Trying the Train

How about doing an article on day trips out of London by rail? Southern Californians are so accustomed to being paralyzed without a car that many assume that to leave the London area a rental car is necessary, and many are reluctant to learn to drive on the “wrong” side of the road. Although we have rented a car in England, my husband and I now go everywhere possible by British Rail, using the London Underground to reach the correct railway stations. On a recent vacation we took three delightful day trips, one from Victoria Station to the delightful village of Otford (no, not Oxford) near Sevenoaks in Kent. We discovered Otford because a former business associate of my husband’s and his wife opened a pub there some years ago on the charming main street. There are several other pubs and tea shops, a small duck pond, and you can obtain a little walking tour map at our friends’ pub, the Bull. Ted and Sally Maycock are friendly, family-oriented people. They have built a glassed-in lunchroom behind the pub, looking out on a lawn with play equipment for small children. The pub dates back to 1538 and is in beautiful condition, as is the village.

BILL and DEE HODSON

Simi Valley