一個叫倫敦步行遊 (London Walks) 的組織每天都在市內各處舉辦導賞團。參加這些團不需要預約,總之在宣傳單張列明的時間到指定地方集合便可。帶領導賞團的導遊全擁有藍襟章 (blue badge) 資格; 準導遊需上課達兩年學習歷史、文化等,然後通過導遊公會 (Guild of Tourist Guides) 的嚴格考試才能取得資格,所以導遊對導賞的地方都擁有豐富知識。
除了市內的導賞團外,還有一些是從倫敦出發到其他城市或小鎮的一日遊。筆者一直很想到科茨沃爾德 (The Cotswolds) 一遊,可是這地方交通不便,如不自己開車便去不了,所以當知道 London Walks 也有舉辦 The Cotswolds 的一日遊,而費用也不是太昂貴便打算參加。數星期前的一個星期六早上,趁著天氣還和暖,便騎單車到 Paddington 火車站集合。當天除了筆者,還有五十名本地和外國團友一起參加,看來 London Walks 的導賞團都頗為受歡迎。
The Cotswolds 其實不是一個城市或小鎮,它泛指位於英格蘭西南上半部 Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire 等六郡的鄉村和郊區一帶。在很多外國遊客的心目中,The Cotswolds 就是英格蘭的後花園,是像童話故事中描述的郊外。Cotswolds 這名稱從舊英語得來,"cots" 在舊英語為羊欄,"wold" 則為小山丘。
從 Paddington 坐一個多小時朝西北進發,過了牛津 (Oxford) 後不久便在 Charlbury 站下火車。導遊安排了一架旅遊巴接載團友,旅遊巴穿過一個又一個綠油油的山丘,過了大概二十分鐘後大家便在一個山丘下車。顧名思義,因為這是個步行團,導遊便帶領著大家沿著小路向小鎮 Chipping Campden 進發。小路是人馬共用的 bridleway, 不時遇到騎著馬匹的人。從山丘上遠眺 Chipping Campden 鎮,那裡的房子真的像童話故事裡的小石屋,整整齊齊的。沿路有小型牧場,數十頭綿羊悠然自得地吃草。The Cotswolds 自古以來已盛產高品質羊毛,出口羊毛曾令這個地區經濟蓬勃。由於正值夏末秋初,小路旁長滿了野生黑莓,剛巧大家開始感到肚餓,便邊走邊採摘黑莓來充飢。
The Cotswolds 很多小鎮只中世紀已有百姓居住,所以小鎮的名稱大多來自舊英語。Chipping Campden 裡的 chipping 也是從舊英語得來,是市集的意思。從山丘走了半小時便抵達小鎮,導遊逐一介紹鎮內的特色建築物。整個 The Cotswolds 地區都充滿石灰石,所以房子一般都是用當地的石灰石蓋成,不少屋頂是由茅草蓋搭而成。而 Chipping Campden 裡果然仍保存著一個有四百年歷史、用石灰石建成的市場。小鎮裡當然有酒吧、教堂等,所有都有數百年歷史,但仍保養得宜,看起來舊而不殘。
由於行程緊湊,眾人各自吃過午飯後便上回旅遊車。旅程的次站是一個叫 Upper Slaughter 的地方。Slaughter 英語的意思為屠宰,聽起來有點恐怖,但導遊解釋這字在舊英語裡的意思完全不同,解為沼澤。Slaughter 有小溪流經,小溪旁有沼澤因而得名。Slaughter 有不少豪華府邸,而附近總是建有一些小石屋。據說那些豪華府邸古時是由一些大地主擁有,而小石屋是大地主為當地農民和僕人而建。時至今日,或許大地主家族早已沒落,豪華府邸不是易手給來自倫敦或海外的富貴人家作為渡假屋,便是給改裝成為高級精品酒店。團友們沿著小路一直由 Upper Slaughter 走到 Lower Slaughter, 途經一間給改裝成酒店的豪華府邸,剛巧當日有一對新人在那裡舉行婚禮,團友們還從遠處向新人揮手道賀。
在導遊的帶領下,大家穿過田園小徑到達一個差不多有一千年歷史的磨坊。隨著工業革命,磨坊本來早已荒廢,幸好有一家熱心的當地人若干年前把磨坊買下,閒時便作修葺,現在除了在那裡經營小店,還開了個磨坊博物館,好讓遊客能認識磨坊的歷史。小店的自家製雪糕做得出色,大家都買來作下午茶。沿著流過磨坊的小河往下游走,再經過不少精品酒店,牧場和田園小徑後,旅遊車便已在路旁等著接載大家回火車站。乘火車返回 Paddington 已是傍晚,一日遊就此結束。跟普通的旅行團比較,步行團雖然要走很多路 (當天共走了九公里!)但感覺充實、有趣、也是很好的運動,有機會一定會再參加。
除了市內的導賞團外,還有一些是從倫敦出發到其他城市或小鎮的一日遊。筆者一直很想到科茨沃爾德 (The Cotswolds) 一遊,可是這地方交通不便,如不自己開車便去不了,所以當知道 London Walks 也有舉辦 The Cotswolds 的一日遊,而費用也不是太昂貴便打算參加。數星期前的一個星期六早上,趁著天氣還和暖,便騎單車到 Paddington 火車站集合。當天除了筆者,還有五十名本地和外國團友一起參加,看來 London Walks 的導賞團都頗為受歡迎。
