Original text by Aswin Rizal Harahap; Executive summary by Darmansjah
If you make a trip to the UK, forget for a momentthe frenziedandsparklingcity ofLondon. Try to go to Gloucestershire. In the summer, the region in the southwest of Londonthat offers a smorgasbord of beautiful natural scenery and adrenaline adventures.
Sunny weather blanketed Heathrow Airport last July. Information boards showing weather outside 31 ᵒ C. "Take off your jacket. Come deliciously warm weather in the UKand never as good as this, "said Darren (40), who picked up at the airport.
He wasexcitedto tellaboutthe bestsummerin thecountrywhichhas been underway sinceearly June. Understandably, the weather in the UKis usually always change quickly. Even if summer rains often fall suddenly.
On the way, Darren talked about the rise of people who gamble, ranging from welcoming the birth of the first child of Prince William and Princess Kate Middleton to his favorite football club. However, the main topic chatter remains about the area we were headed, Gloucestershire, 157km southwest of London.
"Gloucestershire is one of the favorite tourist destinations during the summer. Many tourists like to enjoy beautiful scenery with typical quiet rural atmosphere. "Said the father of two daughter.
Darren friendly demeanor remove fatigue after nearly 14 hours of flying from Jakarta. Moreover, stretch meadows and green hills along the freeway so soothing eye. After driving for two hours, we arrived at Cheltenham Spa, Gloucestershire capital.
Atmosphere ofthe English countrysidewas immediately felt. Homeshave traditionallybrickredwithcolorfulwoodenornamentsfordoorsand windowslook beautifulalong the roadtowards the city center. Almostevery homehas afencedlowandsheeporcattlefarms.Shortly afterpassing throughthe citycenter, wearrived atEllenborough Park, one ofthe leadinghotelsinGloucestershire. Englishmanor housein the16th century, Ellenborough, ithas beenrestoredwithmoderntouches, especially initsinteriordesign.
The exterior of thehotelis leftin the original, like thecastle, sothe main attractionfor bothdomesticand foreigntourists. Around the hotelthere is also ahorse farm, cattle, andsheepthat can be visitedbyguestsfeel the sensation oflivinginthe countryside.
Emilio, tourists fromValencia, Spain, is oneof the manytouristswhostay atthefivestarhotel. "After last year on holidayinIbiza(the beach in Mallorca, Spain), wewould like torelax with aclose look at theactivitiesinthe countryside," said the manwhocamewith her lover, Angelina.
Manager Ellenborough Park, Gloucestershire be justified if one tourist destination that want to enjoy the countryside in the UK. Every summer, the hotel occupation rate reached 70% of the 62 rooms. "Especially this summer, occupancy can reach 85% because of the weather in the UK is good-good," said Hanna.
Challenging terrain
Due to the same reason, Land rover invited 30 journalists from several countries in the Asia Pacific region to introduce the latest products, Range Rover Sport, as well as tried it on extreme terrain. Party Land Rover provides 15 cars. One car that must be filled two journalists turns driving. There was no accompanying instructor in the car. We are only equipped with directional device (GPS) to get to a predetermined location.
Promptly at 8:00, the first day as far as 400km touring begins. Of Ellenborough Park, we walked down a narrow country road winding towards the first stop in Senybridge. Expanse of strawberry farms and plantations are along the way we passed.
After driving for 1.5 hours, we arrived at The Bell cafe for tea. British society has a tradition of drinking tea some time before and after lunch. However, the manager of the cafe also offers a variety of beverages, such as coffee, mineral water, juice, and wine is a mainstay of The Bell.
It was all served with a small number of foods, such as breads, cakes, and pastries. After resting for 10 minutes, we continued our journey to the banks of the Elan Valley in Birmingham.
Along the way, we had stopped in the hills with winding roads. We stopped at the highest point to photograph the scenery is too beautiful to pass up. "I would recommend Gloucestershire to relatives in Bangkok," said Thusanai "Man" Raiva, fellow traveler from Thailand.
After6hours ofspendingtime on theroad, now is the timeto tryon thecar's performanceoff-roadtrack. Weenteredthe forest areainEastnor, not farfrom the office ofLandRover. Inthepine forest, we passeda slipperymuddyroads, up and downthe hillwith a slope of60ᵒ, even80cmdeepintothe river.
An instructoris alwaysdirectedusbeforetrying outsessionafter session. Althoughthe terrain isextremeandnotalljournalistsare adeptinoff-road, all stepstake place safely. "Terrain off-roadpackageis preparedtotravelsothe safety factoris verycalculated,"saidLandRover'smanagerAsiapacificRusselMAnderson.
GravelandSand
On thesecondday oftouring, a distance of 193km, the participantsre-tested off-road. Since the morning, drivedirect participantsin the foresttotrysandyterrain, gravel, andbumpy. There is alsoa sessiontrying tomuddy terrainwhile avoidinghundreds ofclosely spacedpinetrees.
After that, westoppeddrinkingteainSezincote. Sezincoteisbuildingwithneo-mughal architecturedesignin the17th century. Insimilardomedbuildingthismosque, weenjoyedteawithvarioustypes ofcakes, such ascheesescones, Danish pastries, lemon draggle, andfruit cake. Participantstouringwas powerlessto resist the urgeto photographthemselvesin the courts ofRenaissance-style garden beautiful.
Appropriatedrinkingteabreak, wewent to thelast stopatCotswoldAirport. At the airportservingtheEnglishroutedomestic, LandRoverlease part ofthe landthe airport, including therunway, andhavetwotypes ofAirbusaircraft.
Interestingly,the aircraft wasusedformeans ofextremeactivitiesandmuseums. Aircraftare designed tochallenge thefieldsof adrenalin. Eachparticipantfelt thethrill of ridingon a planewith a slope of60ᵒandtestedimpossiblehurdlesstillnon-4WD cars.
Japanesejournalistcolleague, ShintaroWatanabe, impressed with the wayLandRoverendingtouring. "They successfully providea verycoolsurprise."He said.
LandRoveroffers threetour packagesthatadrenaline. offeredhalf-day packagefor £225 perperson. Theprofessionalpackage onedayandsold for£ 325perperson.