Our England adventures with the Sems and Townsends start with hiking the southern half of the Cotswold Way. Before starting a hike, there is always getting to the start, and that was this day. The travel was as uneventful as anyone could wish for. We did a short warm up hike to blow off some jet lag cobwebs and explored the pretty little market town of Painswick.
The trip started by meeting up at IAH airport in Houston.
Tracy wanted some video recorded for a creative reel she is making about the trip, though watching Dean and the girls make this clip was the best entertainment of the day.
It was exciting to be on the plane.
However, the 9 hour flight gets long, and this photo better captures how we felt…
The flight was smooth, as was our arrival and transfer by taxi (by Andy Cars of Gloucester) to St. Michael’s B&B in Painswick. We arrived too early to check in but we could leave our bags and explore. After a fine lunch of bacon buns, a cream tea, a panini, a homemade quiche, and a slice of cake at the town’s Arts Cafe, we were ready for a warmup hike. I chose a route along the Cotswold Way, going north in the opposite direction to the way tomorrow will take us. It took us up a hill through a golf course to a great viewpoint: Painswick Beacon.
There were many pretty flowers blooming along the trail but I only photographed one today:
After the walk and some refreshments from a small grocery store in town, we checked out Painswick’s St. Mary’s church. Evidence in the Doomsday Book from 1086 AD suggests there was a church here at that time, with the current St. Peter’s chapel dating to 1377 and the spire to 1632. The church grounds had 99 well-groomed yew trees with a legend that the devil prevented the 100th.
As we rested in the shade of the Lychgate, a passerby quickly explained its significance. When the church’s bell tower was struck by lightning in the late 19th century, it became too weak. The tower was replaced with a stronger structure and the old tower used as an entrance to the church courtyard.
We created other photo worthy moments as we wandered around town, waiting to check in to our B&B
After a couple of restful hours, we went downstairs for dinner. The B&B had a bistro attached. While there are often several eating options in the towns we stay in, we generally eat where we stay if possible as it is easier when we are tired. This time, we were not disappointed. Our main courses included lasagne, cod, medallions, chateaubriand, duck, and stroganoff, with fine deserts of sticky toffee pudding, banoffee pie, and bread and butter pudding. The only thing left on our plates were my courgettes, also known as zucchini, but they are dodgy veggies whatever you call them.
We discussed tomorrow’s plan over dinner and were sure we’d be ready after an eagerly awaited good night’s sleep.
The Adventures of the Cajunlimeys 
Ya’ll have fun!Sent from my iPad
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