Weekend Release

The weekend just gone saw me leaving London for the first time since I arrived almost 2 and 1/2 months ago... and it was well over due.

I was to meet my friend Henrietta in Battersea Park around 11am, and from there we were to drive to her parents estate in the village of Combe (very close to the university town of Oxford), Oxfordshire, in the Cotswolds area of England. I finally found Hen in a Battersea Park carpark, and we went via Hen's Fulham apartment that she shares with her sisters Tatiana and Florence. The apartment was very much a London version of my little house in Clarke street, and it made me happy, but also a little bit homesick when I walked in. Once Tati got herself organised, and a mate of theirs had come over and picked up a cowboy hat covered in red glitter for a party later that night, we hit the road.

I'm not sure if it was a result of too much 'fun' in Shoreditch the night before (or the curry we ate on Brick Lane- Caitlin and Josh had both suffered from a suspected mini-food-poisoning the evening before), or the fact that I hadn't been in a car travelling at high speeds for a long time, but the car ride made me rather ill. I started to improve after a stop over and some full strength Coca-Cola when we were about half-way between London and Oxford. The country side and the houses also started to change after this point- I could see endless rolling hills, paddocks and crops, stone cottages and country houses with thatched roofs, cows, gorgeous white sheep with little black heads, big skies and wide open spaces.

Once we came closer to Oxford and the nearby villages, Hen explained to me about Cotswold stone and why all the gorgeous houses and fences look the same- the deal in this part of England is that all the houses and fences need to be build in Cotswold stone, and if you want to extend/renovate/demolish/rebuild, you need to get special permission from the council, and then do so using Cotswold stone. Interesting concept, eh? The aesthetic affect is so worth it.

We arrived in the village of Combe sometime around 1pm, and drove up to Hen's house. The house, or perhaps I should say estate, was called The Old Farmhouse, and featured a tennis court, indoor swimming pool and a large, well manicured garden and lawn space. The house it's self had an open kitchen and lounge room, with an adjoining conservatory, which over looked the gardens. There was an ancient lounge room with a fire place and a really high mantelpiece (much like those I saw in Kensington Palace) two bathrooms with bath tubs that have iron 'feet', four bedrooms and a really cool attic. The place was filled with antiques, a piano, various other musical instruments, cupboards filled with vinyls (33 and 45 inches), family photos from ski fields in France and Austria, and an eclectic mix of knick knacks and art work. I felt like I had stepped into a Country Style magazine.

As we took ourselves and our bags in from the car, Hen introduced me to her mother Helena (she immediately came across as this punchy, stylish, well spoken and proper woman) who had laid out this incredibly impressive spread of food on the table in the conservatory, and ushered us out there to eat. Within no time, she had cracked open a bottle of wine, and said "How about we get rat-assed then?" And so the weekend had began (pity I was too sick to stomach anything at that point...but you'll be pleased to know that I had recovered by that evening!).

Following lunch, Hen suggested that we head to Blenheim Palace for the afternoon. The palace, a present from Queen Anne to a Duke who led the English army to a victory over the French and Bavarians in around 1705, is a really impressive place- more striking than Kensington Palace I must say, and the interior is spectacular- rooms with particular colour themes, blue, then green, red and yellow, and an astounding library (apparently the second longest room in any house or palace in England) which was definitely my favourite room in the house. The palace is also the birthplace of Winston Churchill, and there is an exhibition there at the present moment featuring his art works, and cards that he had designed and were published by Hallmark. Hen and I started off on a guided tour, but soon tired of it, and decided to grab an ice-cream and make our own way through the palace, and then out onto the surrounding grounds, and over the Vanbrugh Bridge.

We made it back to Combe before a roaring thunderstorm rolled in, and we set about organising a supper of soup, crab, fried chorizo and more wine. It was around the dinner table that it became apparent just how well-connected this family was- with inadvertent references to "Camilla P.B's" daughter, whom Tati had been on holidays with the previous week, the long standing relationship with Richard Branson's son, and another heiress who is particularly good pals with 'Wills and Harry'. After supper, we retired to the sitting room to watch the exclusive Katie Price interview (aka Jordan after a sip of an alcoholic beverage), and then for me, it was time for bed.

The room that I was allocated for the weekend was referred to as The Seagull Room and was immaculately decorated in a beach theme, with seagulls painted on the walls and seaside oranaments and art works, and a beautiful little window over looking the village. I slept so well- most likely as a result of the heavy curtains and the fresh country air combination.

I awoke the following morning to Henny knocking on my door, and after a quick breakfast of strong espresso and marmalade on toast, Henny, Helena and I drove to the town of Oxford. It was really quite special to drive into Oxford- for as long as I can remember, I've had books from Oxford University Press and of course, the good ole Oxford English Dictionary- but also, I am well aware of the incredible intellectual heritage, and it being home to the oldest English Speaking university in the world. The buildings in Oxford are incredible, and reflect life and times of the English in the last 900 odd years. Buildings of note were the Radcliffe Camera and St Mary the Virgin Church- I especially like the SMV Church because of the various historical information that it presented- I was able to read about people who were martyred at the time of the Reformation and know exactly what they were talking about- thankyou two year Theology degree! Good to know that giving up my Saturday's every second weekend for two years was good for something, hmm!? Seriously though, fascinating stuff.

We walked thoughout the maze of colleges, and I, being a total tourist, took far too many photographs- I'm pretty sure Henny was totally over me stopping to snap every minute or so. In total I think we spent about 4 hours wandering the streets, and then spent sometime in the down town markets where Henny's mum had a dress store. By around 1:30pm we were famished, and cruised back to Combe. Hen and I walked the family dog Ludi round the village, past the local church, round the village green, and out into the barley fields while Helena and Tati organised our lunch. I can't tell you how nice it was to roam around in the wide open spaces, not a building or person for miles.

After yet another delectable meal, Helena made some jugs of Pimms, with fresh strawberries and mint leaves from the garden, and out we went onto the lawn for a game of croquet. I absolutely loved it, eh?! Didn't expect to, but just did- it reminded me of Alice in Wonderland of course (another English Classic, set in Oxford- how delightful!)- the utter craziness was brilliant. I actually said to Tati "Why, it's just like mini-golf don't you think?", to which she replied, "I don't think the Queen would be very happy to hear that!" And we laughed.

We left Oxfordshire late in the afternoon, and headed back to old London town. Coming in on the M40 motorway, it was nice to see the city come into sight.