Sorry for the lack of posting. I’ve been quite busy traveling lately and haven’t had a chance to sit down and actual document everything until now. So here’s a sort of two-for-one post to make up for my absence.

A [Surprisingly Sunny] Day in London Town

Last weekend, I went on a trip to London with some of my friends and wow, what a city! It’s amazing to see the old and new come together: huge brick towers from centuries ago next to newly renovated all-glass buildings. We saw all of the classic London sites: the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the Parliament Building, Hyde Park, the British Library, and Buckingham Palace – all so much more glorious than in pictures. It’s just amazing to think how old the city is compared to places like Chicago or New York.

Aside from the historical monuments, I managed to make it to probably my favorite site in all of London: the Harry Potter Studio Tour. Needless to say, the awkwardly-excited twelve year old Muggle in me almost died when the huge doors into the Great Hall opened and I walked into something straight out of my imagination. Seeing all of the actual costumes and artifacts was amazing, but the most magical moment was toward the end of the tour. One of the last rooms held the life size model of Hogwarts and all of its grounds. As the score from the movie played and the lights changed from day to night, illuminating each detail with small lights through the windows, I cried with joy. Literally. Ask my friend, Frank. He saw. But I don’t care, because it was pure magic to me. I couldn’t have imagined a better day sipping Butterbeer and nerding out to all of my childhood dreams.

Overall, London was a really interesting place to visit, but I would never live there. It was all a bit too big and hard to navigate for me (as well as much too expensive). But you’ve got to go once, at least, if you’re in England. You really can’t say that you’ve experienced British culture without taking a trip to London.

Now I Know Why They Paint the English Countryside

After coming down from a crazy, fast-paced weekend in the big city, I decided to join another group of friends for a day trip to the beautiful English countryside. We hopped on a bus at around seven in the morning and spent three hours drifting in and out of sleep as the sun rose over all of the beautiful landscapes we passed. We finally made it to the town of Chesterfield at around noon, and jumped on another bus to get to our final destination: the Chatsworth Manor. This magnificent stately home is where Pride and Prejudice was filmed, and where many Dukes and Duchesses have lived (and still currently own). The house is grand and filled with all kinds of antiques, sculptures, and paintings. On the ceilings and walls are brightly colored murals depicting religious scenes made specifically for the prior inhabitants of the house. The display of wealth and royalty was all so much to take in.

And the garden? If you think the house is spectacular, you’ll melt when you step outside and see acres and acres of landscape. From foreign flowers to a real hedge maze, it is nothing less than heavenly beauty. I’ve never seen anything like it. I could have spent the whole day just exploring the garden, and probably still would not have seen everything that’s there. It was stunning.

I used to wonder how these royal women could spend all their time secluded, only seeing their close friends and family, always staying on their grounds. Now I understand the appeal. I could live quietly in a manor like that, writing poetry and painting, hosting the occasional dinner party or ball, watching the sun set while sipping tea in my garden paradise. What a life they must have had.

Going from the busy to the quiet so quickly made me think a lot about place and the lives we can live. I’ve always thought that living in a city would be the ultimate goal, where life is always happening whether you want it to or not. But being in the city made me yearn for the quiet cottage home, or at least the middle ground of Liverpool. My bus ride to Chesterfield took this thought further, as I watched the different towns pass before me. I saw Manchester, an even bigger version of Liverpool. I could see myself there into my mid-twenties, exploring the nooks and crannies of the city. Then Sheffield, a seemingly suburban type place. A place to settle down, start a family. And then, Chesterfield. The countryside. Spending my latter years laughing over a cup of tea with an old friend, walking with my husband on a tree-lined path, discussing how the grandkids are doing, whether Johnny will ever marry that girl he’s been going with…

It’s amazing how place can shape how you live. How it can make possibilities limited, or endless. And how uprooting your life can completely change the way you see your world.

Cheers. x