England 2007
I've been back in the States for a week, and I'm still recovering. But, I am finally ready to make the second (and last) part of my trip post. So, I left off with our last night in Scotland. We stayed in a strange multistory hotel in Glasgow that was old and creaky, but updated, and it had no elevators. So we had to trek up 2 flights of spirally stairs with our heavy luggage. It wasn't so bad for me, but my mom has bad arthritis so I had to get mine up an then come back to help her. She didn't want to wait and made it half way before I rescued her. We finally had some decent internet access there, but the wireless didn't reach our room so I had to sit in the lobby, which was ok because I got to listen to the guy at reception talk, and he had a cool Indian/Scottish accent. We had to get up really early the next day so we didn't get to partake of the free "Full Scottish Breakfast."
This is where the train journey began. Our first train was from Glasgow to Carlisle (England) on a really nice Virgin train. Then we had to change trains for Newcastle where we had to change a 3rd time for a train to Middlesbourgh. It was great to see a lot of the country quickly. We went through mostly industrial towns with 2-3 story brick houses squeezed next to each other. After Newcastle we had the ocean on one side and little towns on the other. It was foggy that morning so it added to the 'cool' factor. The strangest thing was passing a town that had a trailer park. After getting used to seeing older, 'English' homes, it was out of place to see the mobile homes sitting in the rising fog.
At Carlisle Station.
I didn't particularly like the trains, but they were so much better than the bus. It was just tricky to get off quickly when we had to change because of our luggage. We made it Middlesbrough where we were met by Susan and her husband. Susan and my mom had gone to school together at a Quaker boarding school. She took us to her home and fed us greatly. She had prepared a vegetarian 3 course feast! It started off with some yummy vegetable soup, followed by some salads and sides. Luckily she had mentioned dessert so I was sure to save room. Although I have only had Trifle a few times in my life, this was by far the best. Usually it is made with a sponge cake (like Lady Fingers here), then jello, custard, and cream. But she omitted the jello (thank you!) and put in some fruit instead. She sprinkled the top with Cadbury Flake and it was too yummy. I had generous seconds of course!
Then we went out to the school the had attended. The buildings are still there, but it is no longer a school. My mom and Susan got to reminisce about taking basket weaving classes and how the school looked much smaller now.
We headed back to Susan's place and the fancy food was not over, because it was tea time and she had a made a Victorian Cake which was almost as yummy as the Trifle. Before we left we had a tour of their lovely garden, took some photos, and they dropped us back at the train station.
This would be our final train ride, for the day, and for the trip. We ended in Leeds, which is where my mom went to university, and where my family (grandparents, etc.) are from. My cousin Simon and his girl Layla picked us up and took us to their home, a 200 year old house.
Simon, Layla, mom
Their cat Tegwin, who I was extremely allergic to! My eye got all puffy and I was glad for the Claritin I brought for emergencies.
Their amazing house.
We spent the night at Simon and Layla's and had half the next day in Leeds. Instead of going to a stately home or ruined Abbey we (I) decided to go to the Thackery Museum, an old Victorian workhouse converted into a medical museum. When we arrived my cousin said we had to wait in the car for 2 minutes. Huh? My mom and I were momentarily confused until we remembered that Layla had to go into work early that day (she works for BBC Radio) because she was reporting the news. So, at 11:00 am she came on and told us the top stories! The Thackery Museum was interesting. They had a fantastic collection of apothecary bottles and jars and talked about old wives remedies (like passing a sick baby under a donkey) and other medical strangeness. It was interesting to learn what practices are still used today.
My cousin then gave us a brief tour of Leeds (none of which my mom remembered) and dropped us at the bus station. This was to be our final bus ride of the trip. It was only an hour and a half and the bus was much more roomy than the one in Scotland. The best part was a child sitting a few rows in front of us belting out song after song as if no one was around. My mom and I had to keep our giggling down, but it was too cute.
Ok, final destination Matlock to my aunt Margaret and uncle George's place. We spent about 5 days there, all packed with things to do and places to see.
We went to a stately home (don't remember the name).
And Haddon Hall, used for filming of The Princess Bride and The Silver Chair.
And we could even see a castle from my aunt's living room window!
One night my cousin Mark and his wife and kids drove down for a visit and my aunt got the local Vietnamese/Thai restaurant to open just for us!
Peter, Beth, Mark, Andrew, George, mom, Margaret
We had to have the obligatory 'Fish n Chips' while there.
Because most places in the UK are veg friendly I had some yummy veggie nuggets (basically croquettes) instead of fish.
Of less interest we went to a couple nature preserves and to the canal and did lots of strolling taking in fresh English air. At one preserve there was an adorable wooden toadstool tea party set that we sat at.
Here is one of my favorite photos, I was so happy to run into Postman Pat and his cat!
I know I've skipped a few things, but this post is getting excessively long. One thing that I loved was that both of my aunts were very traditional English. We got breakfast (with tea), dinner (aka lunch), tea, supper, pudding (aka dessert)and tea/coffee with a biscuit (aka cookie). They both made delicious vegetarian food for my mom and I, including versions of English food such as Toad in the Hole (sausages in Yorkshire Pudding). My aunt Margaret still gets fresh milk delivered as well!
