Time Travel to the past: Village of Old Amersham in England 

As the Metropolitan line of the Tube made its way out of the urban sprawl of London, the rolling countryside appeared outside the window. The Metropolitan line had pulled out of the dark cavern of the underground and finally we were in the verdant countryside. We were on our way to the village of Amersham. I always look forward to visiting beautiful villages when in England. I love wandering through the old high streets and pretty alleyways. Rambling in the countryside and old towns is a pure joy. 

Amersham is an easy tube ride away from London. It only takes 40 minutes to reach and is located in Chiltern Hills in Southern England. The village can also be reached by Chiltern Railways. There is Old Amersham and a newer Amersham. The village of Old Amersham is the one that takes you from this century and drops you into the past. To reach Old Amersham you either walk, catch a bus, or ride a taxi from outside the station in Amersham. We decided to walk to the village. It’s a 20 minutes walk through the forest and farm land. 

This area is famous for many walks through the countryside. That was what we wanted to do. We set out on the walk after getting off the train on a mostly cloudy day. The prediction was for the sun to pop out from behind its dark veil once in a while and for it to completely show its face by early afternoon. We hoped it would be sooner than later. It had been raining the previous day so we knew the countryside would be muddy. The Rectory Path passes through thick woods known as Parsonage Woods. The path, as we expected, was rain soaked. We squelched through the dark woods trying to avoid the muddy patches. We thought we were lost as the woods were dense. But the good thing was we could see a road running parallel to the woods from the break in the trees. I had read about the view of Old Amersham from the top of a hill to down below. Suddenly, we came out of the woods and onto the top of a rolling hill. There it was, down below the Old Town of Amersham. This view was exactly as I had seen in pictures. We soaked in the view of the English countryside with the church spire and rooftops jutting out from between trees. On our left the hill was covered with a wheat farm.

We crossed the country lane and a tiny sliver of the River Misbourne. We came upon Memorial Garden, a garden created as a memorial for fallen soldiers in the World Wars. There were volunteers working all over the garden to make it more beautiful than it already was. We stopped to admire their work and chatted with some of them. The garden was going to compete in a garden competition the following week. 

Our plan was to walk down the main street to admire the historic buildings and soak in the charms of this centuries old village. The village gets flooded with Londoners on the weekends during the summer months, but this was a weekday and quiet. Amersham was historically a stop for coaches on their way to London. We immediately noticed the signs of taverns and tall gates that would lead into the courtyards within. These gates were made tall for the coaches to pass through. I love historical novels so I can imagine Elizabeth Bennet walking into one of these taverns at a coach stop. One of the taverns was made famous by the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral. 

As we walked down High Street, we came across the Market Hall. It stands at the edge of a veering street that bends to go around the Hall. This historic building was built in 1682 but is no longer in use.  

Walking up and down High Street, we noticed that the buildings represented architecture of many styles and many centuries. From the half-timbered buildings, to a Georgian home, to even a Gothic style home, it was all there. Historic architecture in such a picturesque setting makes Old Amersham completely worth a visit. 

We decided to catch up with the Misbourne River. We caught up with it behind Amersham Methodist Church. It flows behind the buildings on High Street. I wanted to see the Misbourne flowing from below a building, so we walked via Church Street to St. Mary’s Church. The path next to the church takes you to old Wellers Brewery. The Brewery is now a badminton court. The Misbourne flows below the Brewery. It was a surprise to see this narrow river flowing merrily through the arched opening below the building. We followed the Misbourne back to the Memorial Garden to get back on High Street. A local resident had recommended lunch at The Grocer at 15. The Grocer was a charming little place with low ceilings and an open kitchen. After a long morning of walking through the town and the countryside, we sat down for a delicious late lunch. We had wonderful potato and leek soup with a halloumi, avocado, and tomato chutney sandwich. The food was hot, fresh, and tasty. A great thing about traveling in England is the choice of food for vegetarians.

After lunch we made our way back to Amersham station. This time we caught the Chiltern Railway train to Marylebone Station in London. 40-50 minutes later you leave the old village charm behind and are back in the bustling metropolis of London. 

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