Well as hard as it is for me to believe, my 16 day travel through the UK is finished, and I am back to work teaching in France. I use the term 'work' incredibly loosely here, because I only teach two days a week.....and one of those days is a holiday Monday.....I've only taught 6 days but I only have 5 teaching days left!
Anyways, let's rewind a month to the beginning of my UK adventure!
February 16 - Paris - Oxford
I started my trip as a solo traveller in Oxford. Why Oxford? Well I thought that I would enjoy the youthful, energetic vibe of a small college town outside of London. Also, I read that many scenes from Harry Potter were filmed here, so that was an added bonus. Oxford was quaint and beautiful, just as I expected it to be. I spent the majority of my days walking the streets, sitting in cafes, visiting historic sites, and doing a bit of shopping. Pretty much my vision of a perfect day.
The youth hostel I stayed in, however, was less than desirable, and I came to the conclusion that I am no longer a "youth" in the hosteling sense of the word. This stay fuelled my decision to treat myself to a hotel in Liverpool, which turned out to be a fabulously relaxing decision to make!
February 18 - Oxford - Northampton
For the second leg of my tour I journeyed to the small city of Northampton, to visit an my friend Ben who has been living there for the past couple of years. There is certainly not much to do in Northampton, it is a city that was known for its shoe and boot factories, which have largely been inactive for the better part of the 20th century. Currently the largest industry in the city is engineering (hence why my friend is living there). Northampton is making use of the old factories, and Ben's condo is housed in an old converted boot factory (which was very cool!)
While I stayed with Ben and his girlfriend, we took day trips to Birmingham (which is England's 2nd largest city - I couldn't believe the amount of people on the streets!) and Cambridge (very similar to Oxford, but with more character).
February 21 - Northampton - Liverpool
Next on my itinerary was to travel north to Liverpool. Why Liverpool? Because my grandparents grew up there and my mom was born there - the family emigrated to Canada when my mom was 4 years old. In Liverpool I met up with my 80 year old Great-Uncle who I hadn't seen in 20 years and it was.....FANTASTIC! For an 80 year old he was hard to keep up with and having lived in Liverpool (or just outside of) his entire life he knew the history better than any history book I could have read. I LOVED Liverpool and I think that this was my favourite stop on the tour. Of course, I also visited the Beatles Experience because how could you not. Loved it. Didn't want to leave Liverpool...but a traveller must always venture on....
February 24 - Liverpool - High Wycombe
Next stop on the tour was to visit a friend that I met in the Explore program in Quebec last spring (best program EVER!) who is teaching as a supply teacher in Buckinghamshire county. Again, there is precious little to do in High Wycombe, but of course the highlight of this stop was catching up with my friend Megan. We visited a neighbouring town to see the Roald Dahl museum (quite good) and enjoyed some beautiful springtime temperatures. We had such a great time together that we have planned a trip to Rome for later in the month....more to come on that in a later post. Et, c'est tout pour High Wycombe.
February 27 - High Wycombe - London
The final stop on my trip (already! couldn't believe it!) was of course to London. I was fortunate to stay with a wonderful friend from junior high who I hadn't properly seen in many, many years. I loved London, but seeing Emily again was the highlight of this part of the voyage. There is something so wonderful about being able to instantly connect with old friends who you haven't seen in ages. I was a proper tourist in London while Emily was at school and walked for hours each day taking in the sites and atmosphere. We also went to a great night at the Science Museum put on by the London Consortium (where Emily is taking her PhD) and went to see the play "The Woman in Black", which has been playing for 20 years and was absolutely fantastic. I have never screamed at a play before, but I was properly scared during this one. Fantastic.
March 2 - London - Paris - Saint Fargeau
Sadly, 16 days after I set off, I had to return to Saint Fargeau ( I know, poor me, having to return to France....) I would have loved to spend another week in the UK, but teaching calls. I had the weekend to recover from the travels, but didn't get too much rest as I ran a 12km race at Fontainebleau (French forest) on Sunday morning.
All in all, an absolutely unforgettable voyage. My life is so good.