The Cotswolds 其實不是一個城市或小鎮,它泛指位於英格蘭西南上半部 Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire 等六郡的鄉村和郊區一帶。在很多外國遊客的心目中,The Cotswolds 就是英格蘭的後花園,是像童話故事中描述的郊外。Cotswolds 這名稱從舊英語得來,"cots" 在舊英語為羊欄,"wold" 則為小山丘。
從 Paddington 坐一個多小時朝西北進發,過了牛津 (Oxford) 後不久便在 Charlbury 站下火車。導遊安排了一架旅遊巴接載團友,旅遊巴穿過一個又一個綠油油的山丘,過了大概二十分鐘後大家便在一個山丘下車。顧名思義,因為這是個步行團,導遊便帶領著大家沿著小路向小鎮 Chipping Campden 進發。小路是人馬共用的 bridleway, 不時遇到騎著馬匹的人。從山丘上遠眺 Chipping Campden 鎮,那裡的房子真的像童話故事裡的小石屋,整整齊齊的。沿路有小型牧場,數十頭綿羊悠然自得地吃草。The Cotswolds 自古以來已盛產高品質羊毛,出口羊毛曾令這個地區經濟蓬勃。由於正值夏末秋初,小路旁長滿了野生黑莓,剛巧大家開始感到肚餓,便邊走邊採摘黑莓來充飢。
The Cotswolds 很多小鎮只中世紀已有百姓居住,所以小鎮的名稱大多來自舊英語。Chipping Campden 裡的 chipping 也是從舊英語得來,是市集的意思。從山丘走了半小時便抵達小鎮,導遊逐一介紹鎮內的特色建築物。整個 The Cotswolds 地區都充滿石灰石,所以房子一般都是用當地的石灰石蓋成,不少屋頂是由茅草蓋搭而成。而 Chipping Campden 裡果然仍保存著一個有四百年歷史、用石灰石建成的市場。小鎮裡當然有酒吧、教堂等,所有都有數百年歷史,但仍保養得宜,看起來舊而不殘。
由於行程緊湊,眾人各自吃過午飯後便上回旅遊車。旅程的次站是一個叫 Upper Slaughter 的地方。Slaughter 英語的意思為屠宰,聽起來有點恐怖,但導遊解釋這字在舊英語裡的意思完全不同,解為沼澤。Slaughter 有小溪流經,小溪旁有沼澤因而得名。Slaughter 有不少豪華府邸,而附近總是建有一些小石屋。據說那些豪華府邸古時是由一些大地主擁有,而小石屋是大地主為當地農民和僕人而建。時至今日,或許大地主家族早已沒落,豪華府邸不是易手給來自倫敦或海外的富貴人家作為渡假屋,便是給改裝成為高級精品酒店。團友們沿著小路一直由 Upper Slaughter 走到 Lower Slaughter, 途經一間給改裝成酒店的豪華府邸,剛巧當日有一對新人在那裡舉行婚禮,團友們還從遠處向新人揮手道賀。
在導遊的帶領下,大家穿過田園小徑到達一個差不多有一千年歷史的磨坊。隨著工業革命,磨坊本來早已荒廢,幸好有一家熱心的當地人若干年前把磨坊買下,閒時便作修葺,現在除了在那裡經營小店,還開了個磨坊博物館,好讓遊客能認識磨坊的歷史。小店的自家製雪糕做得出色,大家都買來作下午茶。沿著流過磨坊的小河往下游走,再經過不少精品酒店,牧場和田園小徑後,旅遊車便已在路旁等著接載大家回火車站。乘火車返回 Paddington 已是傍晚,一日遊就此結束。跟普通的旅行團比較,步行團雖然要走很多路 (當天共走了九公里!)但感覺充實、有趣、也是很好的運動,有機會一定會再參加。
There is an organisation in London called London Walks, they run walking tours all over London to suit any taste, such as those that takes one through little-known lanes and alleys in the city to those that visits suburbs filled with interesting history. All the walks are guided by fully qualified blue-badged guides. In order to gain a blue badge, these guides have to go through up to two years of study on history and culture and pass rigorous exams set by the Guild of Tourist Guides, so rest assured that these guides are very professional and really know their stuff.
