Guest Blog! Yessssss!!!!!
Hey guys! This is Rebecca, but I prefer Becki. We just got to England yesterday at 6:30 in the morning, but it felt like 3 in the morning. Since it was 80 degrees in New York City, the weather felt freezing! Apparently when my family and I were driving here we got lost, but I was too busy sleeping. Then we got to the town. It was so cute!!! There’s a little town with some shops, and everyone has accents! I love those accents; I could listen to a British person talk all day long and not get bored. My sister and I spent the afternoon in our little cottage reading while our parents went to get food at the supermarket. It’s so hard to stay awake! I had to wake my sister up about 6 times in 1 hour. We then had an attempted Passover dinner, but none of us really knew the story well. All I could think about the whole night was how amazing it would feel to get into those cozy blankets and sleep without anyone waking me up. The next morning my mom woke me up bright and early at 12:30. I was still tired, but I sensed a chocolate croissant with my name on it. Today we went to Stonehenge, it was awesome! I like the way they pronounce it on the audio tour, “StoneHENGE.” Then we went to Salisbury, and spent about 30 minutes driving. Then we went to go get food, like a good American. We went to this café and got sandwiches and hot chocolate. It was really good! I’m ashamed to say that me and my sister went scouting for cute British guys, and failed. Then we went to go see the old cathedral, it was really beautiful. I got a little freaked out because when we were walking around, we discovered that on the floor there were little marble squares that said things like “Here lyeth the body of Joe Smith (they had more interesting names, don’t worry)” So I spent most the time trying to dodge stepping on the bodies. Then we spent the next hour or so trying to figure out how to get home. And that is our British Adventure so far.
Hey people. This is Ruby, here to tell you a bit about our visit to England. This is actually my very first time out of the country, (YEAAAAAAAAA) and so far it has been absolutely incredible. I have an endless list of places I want to go and things I want to see, I would bore you to sleep if I even recited an eighth of either list. So, in New York around now it’s about 80-something degrees, so when we got to England, we were very unprepared for the 50-ish weather. The town that Robin lives in can be described in two words. It is absolutely charming. I am a total country girl, (tough for a person living in Manhattan). I am obsessed with horses and I love animals in general. So, when the second we started driving, and the sides of the roads were all farms with endless cows, horses, and sheep, I was overjoyed. The town is all little shops with adorable, very British-sounding names. Rebecca and I were always on the lookout for cute British boys, (we are both obsessed with British accents and we both want to have one). Stonehenge is very high up on my list of things I wanted to see, and it was better than I had imagined. As soon as I caught my first glimpse of it from our car window, a huge, goofy smile broke out on my face and stayed there until we left. We got an audio-tour and it was really cool to hear the myths and history of the stones as we walked around them. Robin’s dogs are one of my favorite things about the trip. They look like whippets except they are bigger. Chaos and Darkness are ADORABLE! They love to be petted and are very used to it. They are certainly not what you think of when you hear the term “lap dog” but they are more so than any dachshund or Yorkshire terrier you will ever meet. The scenery is incredible around Stonehenge. Beautiful open farmlands as far as the eye can see. The scenery in town is very different but just as pleasing to the eye. Cute, old-fashioned little cottages, all with cute, British names. Tomorrow we are going to the New Forest. Some of it is real forest with old oak trees, and some of it is open land with bushes and wild ponies, (yay ponies!). Today we also went to Salisbury and saw the incredible Salisbury cathedral, built 750 years ago. The outside and inside were equally beautiful with intricate designs and beautiful stone. My sister was a bit creeped out because there were tombs all over the place inside. Even on the floor there were spots labeled “Here lyeth so-and-so.” That’s about all we’ve done so far, but I’m sure there’s a lot more amazing things to see and do coming up.
Hi Becki & Ruby - greetings from Australia!
Glad to hear you are having a great time so far. Britain is a fantastic place and there is so much to see. :)
While you are there make sure Robin gets her theraputic daily dose of Green & Blacks dark chocolate. Monitoring Blood Cocoa Levels are critical in the management of ME. ;)
Hi Becki & Ruby! Sounds like you are having a lovely time in England with Robin & Co. I am very jealous that you got to see Stonehenge…it’s on my list but I haven’t gotten there yet in spite of traveling to England just last year.
