Escape To The Countryside

After the debacle of stress that was last week, I desperately needed to getaway by Friday. My parents are avid campers and whilst camping is not exactly my cup of tea, a weekend in the forest sounded like the perfect antidote.

So I decided to gatecrash their weekend at Blenheim Palace (and dragged Con along for the ride too). The decision was made a lot easier by the fact that my parents don't do tents on the ground, but rather park up in their luxury campervan with necessities like double glazing, central heating and a fridge bigger than the one in my flat, fully stocked with wine. 

After a relaxing evening on a campsite with no phone signal, much less wifi, and a good night's sleep, we started the day with a giant fry up cooked on the barbecue (delicious) before heading into the palace. We stayed at the Bladon Chains Caravan Club Site, which is located right in the grounds of the palace, so it was a short hop skip and a jump over to the palace.

 We decided not to actually tour the inside of the palace (my parents had done it previously and said it drags on a little, as you have to stick with a group not wander at your own pace), but rather stick with admiring the grounds, and getting some fresh air. 

The palace itself is stunning, set in giant grounds that seem to roll on and on forever. We were lucky to catch it just as the leaves started to turn, which I think makes it all the more beautiful. 

 We kinda wished we had packed a picnic after spotting a handful of spots perfect for a midafternoon graze! Particularly the view of the palace across the lake from the embankment was perfect, especially when the sun came out from behind a cloud for a half hour just as we parked our butts down for a little rest. I coulda quite easily fallen asleep lying on the grass there in the sunshine, it was blissful. 

Considering my outfit was hastily pulled together from things found in the back of my wardrobe at my parents, boots from the back of my car, and a pair of jeans I remembered to ask Con to bring from the flat, it was perfect for the day. Comfy, cosy and autumnal too. I'm pretty much living in my Zara jeans these days, I love that they're distressed but not too distressed if that makes any sense! And these boots are a real love of mine, they're comfy and cute too. I swear by the boots from Tesco, I buy a pair every year and they always prove to be comfy, inexpensive and they last forever too. I love these ones they feel so autumnal!

CARDIGAN - PRIMARK // SCARF - ZARA // JEANS - ZARA // BOOTS - F&F 

 When we reached the far side of the grounds we decided to have a quick meander around Woodstock, which sits on the edge of Blenheims grounds. Mostly for bread and wine, but also to soak up the small village atmosphere. I loved the quaint streets, ivy coated houses and cobbled streets.

We headed back into the palace to visit the Butterfly Gardens, and hit up the gift shop too. Turns out I don't much like butterflies when they're flying around my head, and they're kinda like giant moths. Gross. We got out of there pretty sharpish and headed back to the campsite.

 One last cider and a round of nachos later and it was time to head back, but a 24 hour digital detox and a wealth of fresh air did the world of good. I might not have felt back to normal, but it gave me a push in the right direction! 

I want to head back to Blenheim again soon with a picnic but maybe I'll need to wait until Summer rolls around again!