| 1. Drive through the Lake District or Highlands |
The UK has some astounding scenery and you won’t do much better than the Lake District in Cumbria or the Scottish highlands. I’ve included both depending on where you’re staying as both are magnificent. The highlands have grandeur, bloody history, high mountains, bleak hillsides, fern filled glens with plunging waterfalls and the beautiful cloak of Scottish heather giving the mountains the hue that is unique in all the world. The Lake District is a softer pastiche with millpond lakes bounded by majestic mountains such as Helvellyn. Famed through the Wainwright
Walks, it’s a trekker’s dream.
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| 2. Do London |
London has got to be the most visited city in the world. There is so much history of its own and to think it hasn’t always been England’s capital. The list of must see and must dos here is endless so it’s best just to pick up a guide book and choose what things interest you. Whatever you do though, you must take in a show, eat at a top chef’s restaurant, walk along the embankment and these days probably ride the iconic London Eye.
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| 3. Watch Manchester United play |
England’s most famous football team with supporters the world over. See the likes of Rooney, Giggs, Owen, Carrick, Scholes and others amaze you with their skills. Visit Old Trafford and have a tour of the trophy room to see just how successful they’ve been. If you’re lucky enough your visit will tie in with a visit from their rivals, Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal or Chelsea and you’’ see two great teams fight it out on the pitch.
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| 4. Go to Stonehenge |
Probably the oldest surviving relic of ancient Britain, Stonehenge has a mystery all of its own. Visit on the summer solstice and you’ll be surrounded by druids, new-agers and many more waiting to celebrate the mid summer point where people have done do for thousands of years. See if you can unravel the mystery of the stones, how they got here and what the arrangement means?
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| 5. Eat Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding! |
Britain’s flagship meal and the root of the name-calling we get from the French, properly roasted rib or sirloin, sliced and served with fluffy Yorkshire puddings, roast potatoes and horseradish relish and you’ll think you’re in foodie heaven. Most pubs and restaurants serve it as a Sunday lunch. Ask around for the best in the area you’re staying in.
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| 6. Have a cream tea |
A West Country treat, freshly baked scones, slathered with thick, unctuous clotted cream, topped with home made strawberry jam with big juicy strawberries in it. Eat it sat in a tea house garden on the edge of Dartmoor or in a teashop in St Ives and you’ll really have lived. It’ll pile on the calories, clog the arteries but boy, will it be worth it!!
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| 7. Visit Castle Combe |
I went to Castle Combe recently on a recommendation and found it exceeded my expectations. Voted Britain’s most beautiful village, it is pristine in condition, chocolate box gorgeous and full of everything you’d expect the quintessential village to be. Tea shops, village stores, two pubs, a stream, a beautiful church and a sumptuous manor house, now a luxury hotel. Don’t forget your camera!
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| 8. See Shakespeare’s Stratford |
The most famous Englishman without a doubt, a genius of plays and poetry, a consummate actor, the list goes on. Stratford is where it all began and there’s a host of places to visit and activities linked to the life and times of the bard. Whilst you’re there, try to catch a Shakespeare play. You’ll find that even though you may not understand the language, the acting and scenery will help you to understand the play.
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| 9. Walk the South Downs Way |
I’ve tried tempting you with the majesty and grandeur of Scotland and the Lake District but if you’re based in the South, a very acceptable alternative is to walk the South Downs Way. Starting near Winchester, the walk goes all the way to Eastbourne in Sussex along the ridge of beautiful rolling hills. There are views to be enjoyed on either side of the ridge and the 80 mile walk is dotted with quaint pubs for lunch whilst others supply overnight accommodation for those who are doing the whole walk.
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| 10. Try Scotch Whisky |
It’s not to all tastes and sadly not mine either but there are hundreds of single malts and blends of this famous liquor made all over the highlands and islands of Scotland. The taste depends on the water used, the mash and the barrels used for ageing as well as the air where the distillery is located. Many distilleries do tours followed by tastings. There is now an English whisky too, made by a company who say research has shown the drink originated in England not Scotland! Don’t say I told you so though!!
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