Blighty Day 18: Packing Up at Englefield Green

What a beautiful late summers day in England! Traditionally we would have put on our long slacks and woollies, but  not this year - and, the next few days are promising the same.

Yes, packing-up day! It is surprising as to what has been gathered over the past three and a half months. The need to have all the food either eaten or out of the van is the priority. Along with this is the cleaning of all the cupboards and drawers where there may have been food during the trip.  The amount of rubbish was quite surprising. 

Having sorted as much as we could today, we had lunch and then drove on towards Windsor and then to Jealott's Hill where we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening. 

The New Leathern Bottle where we spent our last night in the motorhome. 

The look when cleaning and sorting the van for storage. 

A full clean-through the kitchen! 

Blighty Day 8: Cookham

Another good night in Cookham. Light rain overnight but it had all cleared by this morning. 

We decided to stay for the morning in Cookham and have a further look around this delightful village and to walk the path along the Thames. 

This very popular area of the Thames has many walking paths that are used throughout the day by a great many people.  The main use from what we could see are the dog walkers. It is interesting to note that there are a number of professional dog walkers who regularly turn up with five or six dogs to give them a walk. 

The walk along the Thames takes you past some exquisite properties with manicured lawns leading down to the water's edge and private boathouses - no wonder it is thought to be the most expensive village realestate in the UK.

We visited the Stanley Spencer Gallery where there was some interesting and different paintings on display. Stanley Spencer was a local artist who lived and worked in Cookham most of his life. The gallery is dedicated to his prodigious output. 

During the afternoon we drove on to Little Marlow to checkout a new storage place for our van. It looked good and it is very secure. 

A little further up the road we found our overnight stop at Piddington. 

Some interesting bits and pieces:

Overnight in Cookham. 

Blighty Day 7: Basildon Park

We woke very late this morning, just as our motorhome neighbours were leaving. Having very little on our agenda for today we took things remarkably easy. 

It was after 10 am before we left for Basildon Park, a short drive towards Reading and the Thames  passing through some serious realestate! Some of the homes along the Thames are very well placed and would be very much sought after if you have deep pockets. 

Arrived at Basildon where we had a coffee to get the heart started and then went for a walk in the large garden of the property.  

Main facade of Basildon Park. 

The rear garden and view of the house. 

The garden/landscape was set up following the principals of Capability Brown- the guy in the 17th century who influenced so many large estates to emasculate many existing beautiful gardens into his monstrosities! They look alright from a plane but rather boring from the ground. 

A nice view but not much of  a garden! 

Basildon Park house has had a checked history - built in the 1700s by a guy who made his money in the East Indian Company,  run down by the 1830s, left vacant from 1910 to 1952 (except during the war years) and then refurbished in the 50s and 60s. Still it was an interesting house. 

Three hundred year old dinner service made for the property in China. Long ago the property had been sold off and the new owners were able to buy the crockery set back at an auction in Norway. 

Many visitors are fascinated by the commode in the dining room - for use by the men after the women had retired! 

Also, a curious set of lampshades. Two "Chinese Medicine Dolls" - a male and a female, used by a Chinese person when viciting a doctor. Apparently the Chinese didn't like to show their body parts to the doctor so they used a doll to indicate the location of the ailment.

We later had a call from Jim to suggest we catch up with him after work. So, we did and had a drink at Cookham before having a meal together. He left in the early evening just as a call came through from Maddie.  So all is good with the world! 

Blighty Day 6: Newbury

Another leisurely morning with the prospect of a sunny day ahead. We had an enjoyable breakfast with Fran before  we said our goodbyes. 

We drove on to Newbury to spend the afternoon checking out the market town. Newbury has been a market town since the Norman conquest. It's history has been varied over a long period of time with the current revival being due to high tech industries being attracted to the town since Vodaphone relocated here in the 1980s. 

A very pleasant canal-side pubs and restaurant. 

Very calm and popular Canal. 

The town has made a real effort to make the space pleasant for people. 

The market square - with many pubs around the perimeter.  

Town hall. 

The very gracious Corn Market - now the town theatre. 

Wandering around was interesting and intriguing, with small alleyways and little nooks leading to cafes and specialist shops.

A little retail nook. 

Newbury has the Kennet River and The Kennet and Avon Canal passing through the town. Historically, this supported the textile industry with names around the town giving notice of this history. 

The lock in the centre of the city. 

More of the canal. 

City bridge. 

We later drove onto the neighbouring town of Thatcham where we were spending the night at a Brit Stop - a pub that has seen the light and welcomes motorhomes to stay the night. We met the publican, had a pint and then returned to the van for dinner and sleep.