beautiful bradford

Thanks to our Young Persons Railcards and an eagerness to escape London at every opportunity, Ian and I took another weekend trip (last weekend was Reading) to visit his brother, sister-in-law and nephew in Wiltshire. Bradford-on-Avon far out-weighed my expectations of a small English town and to just call it ‘historical’ is to do it a gross injustice. Steeped in history dating back to Roman days the town boasts stone, terraced houses, beautiful walks, numerous mansions and a town centre that offers little more than a few eateries and some local stores. From the tiny prison cell on the bridge, where drunks would be kept overnight, to the quaint St Mary’s Tory chapel on the hill that overlooks the town, explorer’s delights can be found at every turn. We enjoyed good home-cooked meals (thanks to chef Zoe) and a couple of picturesque walks, one of which happened to take us to a pub along the river where we stopped for a pint…okay, I had hot chocolate…I needed the warmth! Despite what my mother is convinced is a ‘ganglia’ on the back of my foot (but I’m too young!) and the pain caused thereby, I enjoyed getting out and about and breathing some clean air. Us Londoners really come to appreciate such a rarity. I could see myself sitting in one of the cosy little terraced houses down a petite lane - one of those that enjoy a view of the whole town - at a window desk, writing the day away. *rox snaps out of her daydream rather abruptly* That would probably keep me interested for approximately 1 month at which point I would be tempted to streak through the town centre in order to bring some excitement to the town and thus amusing myself out of ‘small town syndrome’. London will do.