Around Cirencester, no cycling: a look back in time

April 26, 2014

WEATHER: MIXED SUN AND CLOUD, SOME RAIN AND WIND, HIGH 14C.

The Ivy House put on a good breakfast, with lots of cut fruit and yogurt along with the full English. We chatted with two Japanese ladies who were touring the Cotswolds villages by car. It was great to see blue sky as we collected our dirty clothes and headed for the launderette. Nearby was a Waterstones book shop with a handy Costa Coffee counter, so we had a pleasant time drinking lattes and browsing through books while we waited for our laundry to finish. The Saturday market at the municipal hall was in full swing with crafts booths indoors and food stalls outside. It reminded us of similar markets in our rural area of British Columbia.

The church and the centre of Cirencester

A wedding party confronted by a sudden, gusty rain shower

Cirencester was an important early Roman town, then known as Corinium, and we spent several hours in the excellent Corinium museum which documented the history of the town with interesting displays. We stopped for lunch in a little tea room overlooking the old stone church where a wedding party was gathering. The only rain of the day fell on the wedding guests while we were comfortably munching on sandwiches and watching them through the window.

The museum was very well organized and provided a great deal of information on Corinium and the broader context of the Roman presence in Britain

An artist's rendition of Corinium according to archaeological evidence

In the late afternoon we returned to the B&B to read and catch up with email. Tonight's dinner was at Piazza, a bustling Italian restaurant, where we started with bruschetta and then a good dish of chicken scallopini with mushrooms and vegetables. Tomorrow would be our final full day of cycling and more rain was forecast.

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