Anne & Kirk Woodyard – Music and Markets Tours

From north to south, the Cotswolds are filled with beauty at any time of year – could it be that fall is the MOST beautiful season? Let’s find out!
Beginning in the north, in the bustling village of Chipping Campden, step carefully in the ancient market hall- built in the early 1600s, the market’s floor sure shows its age!Then we’re on our way south, making sure to take the road east of town where we’ve read that there are a bevy of thatched roof beauties. And they don’t disappoint! I’m fascinated by the precise trim, the designs on the roofpeak, each distinctive, the gentle curves, which look as if they’ve been smoothed and shaped by a giant hand.Fall tops the fences with brilliant berries and drapes the homes with crimson.Continuing south, we pause in the dual hamlets of Upper and Lower Slaughter. St. Peter’s church tops the upper village, with a unique mix of architectural styles – it’s obviously been modified through the centuries.
A countryside walk, and we arrive at Lower Slaughter in about 15 minutes. The old mill is the village’s claim to fame, and now houses a couple of crafty shops. A bit bigger than Upper Slaughter, the village is filled with pretty homes and gardens, this one with reds of every shade, gently arched bridges, and tall-steepled St. Mary’s.Bibury, nearly an hour south of Chipping Campden, is another popular Cotswold village, and one, along with the “Slaughters”,  that we’re including on our Bath Mozartfest Tour itinerary. With its rows of weavers cottages built in 1380, known as Arlington Row, still lived in today, a graceful church (garlanded with roses from a recent wedding), an inviting inn, and a stream burbling through it all, it’s no wonder that William Morris dubbed it the prettiest village in England.
Season after season, the Cotswolds are a true English treasure, well worth a visit.

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The best way to describe us (Kirk and Anne Woodyard) is that we’re interested in the stories that make the places we visit come alive.
We’ve visited Europe more times than we can count, learned some entertaining stories there, and met some warm and helpful people who also enjoy the wonders of music and life in Europe. We look forward to sharing these stories and friends and experiences with our Music and Markets guests.
Between our music-related travels, we split our time between our homes near Washington DC and the south of France.
While both of us have experience in organizing travel and music groups Kirk’s background is in project management and competitive writing, and Anne is an accomplished pianist with over thirty years of teaching experience, and a travel and food writer specializing in France and Italy.