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Blissed Out In Britain
Thursday, 15 March 2007
I can hardly explain how welcome the crisp English air was when I first entered the UK. My friend, Bex, picked me up from the train station in the little town of Guildford just south of London. The hills and pastures are green and rolling and the skies are clear and blue. It was surprisingly warm and sunny the entire time I was in England. Throughout Britain there is a law that allows anyone to walk through private land on the designated public footpaths. I spent a day walking 13 miles through the country side. It felt so good to have some time to myself to reflect upon my journeys. The landscape here is picturesque and cozy. The little tows are quaint and full of pubs and restaurants with warm fires. It reminds me a lot of the east coast of the States, particularly Virginia and Vermont. Bex lives in a big house on plenty of land with gardens and a river running through it. We played some music by an old swimming pool and she taught me Hallelujah by Lenard Cohen, good song.
I traveled up to Warwick and stayed at a B&B just in town. The owner is an incredibly sweet Irish fellow by the name of Paul. The Warwick Castle was a fun place to visit with its gardens and towers, dungeons and wax statue displays. When I first saw the wax butler I about jumped out of skin, he looked so real.
I was changing trains in Banbury. I got onto a train and realized I was in the wrong place and had to run back up the stairs, then down the stairs to another platform with my backpack and my guitar. I made it by 10 seconds, but I was on the right train to Kingston-Upon-Hull. I met Rebbecca in Fiji back in October. She was a great hostess and showed me around to Robin Hood’s Bay, Whitby, Goathland, and York. Robin Hood’s Bay was cute with its windy little streets and beach along the North Sea. The coast line reminds me a lot of northern California. We ate some fish and chips, the best I’ve EVER had actually. We saw the Whitby Abby next, where count Dracula is meant to still roam. It was in this town where Bram Stroker was inspired to write Dracula. Then onto Goathland to visit another tiny town and the Hogsmeade train station, from the Harry Potter films. York was unbelievably cute. The shops are nestled in along cobblestone streets and the York Minster (http://www.yorkminster.org) was beautiful. In my opinion it was even more grand and impressive then the Notre Dame in Paris. The inside decor was stunning. Rebbecca and I walked along the city walls and admired the freshly sprung daffodils. There was a market in the Shambles area where the old buildings have warped wood and sagging roofs. I love how everything is so old and full of history. It’s quite magical.
Long story short...after missing two trains, one in Hull and the other in York, I managed to just catch a bus to Edinburgh, Scotland. My jaw literally dropped as we pulled into the city. Holy Harry Potter. I have entered the most immaculate city I have ever set foot in. I love it. There are cliff crags that surround parts of the city and the Edinburgh Castle sits upon an extinct volcano in the center of town. The buildings are gorgeous and medieval. My friend, Zayd, met me at the bus depot and we did a brief walk through town. There are so many people bustling about as this city. It is not too big and is therefor easy to walk everywhere. We passed by the train station, monuments, cathedrals, churches, and strolled through a graveyard with crumbling tombstones and green mossy rocks. I LOVE it! We finished the night with a healthy portion of curry and a walk by the old hospital - that looks to me like the Hogwarts I envision when I’m reading Harry Potter. (I know I’m a BIG fan, I can’t help it, they are incredible books!) I’m excited to see more of the wee city today. I’m blissed out!
Posted: 03.15.2007
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