Pass the cheese.  Heading south west from Dumbleton toward Cheddar on the road less traveled, we will be stopping at Painswick, Bath, the Cheddar gorge, Cheddar and finally our hotel in Burnham on sea.  A full day for sure.

Now that we have technology for the drive, the back road are much less stressful, at least for me. Johanne is still inhaling the car's oxygen on a regular basis.  I even got afew squeals out of her.  The road is narrow, just enough room for two vehicles. A few times, I even had to hold my breath.  The good news is that now have something to do between villages...see how many times I can get Johanne to react.  5 times in 20 minutes is my record to date.!

Painswick, an historic wool town nestled in the hills of the Cotswold's, is a small dot on the map.  It is a big dot on our memory.  This little village is just so quaint you want to pull up a chair and watch the world go by. New street, pictured below, was built in 1428 at the height of the wool trade and contains the oldest building in England to operate a post office (now closed). It is also the only example of exposed wood beam construction in the town.

The Norman style church is surrounded by Yew trees.  99 of them to be exact. Legend has it that should the hundredth tree be planted,  the devil would appear and shrivel it.  During the millenium celebrations, the 100th tree was planted.  A short time later one of the trees toppled and died....work of the horned one, who knows!

These are rare 17th century spectacle stocks, just outside the court house, used to parade criminals in front of the village if convicted of an offence.  They still work, Johanne is letting me know how she feels about me saying I am going for a coffee, it is something like "let me out"!  Which of course I did, she had the money.

Cotswold's countryside! 

Painswick is very close to a crazy competition held every spring. The Cooper's Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake. This is an event whereby contestants chase a 7 lb roll of cheddar cheese down a steep hill.  The winner gets the cheese. Runners fling themselves down the hill with reckless abandon, many injuries result from the crashes but still more line up to participate. It is so popular now that people from around the world come to participate. Johanne wants me to enter.  She figures that since I am always hungry, I will easily outrun or out tumble, as the case may be, the rest of the group, just to get the prize.   "Can I have some wine to go with my cheese"... please? Thankfully, they don't have an over 50 category.

Bath architecture looks a lot like London, quite different then what we have been experiencing lately.  Bath has a deep history, including excellent examples of Roman baths. We didn't visit them as we are "Roman ruined" out since our African adventures.  Bath became fashionable in the 18th century as a spa and cultural center.  The "Royal crescent" seen below was built to support the wealthy visitors who came for the rejuvenation powers of the baths and the theatre.  The city boasts UNESCO heritage status.  The only city in England with this award.  Tourism is important, over 1 million staying visitors and 3.8 million day visitors a year. It felt like half of them where there with us. Nowhere to park, single file streets and restaurants chock a block full.  Having hit the main sights we moved on towards Cheddar.

Jane Austen's house in Bath.

The Cheddar Gorge is a limestone gorge in the hills, near Cheddar.  This is a view from the road.  The area is home to the Cheddar show caves, where Britain's oldest complete skeleton was found in 1903. Named "Cheddar Man" he is estimated to be 9000 years old!  The gorge was named Britain's second greatest natural wonder after the Dan yr Ogof caves in Wales, which we visited earlier on our trip. Great planning,  Johanne!

Just down the road from the gorge is the village of Cheddar.  The town is known for two things, it's Cheddar cheese and its strawberries.  The cheese style is by far the most popular in the UK and maybe the world.  In order to be called Cheddar, the cheese had to be created within 30 miles of the Wells Cathedral, using only local cows milk. The cheese was aged in perfect conditions within the cheddar gorge caves. Unfortunately, the maker's never patented the process.  Today, cheddar style cheese is made around the world. Below is the last cheese maker in Cheddar still producing the cheese.

 We tasted cheddar that had matured in the caves vs one made in the plant.  The cave aged cheese had more depth of flavor and moisture content.  While speaking with the owner, he indicated that they tried to duplicate the conditions of the cave within the plant.  The mineral deposits in the cave walls are impossible to recreate in a man made environment.  Mother nature still does it best.

The village also has dome cider makers.  Their cider vinegar has magic healing powers.  Apparently, it can significantly reduce the ravages of arthritis. A spoonful a day is all that is required! The world needs to know, pass it on! We'll be sure to come back if it ever hits us!

After a great and full day, we are done. We had a nice carvery dinner in a pub and crashed for the night.  Tomorrow we visit the mystical world of Glastonbury and the market in Wells before hitting the big city of Exeter for a 6 course feast at a 2 star Rosette hotel. We will be staying at that very same hotel for the night.

 Be well

Cheerio