Aside from walks within the city and surrounding suburbs, London Walks also run day trips to places outside London, such as Oxford and Bath. I have always wanted to visit The Cotswolds, but never got around to as it is one of those places where you do need to go by car as most towns and villages are not served by trains nor long distance buses. For those who don't know, The Cotswolds is not a town or a village, but it is a region that covers parts of six counties including Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, and it is the country's designated "Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty". In Old English, "cots" means sheep enclosures, and "wolds" means gentle hills.
When I learnt that London Walks runs day trips to The Cotswolds, I just knew I had to join as not only do I get to visit The Cotswolds finally, but as the name London Walks suggests, these day trips involve lots of walking which I love (it beats getting whizzed around in luxury coaches and falling asleep and missing all the great sights!). The best thing with these walks (or day trips) is that no booking is necessary. One just needs to turn up at the stated meeting point in the brochure or website (usually a tube or train station) at the stated time. Seeing the weather was still quite pleasant a few weeks ago, one Saturday morning I cycled to Paddington to join the day trip to The Cotswolds. As we have had the best Indian summer in a very long time, many people turned up to join the tour, and the fifty of so of us packed into a full train out of Paddington.
After roughly an hour and a half, we got off the train at Charlbury, a couple of stations further away from Oxford. There a coach already awaited us, after passing over one lush rolling hill after another, we were eventually dropped off on the hillside overlooking the town of Chipping Campden. From there, the guide led us to the bridleway, as we walked down the hill, we were greeted by a few horse riders and strolled pass a small sheep farm where sheeps were grazing. Even though the day was a little overcast, we could still see beyond Chipping Campden, and could make out that many of the houses are made from honey-coloured limestone, some with thatched roofs. It was approaching lunch time and we were all feeling a little peckish, so we all helped ourselves to wild blackberries which grow everywhere along the bridleway.
People have been living in The Cotswolds since the Middle Ages, so place names there mostly come from old English, and these names are not found elsewhere in England. The word "chipping" in Chipping Campden means market in old English, and as the name suggests, it has been a market town for hundreds of years. In the centre of the town, there is a limestone building which was once used as market hall. When we reached the edge of the town, our guide took his time in explaining the history of significant buildings, the different styles of houses etc. We passed ordinary houses, pubs, churches which have all been standing for hundreds of years.
Everyone went their own ways for lunch, and we all assembled again afterwards to make our way to the next destination of our day trip. The coach came to pick us up and drove us to a village called Upper Slaughter. Slaughter in old English has a totally different meaning to modern English, in old English it means marshland. A small river runs through Slaughter and the land near the river is marshy, hence the name. There are quite a few grand manor houses in Slaughter, which according to our guide, used to belong to rich land owners in years past. Near the manor houses there are clutters of small stone cottages. As owners used to own large swathes of land, they would rent out land for farmers to work on, and the small stone cottages were built as accommodation for farmers and their families, and also for staff who work in the manor houses. Although some of these manor houses were kept within the family and pass through the generations, most have been sold off to wealthy London or overseas buyers to be used as holiday home, or are sold and converted into boutique hotels. Passing through small lanes and alleys marked by limestone dry walls, we walked from Upper Slaughter to Lower Slaughter. We passed by one of these manor-house-turned-boutique-hotel and there was a wedding reception taking place. We all waved to the happy couple from a distance to send our best wishes.
