After breakfast we set off on a walking tour around Cirencester that was based on the recommendations in the information pack the hotel had provided us with. Our first port of call was the Church of St John the Baptist which is situated in the market square. We walked around the burial ground before entering the church building, the oldest part of which dates back to 1115.

There is much of interest to see including a Lego model of how the Abbey of St Mary may have looked. Whilst we were there we were treated to a lovely organ recital. We walked into the grounds behind the church where the original monastery would have stood. Parts of it are marked out with stones in the grass to give an impression of how big it would have been.

We then walked through town towards Cecily Hill and The Great Park. We briefly entered the park before returning to the town to sort out our car parking ticket which was due to expire.

This gave us the opportunity to drive to the nearby earthwork remains of an immense Roman Amphitheatre on the outskirts of Cirencester. Back in Cirencester, we had lunch in the Cafe Mosaic which is situated in the Wool Market. We then continued on our walking tour, adding some additional points of interest mentioned in a walking book that I had bought from the church shop during our morning visit. We walked through the Abbey Park to find the remains of the Roman Town Wall and Corinium Gate where there is only a plaque to commemorate what was once the north-east gate of Roman Corinium (Cirencester).

By now it was time for an afternoon treat so we made our way back to the Great Park where we encountered the Duchess of Bathurst next to her Beano in the Park which is a lovely teashop in a Retro caravan. I chose mint choc chip ice cream and apple juice. The picnic area was full so we retired to a nearby bench to enjoy our tasty delights. We took a scenic route out of the park and made our way to the Corinium Museum which has a collection of wonderful Roman mosaics.

We returned to our hotel to chill out before dining in Piazza Fontana where the experience was as good as our previous visit. Then one final nightcap in The Fleece before it was time to pack our bags for our journey home.

The breakfast experience in the hotel was a little chaotic but the food was excellent. I chose waffles with fruit compote which arrived with a spoonful of clotted cream on top. Clotted cream, or any other cream, is not what I enjoy (or expect) at breakfast, I removed it and put it to the side of the plate.

We had booked to visit the Peto Gardens, Iford Manor at mid day which left us with an hour to fill. We headed towards Brass Knocker Basin with a view to walking to Dundas Aqueduct however we ended up by another stretch of the canal  at the locks in Bradford on Avon. Apart from seeing a WWII pill box this stretch of the canal had nothing much of interest so we continued to the Peto Gardens, where before setting off to explore the garden, we had lunch on the terrace outside the newly built tea shop and restaurant. We enjoyed our lunch, in my case a cheese and red onion sandwich (lunch of the week), in glorious sunshine. The owner was there chatting to one or two people and filming a short promotional video.

The garden is spectacular and whilst from my previous visit my lasting memory was the garden structures this time the flowers were equally as prominent. I was glad to have the guidebook because I lost the one from my previous visit before I had chance to read it. It explains the history, garden structures and statues. Before leaving the garden, we revisited the café for a drink, choosing a shady seat to cool off.

We still had time on our hands and were more successful in finding Brass Knocker Basin where we parked and walked along the canal to Dundas Aqueduct. I wished we could have spent more time there as there was lots to see.

Mr C had sourced an Italian Restaurant, Piazza Fontana, for our evening meal. When we arrived we found that it had a lovely outside seating area with a Mediterranean feel to it. I chose sea bass with shrimps, lemon butter and rocket followed by affogato. The food was delicious, the service was excellent and the menu extensive so we decided to book a table for the following night, our last in Cirencester.

We then walked the short distance to The Fleece for a nightcap before retiring for the evening.