Hometown tour

I've stayed away from most of the MEMES but I saw one on http://quilttilyouwilt.blogspot.com that looked like a lot of fun. The only problem is I'm not sure if I should do it for where I live now, where I consider my home, or where my house in the U.S. currently is...

The premis of the memes is to imagine you've made a connection with anohter blogger who lives in a completely different part of the world. This blogger is about to take a trip and she is going to sotp by your house. Unfortunately she can onlys tay for 24 hours. She would like to see some sights but yo have to keep in mind that time is quite limited. Look around you with the eyes of someone who has never seen your area and tell us some things you'd share.

Since I am going to have folks visiting I decided to go with where I am currently living in England.

1. Your visitor wants to see something historical where would yo take her and why?

This is a tough one since everything in England looks historical to Americans! I think I would start witht he Cathedral in Tewksbury. (the photo on the left is from the inside) It is only about ten minutes down the road and has lots of black and white Tudor style houses in the town center. There are also several good antique shops.I fit is a nice day would could take a river boat up the Severn to one othe pubs for lunch if not we could stop at Hobnails In which was established in 1473 and is only 2 miles from my house. They have incredible mushroom turnovers with goatcheese and for dessert - sticky pudding! (I hope this person likes to eat!) I would also include a stop at my friend Emily's house which is a thatched cottage from the 1500's (The Baker House.) Lots of little stairs, uneven florrs, and a beautiful garden. Then a quick trip through a couple of villages around here on the way to Winchcombe. If time permits we could go to Sudeley Castle or cruise done into Cheltenham to see some Regency style homes and get a pint....with my driving she'll need it!

2. She wants to see somthing hysterical...well mildly amusing anyway. She'd even go for cute, quirky, off, or unique. Where would ou take her?

First I would stop off at the next village, Alterton, and take her to see the cottage with the patchwork windows (not really but that is what they look like!) The entire cottage looks like somthing Tonya would hav put together - very wonky! Then we would htake the back roads to the Cotswold Farm Park where they maintain lots of the old species of farm animals...some of the cutest sheep and pigs I've ever seen! The views along that road are beautiful too. From there we would go to Bourton-on-the-water to miniature World where they made an exact replica of the town (including the miniature world!) in 1:9 scale.

3. She want to take some beautiful and/or interesting phtoto to fill her albums when she gets home?

See one or two above...there isn't a corner of the Cotswold that you can't get a great photo. Maybe a trip up to Stratford-on-Avon....

4. She would like to buy a souvenir that would rmind her of your area every time she sees it. What would you suggest and where would you go to get it?

If she likes pottery we could stop at the Winchcombe Potters and pick up a mustard pot and get some Tewksbury mustard to go with it! (very hot with lots of horseradish in it - my DH goes through a jar a month!)

5. It's been a long day and you're both ready for a snack, or maybe even a meal. Where would you take her to really get a flavor of the area?

I guess I jumped the gun talking food in the first question - tells you a lot about me! If not the Hobnail then there are several good tearooms round - one in Broadway that serves a great turkey, garlic and goatcheese sandwich,, or the one in Cheltenham that is also an Antique Textile Shop. If it is late I woudl to to the Royal Oak in Prestbuty. It has some of the best foold I've had in England and it is on one of the most haunted streets in one of the most haunted villages - makes you want to "tuck in" for another dessert before going back out into the dark!!!