Passing open pastures we reached an old mill. The mill was abandoned many years ago as the region went into a period of decline with the advent of industrialisation. Fortunately a local family bought the mill and were determined to return it to its former glory. Nowadays, aside from two small shops, there is also a mill museum housed inside. Everyone took a small break as the mill shop sells delicious homemade ice cream. Afterwards, we continued our way and walked along the stream to pass more boutique hotels and a small farm. At the end of the walk, the coach came to pick us up once again, and due to a sudden change of train schedules, the driver drove us to Oxford to board the return train to Paddington. By the time we reached Paddington it was past 7pm. We were told we had walked a grand total of 9km, not bad at all. It was such a enjoyable day trip that I plan to join another one come next summer.
Aside from walks within the city and surrounding suburbs, London Walks also run day trips to places outside London, such as Oxford and Bath. I have always wanted to visit The Cotswolds, but never got around to as it is one of those places where you do need to go by car as most towns and villages are not served by trains nor long distance buses. For those who don't know, The Cotswolds is not a town or a village, but it is a region that covers parts of six counties including Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, and it is the country's designated "Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty". In Old English, "cots" means sheep enclosures, and "wolds" means gentle hills.
When I learnt that London Walks runs day trips to The Cotswolds, I just knew I had to join as not only do I get to visit The Cotswolds finally, but as the name London Walks suggests, these day trips involve lots of walking which I love (it beats getting whizzed around in luxury coaches and falling asleep and missing all the great sights!). The best thing with these walks (or day trips) is that no booking is necessary. One just needs to turn up at the stated meeting point in the brochure or website (usually a tube or train station) at the stated time. Seeing the weather was still quite pleasant a few weeks ago, one Saturday morning I cycled to Paddington to join the day trip to The Cotswolds. As we have had the best Indian summer in a very long time, many people turned up to join the tour, and the fifty of so of us packed into a full train out of Paddington.
After roughly an hour and a half, we got off the train at Charlbury, a couple of stations further away from Oxford. There a coach already awaited us, after passing over one lush rolling hill after another, we were eventually dropped off on the hillside overlooking the town of Chipping Campden. From there, the guide led us to the bridleway, as we walked down the hill, we were greeted by a few horse riders and strolled pass a small sheep farm where sheeps were grazing. Even though the day was a little overcast, we could still see beyond Chipping Campden, and could make out that many of the houses are made from honey-coloured limestone, some with thatched roofs. It was approaching lunch time and we were all feeling a little peckish, so we all helped ourselves to wild blackberries which grow everywhere along the bridleway.
People have been living in The Cotswolds since the Middle Ages, so place names there mostly come from old English, and these names are not found elsewhere in England. The word "chipping" in Chipping Campden means market in old English, and as the name suggests, it has been a market town for hundreds of years. In the centre of the town, there is a limestone building which was once used as market hall. When we reached the edge of the town, our guide took his time in explaining the history of significant buildings, the different styles of houses etc. We passed ordinary houses, pubs, churches which have all been standing for hundreds of years.
Everyone went their own ways for lunch, and we all assembled again afterwards to make our way to the next destination of our day trip. The coach came to pick us up and drove us to a village called Upper Slaughter. Slaughter in old English has a totally different meaning to modern English, in old English it means marshland. A small river runs through Slaughter and the land near the river is marshy, hence the name. There are quite a few grand manor houses in Slaughter, which according to our guide, used to belong to rich land owners in years past. Near the manor houses there are clutters of small stone cottages. As owners used to own large swathes of land, they would rent out land for farmers to work on, and the small stone cottages were built as accommodation for farmers and their families, and also for staff who work in the manor houses. Although some of these manor houses were kept within the family and pass through the generations, most have been sold off to wealthy London or overseas buyers to be used as holiday home, or are sold and converted into boutique hotels. Passing through small lanes and alleys marked by limestone dry walls, we walked from Upper Slaughter to Lower Slaughter. We passed by one of these manor-house-turned-boutique-hotel and there was a wedding reception taking place. We all waved to the happy couple from a distance to send our best wishes.
Passing open pastures we reached an old mill. The mill was abandoned many years ago as the region went into a period of decline with the advent of industrialisation. Fortunately a local family bought the mill and were determined to return it to its former glory. Nowadays, aside from two small shops, there is also a mill museum housed inside. Everyone took a small break as the mill shop sells delicious homemade ice cream. Afterwards, we continued our way and walked along the stream to pass more boutique hotels and a small farm. At the end of the walk, the coach came to pick us up once again, and due to a sudden change of train schedules, the driver drove us to Oxford to board the return train to Paddington. By the time we reached Paddington it was past 7pm. We were told we had walked a grand total of 9km, not bad at all. It was such a enjoyable day trip that I plan to join another one come next summer.