I’ve lived in Surrey since last July but confess I haven’t seen much of the county. Completely reliant on public transport I’ve found my options quite limited, and the temptation of both Brighton and London has been hard to resist.
I’ve visited some lovely towns during my time here. I’ve eaten plenty of street food in Reigate, loved Guildford and had a yummy fish finger sandwich in Dorking. But above all I’ve fallen in love with the countryside. Glimpses from trains have shown rolling hills, shady woods, little streams. I know without doubt I’d love to consider settling down here in the future.
Bank Holiday Monday saw my parents drive down to pack up my winter wardrobe see me so I persuaded them we needed to explore. We headed over to Box Hill, an area made famous by the cycling a few years back. It’s still extremely popular with cyclists, hence driving up was a little difficult – but worth it. Stunning views, a lovely visitors center. We would have loved to spend longer up there, perhaps taking a proper walk.
But grumbling tummies had to be dealt with!
After missing the turnings for most of the pubs we had researched and almost driving into the US Open Golf qualifiers (quite literally…) we stumbled upon The Blue Anchor. Making the most of sitting outside we quickly ordered…and were thoroughly impressed.
I couldn’t resist the lure of the burger – minus the gherkin (who eats these?!) and tomato. Coming with lashings of mustard mayo and a good helping of actually melted cheese, it was one of the most delicious burgers I’ve had. It wasn’t cooked pink, in fact it was a little chewy, but the flavours were spot on. Bonus points for melting the cheese onto the burger so it crisped slightly. SO GOOD.
My sister went for the prawn and crab linguine, and would have loved it had it not been for the rather strange addition of sweet chilli sauce. Instead she feasted on the chips. Obviously homemade, already perfectly seasoned, crisp. Everything you want a chip to be!
My parents went for the beer battered cod, and the ham and eggs – both of which received no complaints. I’m convinced my burger was the star of the show though.
We finished the day with a quick wander around Reigate before piling all my stuff into the car. I genuinely don’t know how I’ve ammassed so much stuff. Kind of dreading moving back to university in September as adding notes to this is going to get embarrassing…
A lovely day, beautiful weather, fabulous company, exploring one of my favorite parts of the country. If only all Mondays were like this!
How have you been spending your weekends lately? Do you love to get out and about in your local area?