A road trip through South-England

This summer, me and my friend Ane went on a road trip through the south of England.  We started our trip in Bristol, and ended it with a shopping-day in London. We wanted to drive by the coast, so we didn’t take the shortest way exactly, but be had many nice stops and it was fun to visit some smaller cities as well.

This was our car during our trip, a Volkswagen type 2, built in 1951

Day 1, Monday

Our flight from Norway went really good, but we had some problems with our suitcases when we arrived at the airport in Bristol. After we got through the customs, we grabbed a sandwich at Subway before we went to the car rentals. We ended up with a Volkswagen type 2, a relatively old car, built in 1951. I believe we drove from the airport around 4 pm, and when we got out of the parking lot, it was raining. When we arrived in Heartland, it was very dark and we checked in at a cozy Bed and Breakfast. 

This picture taken of our Bed and Breakfast Tuesday morning 6 am.

Day 2, Tuesday

That day, we decided not to waste any time, so we left Heartland at 6 am. We were both very tired, so we changed regularly to be the driver, although I without doubt is the best of us (don’t tell Ane though). We continued on the coastal road, and headed for Penzance. This day the sun was shining super bright, and it was very hot outside. It was so hot, that when we arrived at our destination, we went right to the beach, and swam in the sea. The water temperature was not bad at all! 

The view from our bed and breakfast in Penzance.

Day 3, Wednesday

Since we left so early the day before, we decided to sleep for a few more hours this day. We left Penzance around 11 am, and drove to Plymouth and ate a nice fish and ships lunch. After the lunch, we walked around in the city before we took a swing to Smeaton’s Tower, the third and most notable Eddystone Lighthouse.

Smeaton’s Tower, Plymouth.

Our plan was to go to Dartmore National Park as well, but since we prioritized a few more hours of sleep earlier the day, we didn’t had the time because of our tight schedule.

I believe we left Plymouth around 5 pm, and drove to Torquay, where we spent the night.     

Day 4 Thursday

That morning, our car didn’t start, so we called a garage to get I fixed. They told us that it would take the hole day, so we went to Torquay Surf Beach, and did a lot of tanning. In the end of the day, we realized that we were sunburned. And if that wasn’t bad enough, we ran out of aftersun as well! We didn’t get that much sleep that night.

Torquay Surf Beach

Day 5, Friday

We were back on the road, but we had lost one day. Todays route was form Torquay to Brighton. On the way, we stopped in a city called Weymouth and ate a grate lunch. Ane ordered salad, healthy as she is, and I ordered Pizza, as always.

After the lunch, we got back on the road, but after a little while, we took a swing to Dorset to see the horse made out of chalk.  The horse is called the Osmington White Horse, and can be found in the limestone Osmington hill. Ane thought that it was very interesting because she like both horses and art, but I think it was ok, it wasn’t that fun.

We arrived in Brighton at nighttime, and we were both so tired that we felt asleep the minute our heads hit the pillows. 

Day 6, Saturday

We spent this day in Brighton. We did some shopping in the streets, and we took the ferries wheel. Both Ane and I felt very scared during the few minutes we were up in the air, but the view from the top was amazing and I don’t regret it a second!

In the evening, we went to the pier, which was known as the Palace Piere before, but has been renamed Brighton Pier since 2000. At the pier, we took some rides and attractions, and ate a lot of candy and cotton candy.

Day 7, Sunday

It was time to start on the final leg of our road trip, and we headed to London. We only had a little stop in Hastings, to eat and look at some ruins. Hastings can clame fame through its connection with the Norman Conquest of England. Ane liked this sightseeing as well, and as always I thought that it was ok.

After the visit in Hastings, we continued our way to London and it was dark when we arrived.

Day 8, Monday

This was the last day of our vacation, and we spent it shopping in the streets. After just a couple of hours shopping, both of our hands were filled up with shoppingbags, and our bankcard got bogged down a bit.

After filling our suitcases with our new things, we jumped into the car for the last time, and headed for Gatwick Airport. This last hour was pretty sad, especially when we took goodbye with it at the airport. Luckily, we felt very safe with who we handed the car over to; A lovely German married couple.

Our flight back to Norway went just fine, and I can’t wait until our next roadtrip!