8100 Casa de Meadows
Englewood, Florida

The Englewood house

This house is on a short road which skirts a small lake. It's a very attractive setting, and the nicest house we have stayed in in the US - so nice in fact that we have been there five times. The first four times we booked the house through a rental agency, but due to work pressures we weren't planning a return in the spring of 2003.

However, by a most amazing coincidence I went to a meeting in Easingwold, Yorkshire, at which I met the British owner. The house was no longer on the rental market but the owner very kindly allowed me to take on the house for an amazing 7 weeks! Thanks, John!

It wasn't all "holiday", and there were a few chores to be done (some arising from the fact that the house had been struck by lightning not long before I came over), but I (and my cousin, who joined me for a couple of weeks) had a truly wonderful time.

Since then, we've been able to go back another couple of times.

The Englewood house - from the air

These two aerial photos show the location of Casa de Meadows, and the house itself.

To the left of the top photo is Manasota Key, with the Gulf of Mexico to the left. The USGS photos were taken some time ago, and the empty plot on the right of the bottom photo has now been built.

The kitchen and living room

This is quite a big house, with a well-equipped kitchen and attractive breakfast area, which opens onto the pool patio (through the doors on the left). In the distance is the living room - to the left is a comfortable sitting area, and to the right (out of sight) is a small area with a couple of sofas and a satellite TV (which made the visit even more interesting).

The master bedroom

This is a view of the master bedroom, looking towards the doors which open to the pool (on the left in the distance). The master bedroom has a comfortable sitting area, and a TV.

The master bedroom again

This is the view from the pool door. In the distance is the bathroom area, and there is a walk-in closet on the left. This is a very attractive, and very comfortable master bedroom.

Bedroom 2 (Guest bedroom)

The house has three bedrooms. The guest bedrooms are in a wing on the east side of the house. This is the first of the guest bedrooms. A very comfortable room with twin beds, and a door which opens directly onto the pool.

Bedroom 3 (Guest bedroom)

This is the second guest bedroom located in the "east wing". Although it has only one window, it's a comfortable room.

The guest bathroom

Located between the two guest bedrooms, this is a comfortable bathroom with shower, tub, wash basin and toilet.

The pool (looking east)

The satellite dish is visible over the roof of the "east wing". The large glass door straight ahead is in the second bedroom, and the small door to its left leads to the corridor outside the second bathroom.

Under the shaded area is a table, and doors to the kitchen, lounge and master bedroom.

The pool again

The solar heated pool gets a lot of sun, and backs onto a wild and seemingly untouched area. While not completely private, the nearest house is a fair distance away. The outlook is wonderful, and the pool was (nearly) always nice and warm (thanks to the solar heating).

It is just behind the small fountain that we saw a baby alligator on one of our visits. Fortunately, it walked along against the screen on the outside!.