We came, we saw, we shivered
So most of you know that I spent the last two weeks drinking Guinness and taking pictures of castles and cathedrals so I could make my friends jealous. But if you didn’t know, then here is a post to immerse you in all the damp splendor that is the UK and Ireland.
We arrived in London and promptly fell asleep, but after that we went to dinner on the South Bank and then took a river cruise of the Thames.
That’s the Tower Bridge in the background.
The next day we started our bus tour. I really enjoyed it, actually. The tour company organizes the itinerary, the hotels. the ferry rides and more than half the meals, while also handling tickets for all the attractions. There’s still periods of leisure throughout the day, so my husband and I were able to strike out on our own and find some of our own restaurants and museums. Plus, we had an awesome tour guide, Jonathan, who was a bald Englishmen who enjoyed drinking and knew impossible amounts of history. The only downside was the fact that I COULD NOT stay awake on the bus to save my life. But narcolepsy aside, it was a pretty good way to see so much in so short a time.
We saw Stonehenge:
Stonehenge, where the demons dwell.
We saw cathedrals:
Salisbury Cathedral
Bath Abbey
Christchurch Cathedral
Jedburgh Abbey
Yorkminster Cathedral. This one was probably my favorite–eventually I just had to stop walking and sit and absorb.
And of course, castles.
Cardiff Castle
- Kilkenny
- York
- Hogwarts
And booze! Lots of booze! Ale, Guinness, Scotch, yum.
Basically, aside from missing my kids like crazy, I had an amazing time. I think the best part was being away from library, away from the house, away from all those every day obligations that stunt and stutter creativity, and just allow myself to plunge entirely into my imagination. It had ample food, with all the haunted pubs and ruins and green rolling hills. I felt refreshed and inspired. I felt that magic of atmosphere that I hadn’t felt in so long and I felt connected to centuries of people who had felt the same way in the same place.
I know the hard truth of being a working artist/creative type is that you have to let the work flow, even when it’s constantly interrupted by dishes and day jobs and oil change appointments. But it was nice to take a step away from all that, and to enter a foggy bubble where there was nothing but my husband, my brain and green grass studded with ancient stones.
Well, and booze.