"antoine" wrote in message
. ..
Dear readers,
in a few days I will be in London for a short visit. My wife never was in
England and I would love to show her something of the old rural England.
Where should I go for an one day visit in an ancient english village?
Thank you for a tip.

If it's not too late I'd like to offer a rather different suggestion. Take
the train from Paddington to Castle Cary. The station is about a mile from
the village centre. There are taxis but for the next 3 months it's going
to be quicker to walk because the road across the railway will be closed.
There is a map on platform 1 showing the walking route but you don't need
it. Go up the stairs onto the pedestrian bridge, turn right, down the
stairs then follow the footpath. When you get to the road go straight
across and into the road straight ahead. When that runs out there is a
path that bends left and goes up. Turn right at the top along the wall of
the churchyard (or go through the churchyard) and then take the footpath
that runs along the front of houses with a field on your right. Keep going
straight on and you'll come into the square with the "lock up" in the
middle. The "lock-up" is a small, circular, prison just big enough for one
person. The butcher keeps the key. Look at the rather grand post office
then walk down the cobbled street and admire the Market House (which is
undergoing some work as I write). Visit the museum on the top floor of the
Market House. Just opposite the Market House is a path which also leads to
the hotel car park. The path is called Paddock Drain. Walk up the path
and have a look at the community garden and the information board that tells
you about the Castle (that isn't here any more). Continue up the hill
through the field to the observation point at the top. Retrace your steps
and when you get back to the Market House turn tight until you reach "The
Bakehouse" (just past NatWest Bank). They do very nice Thai or English
lunches and a tempting assortment of cakes and pastries. Wander along the
main street to the horsepond which has a war memorial in the middle and a
little further to look at the church and the wood behind it. The next step
depends on the time of the year and how much time you have. There is a bus
which runs from Castle Cary to South Cadbury about once every hour. It's
run by Southwest Coaches and the timetable is online. Get off the bus and
walk into South Cadbury along past the Camelot (pub) and a 100 yards on
you'll come to a path on your right. Follow this to the top; you will have
climbed "Cadbury Castle" which some people claim is related to the legend of
King Arthur (explains the name of the pub). Get the bus back to Castle
Cary and it will take you back to the station. Now take the train to Bath
for a night. Spend the next day in Bath and finally take the train back to
Paddington.

Good luck.