They were in reality totally different of what I had imagined when I used to read about them years before.
In my thoughts I saw one village, with all the roofs thatched, which is not reality. There are a lot of thatched, but not all...
Before getting on the road again I need to share two more pics of the village inside the village. The church... (and yes, it is the miniature version)
As I forgot that I did have one photograph of the inside, modelled too...
Sadly enough the inside is covered with a sheet of bad plastic, so the wipes and stretches you see are the plastic sheet.
It is mind boggling that the person who made this took the time to carve tiny wooden benches, and a little organ, a culpritt, truly a small work of art. Big in its smallness.
On this image I want to leave Bourton. Both Mr Wonderful and myself share the good feelings we had by visiting this town. A must...
Decisions had to be made... Where to go next in this fairy land. We picked Bibury, in the South of the Cotswolds. I wanted to go and see Arlington Row.
The name in itself has a good feel. A cosy something. It must be the Row extension. Row means you have neighbors, you are living in a community.
We did arrive in Bibury and parked the car alongside a river. Clear water, we could see the bottom and the fish and other things floating.
It reminded me a bit of Manet’s Garden in Giverny. It’s probably the similar bridge as in Giverny. With a weeping willow behind it. Just like France.
A teenage swan is cruising, slowly, looking hopeful to get some food. The bad side of having tourists: ducks and swans start to depend on them for food.
I know this is a teenage swam as some of its feathers are turning white, from brown for toddlers and baby swans. This one is thinking about leaving childhood and grow up.
It meant that he left his parents. On its own in life now...
Bibury is a true Cotswold village. Saggy cottages, with heavy slated roofs. The beams inside creaking under the weight of centuries.
If I would win the lottery, and become disgustingly rich, I would build myself a cottage like the ones we encounter on our walk around town.
We walk along further next to the babbling water, and a mother duck is trying to keep her kids together. They are trying to swim upstream, which is no problem for mom, but the little ones only have small paddles, and a bit of current takes them back if they are not careful.
I hear her talking to the bunch...
“come on kids, paddle... Ricky, try to stay straight...
Andy, come on, you can play later...
Mickey, stop teasing your sister...
Leana, quit whining.
Mickey, second warning, on 3 you have time out: stop teasing your sister.”
“but mooo...”
“No buts, stop teasing your sister, why? Because I am the parent and I tell you to stop!”
Sigh, it’s no different, raising duck children or raising human children. This duck mother tugs at my heart. She is guiding her kids, no anti authority games, that do not work in the long run. With her I believe in rules, boundaries and limitations. I am totally on her side.
We walk on, the duck family finally gets to the other side of the bridge. We are heading towards Arlington Row. I see a row of cottages, leaning on each other. The kind of housing that makes my heart melt.
The picturesque Arlington Row cottages were built in 1380 as a monastic wool store who got converted into a row of weavers' cottages in the 17th century. The cloth produced there was sent to Arlington Mill on the other side of Rack Isle. The cloth was then hung on wooden timber frames on Rack Isle after being degreased at Arlington Mill. Arlington Row is probably one of the most photographed Cotswold scenes. Figures... Guess who is in front of us?
Look at the right in the above photograph... Next to Mr Wonderful are the Japanese couple, the lady again posing for a couple of weavers cottages. It’s a small world.
This must be a house that was designed with me in mind. Even if I only got born five centuries later. I could so easily picture me living in one of the cottages.
Sipping a cup of tea and a small fire in the fireplace. Who cares about the windows not being double glazed, and probably freezing in winter. Unless they would have put in central heating. Not evident, as the row is listed Grade two. Which means as much as leave it as it is, don’t alter anything. I am not sure if I could live like a weaver in the seventeenth century. I do need internet and central heating. I am a luxuary gal. And I need a washing machine and linen dryer. Oops, just ran out of space...
But then we have the Laura Ashley fabrics to use for curtains... Laura Ashley against Herr Miele... Hmmm, difficult choice!
If you would enter this tiny door into my living room you would see my big brown cupboard against the facing wall. With books. And china. I love china. My 375 cups and saucers... and 200 specialty coffee mugs... Guess I will never end up in a small cottage unless they make me.
Arlington Row is one of the highlights of our Cotswolds tour. Too bad it is only seven or eight cottages, the row should have been 45 cottages...
We walk towards the old mill, and see the Row vanish behind tall grasses on the island. In front of the cottages there is an island, the river splits on two around it, which explains the two bridges in town.
The mill is for sale, now, see, that one would fit me. With all my china, books and speciality coffee mugs. I even could have a studio and an office. Mr Wonderful could have an office on the other side of the hall way.
We would love the sound of the water wheel turning in the river on the side of the house... Yep, I can see it. Except we do not have 1.400.000 pound to buy the thing...
We are ready for a visit to the Trout Farm, next to the mill. I am not fond of fish, and certainly not of river fish with more bones then anything else, but I do not mind go in and take a peek at how they farm trouts.
Never thought that trouts were actually farmed... More later! If you don’t like fish, wait a day to come back to this blog as tomorrow will mostly be about fish...
Later!!!
I love this title and the post is great too. Those houses... Goodness so beautiful!!!
Posts like these make me REALLY miss Britain!!
Posted by: mollie | 05 November 2009 at 02:08 PM
de eendenconversatie is goddelijk...en de vissenfoto's prachtig!!liefs, M
Posted by: mieke duyck | 05 November 2009 at 04:09 PM