After we spent those incredible few days in Paris, we headed back to Burnham, spent a few more days with the British family, and then headed off to our next adventure destination, Ludlow, England! Every time we are in the UK we always try to stop by Ludlow so that we can visit two of our great friends, Dave and Jo. They live in the cutest cottage (It's named the Little Shortgrove cottage!), which is basically in the middle of nowhere. You have to drive down many bumpy, twisting, turning, dirt roads to reach their house.
The remote countryside was such a nice change after being in such a busy city. Their house sits in the middle of several huge fields, most of which are filled with (the cutest) sheep.
This is the Little Shortgrove cottage! Isn't it just about the cutest place you've ever seen?! I think I took about 30 pictures of this place alone. It has so much character inside and out, and its almost 600 years old!!
These two were even cuter than the cottage. Meet Hayward the horse and Bramble (aka Donk) the donkey! Did you notice Donk's smile? I think she rather fancied us by the end of our stay, at least I'd like to think so.
It was so great to see Dave and Jo during our Europe trip! My Dad and Dave have been best friends for over 40 years, how cute is that. They met in primary school (aka elementary school) and have been friends ever since.
Peek-a-boo :-)
This looks more like typical English weather. When we got home from dinner, all of the clouds had rolled in.
Fun fact: It didn't get dark until 10 pm.
Donk was so sweet and gentle, especially with Connor, who had no fear whatsoever going up and scratching Donk on the nose. I fell in love with her, I want a donkey now (and a horse too, of course!). They really are one of the quirkiest and sassiest animals you'll ever come across. Donkeys have so much personality; you never really know what to expect from them.
Connor was a little hesitant at first, but he successfully fed both Hayward and Donk. :)
How stunning is Dave and Jo's property! Hayward and Donk are livin' the life.
I couldn't get enough of this cutie patootie.
Dave tries to act like he doesn't care for the donkey much, but this picture tells a different story...
While my dad was photographing Dave and Jo's cottage, Donk was up to no good. She went to investigate what he was up to, gave him a little nibble, and then got what she came for: a little scratch on the head. ;)
We had dinner over looking this gorgeous stream.
The town of Ludlow was the view from our table! Talk about picturesque.
Walking around the town of Ludlow with Dave and the family, was seriously a huge highlight of the trip! I absolutely LOVE Ludlow. It's so quaint, but rustic at the same time. All the streets look like they're straight from a movie.
Little tight, there?
Hmmm, maybe I should forget Flagler and transfer to here instead. ;)
After touring the streets of Ludlow, we headed to the Ludlow Castle. It was actually way cooler than I thought it would be. In fact, I probably enjoyed it more than Connor did! You actually get to walk into the different rooms of the castle, and climb up the old staircases. It was fun to imagine what the different parts of the castle were used for hundreds of years ago.
Dave was the best tour guide! We couldn't of found our way around without him.
After our fun trip to the little village of Ludlow, it was time for us to leave. :(
We gave Donk & Hayward some final hugs and kisses and then we set off on our way home.
On our way back to Burnham we drove through the Cotswolds! The Cotswolds is an area in central England that consists of many villages lined with cobbelstone streets, and filled with the cutest cottages (like the one pictured above).
I feel like the Cotswolds would be the perfect place to retire one day. A girl can dream, right?
Before we jumped back into the car to continue on our way, we stopped at a great pub in the Cotswolds. I can't remember the name of it, but you can't go wrong with the pubs in the UK (at least in my experience!)
Thanks for having us Dave, Jo, Hayward, and Donk! We loved seeing you all!!