I won't bore anyone with the details of the trip home which included a delayed flight, missing our connection, and then a cramped flight. But we made it home, and it was nice to be home! I'm still uploading and captioning photos, but if you'd to you can take a look at my album.
This is where the train journey began. Our first train was from Glasgow to Carlisle (England) on a really nice Virgin train. Then we had to change trains for Newcastle where we had to change a 3rd time for a train to Middlesbourgh. It was great to see a lot of the country quickly. We went through mostly industrial towns with 2-3 story brick houses squeezed next to each other. After Newcastle we had the ocean on one side and little towns on the other. It was foggy that morning so it added to the 'cool' factor. The strangest thing was passing a town that had a trailer park. After getting used to seeing older, 'English' homes, it was out of place to see the mobile homes sitting in the rising fog.
At Carlisle Station.
I didn't particularly like the trains, but they were so much better than the bus. It was just tricky to get off quickly when we had to change because of our luggage. We made it Middlesbrough where we were met by Susan and her husband. Susan and my mom had gone to school together at a Quaker boarding school. She took us to her home and fed us greatly. She had prepared a vegetarian 3 course feast! It started off with some yummy vegetable soup, followed by some salads and sides. Luckily she had mentioned dessert so I was sure to save room. Although I have only had Trifle a few times in my life, this was by far the best. Usually it is made with a sponge cake (like Lady Fingers here), then jello, custard, and cream. But she omitted the jello (thank you!) and put in some fruit instead. She sprinkled the top with Cadbury Flake and it was too yummy. I had generous seconds of course!
Then we went out to the school the had attended. The buildings are still there, but it is no longer a school. My mom and Susan got to reminisce about taking basket weaving classes and how the school looked much smaller now.
We headed back to Susan's place and the fancy food was not over, because it was tea time and she had a made a Victorian Cake which was almost as yummy as the Trifle. Before we left we had a tour of their lovely garden, took some photos, and they dropped us back at the train station.
This would be our final train ride, for the day, and for the trip. We ended in Leeds, which is where my mom went to university, and where my family (grandparents, etc.) are from. My cousin Simon and his girl Layla picked us up and took us to their home, a 200 year old house.
Simon, Layla, mom
Their cat Tegwin, who I was extremely allergic to! My eye got all puffy and I was glad for the Claritin I brought for emergencies.
Their amazing house.
We spent the night at Simon and Layla's and had half the next day in Leeds. Instead of going to a stately home or ruined Abbey we (I) decided to go to the Thackery Museum, an old Victorian workhouse converted into a medical museum. When we arrived my cousin said we had to wait in the car for 2 minutes. Huh? My mom and I were momentarily confused until we remembered that Layla had to go into work early that day (she works for BBC Radio) because she was reporting the news. So, at 11:00 am she came on and told us the top stories! The Thackery Museum was interesting. They had a fantastic collection of apothecary bottles and jars and talked about old wives remedies (like passing a sick baby under a donkey) and other medical strangeness. It was interesting to learn what practices are still used today.
My cousin then gave us a brief tour of Leeds (none of which my mom remembered) and dropped us at the bus station. This was to be our final bus ride of the trip. It was only an hour and a half and the bus was much more roomy than the one in Scotland. The best part was a child sitting a few rows in front of us belting out song after song as if no one was around. My mom and I had to keep our giggling down, but it was too cute.
Ok, final destination Matlock to my aunt Margaret and uncle George's place. We spent about 5 days there, all packed with things to do and places to see.
We went to a stately home (don't remember the name).
And Haddon Hall, used for filming of The Princess Bride and The Silver Chair.
And we could even see a castle from my aunt's living room window!
One night my cousin Mark and his wife and kids drove down for a visit and my aunt got the local Vietnamese/Thai restaurant to open just for us!
Peter, Beth, Mark, Andrew, George, mom, Margaret
We had to have the obligatory 'Fish n Chips' while there.
Because most places in the UK are veg friendly I had some yummy veggie nuggets (basically croquettes) instead of fish.
Of less interest we went to a couple nature preserves and to the canal and did lots of strolling taking in fresh English air. At one preserve there was an adorable wooden toadstool tea party set that we sat at.
Here is one of my favorite photos, I was so happy to run into Postman Pat and his cat!
I know I've skipped a few things, but this post is getting excessively long. One thing that I loved was that both of my aunts were very traditional English. We got breakfast (with tea), dinner (aka lunch), tea, supper, pudding (aka dessert)and tea/coffee with a biscuit (aka cookie). They both made delicious vegetarian food for my mom and I, including versions of English food such as Toad in the Hole (sausages in Yorkshire Pudding). My aunt Margaret still gets fresh milk delivered as well!
I won't bore anyone with the details of the trip home which included a delayed flight, missing our connection, and then a cramped flight. But we made it home, and it was nice to be home! I'm still uploading and captioning photos, but if you'd to you can take a look at my album.