Have a great rest of your trip and happy belated Pesach. :-)
Hi Becky and Ruby,
you seem to be having fun. What gets me when I get out in the English countryside (i live in Greece) is how green everything is, and all those narrow country lanes with overhanging hedgerows. Stonehenge is marvellous, but I also fell in love with Avebury, where you can wander around and touch the stones and there are far fewer people (particularly if you get there very early in the morning). Enjoy your stay and let us know how you are doing.
Hi Becki and Ruby!
Your trip sounds awesome so far! Stonehenge! I’ve always wanted to see it, too, but the closest I’ve ever come is Foamhenge. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foamhenge ) (Which was pretty awesome, too, but not quite the same. The foam is out for repairs now, it seems. Poor foam. Not as sturdy as stone.)
Your jet lag sounds rough. I hope you’re feeling better now!
Good gods. **Foamhenge.** This is how Americans get a bad reputation, you know . . .
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Foamhenge was so cool, though! You could sit in the grass, watch another DISGUSTINGLY PERFECT Shenandoah day go by…and listen to Foamhenge squeak in the breeze.
;)
and listen to Foamhenge squeak in the breeze.
;)
************ **SNOOORK**! Ow, that hurt!!! :)
http://www.legendsofamerica.com/WA-Stonehenge.html
Try that link. We have a (stone) replica of Stonehenge in Washington state that is apparently fairly close to the real thing. Except that you can get closer to it (from what I’ve heard) and there aren’t a whole lot of crowds. Hey, at least it’s not foam.
Greetings to Becki, Ruby and parental units from Philadelphia!
I was in England for about a week years ago and saw Stonehenge, a glimpse of Salisbury Cathedral, a bit more of Oxford and no where near enough of the country You both are a delight to read. Thank you for sharing and taking some of the load off Robin’s back. I hope your whole stay is wonderful, even the really odd bits of it.
I look forward to hearing/reading more from you both.
Cheers!
Name! A name! Please, a name-like collection of letters to identify you by!
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Thanks for sharing girls. Your stories brought a huge goofy smile to my face as well, ah England in the spring! I hope your trip keeps getting better (and you find those cute british boys…). Give Chaos and Darkness a pat on the head for me. :)
KR from Minneapolis
(It is 70 degrees in Minnesota today, hard to believe it is warmer here than in England. Hope you brought sweaters!)
Haha! Yeah, not only stepping on bodies but I also get freaked out just walking next to a graveyard!( This is Becki, by the way) But I have a feeling that’s just me being babyish….
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oops sorry! that was actually to dancesiwthpahis, im still new to this blogging thing =)
yes, the weather here is very up-and-down. today it was sooo much nicer than when we first got here and was least expecting it. So of course, when I step out of the house armed with my various jackets and sweater, I discover that its much warmer. funny how in europe things seem to work against me…ah, well. still waiting for those british boys! =)
Hi Becki and Ruby! I want to go to Britain too. Can I come next time?
Your blogs are great! And I’m so jealous (in a nice, cheery sort of way) that you get to play with the hellhounds, er, I mean Chaos and Darkness. Give them an extra scritch from me, please.
Hey! Pass me some of that chocolate!
**Please** give us a user name!
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Oh I’m sorry! Getting used to this new blog.
Shelley
I’ll give the “Hellhounds” a good pat for you *pats Chaos and Darkness who are standing next to me and trying to lick my face* and the chocolate is certainly DELICIOUS! i’ll pass you some through the computer. *passes a thousand armfuls of different flavored chocolates and throws them at the computer* Bye! and you really should come to England when you can. -Ruby
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Hey, you’re doing a great job blogging. I went to Salisbury on my second day in England (1977) and thought the cathedral was indeed amazing. I also got to hear change ringing in person for the first time (Robin will probably introduce you to it in the near future).
Tip for touring … Avebury (not too far north, quite different from Stonehenge) has standing stones etc. which you can walk around, touch, lean against, etc. as well as other ancient ‘constructions’ in the vicinity: a big mysterious conical, human-made hill, neolithic burial chambers you can actually go into (just south of the hill), Wayland Smith’s forge (another burial chamber), iron age hill forts, and a huge white horse carved from the turf on the side of a hill. The National Trust has a very cool museum there to explain a lot of it. However, visiting late in the day or early in the morning is very atmospheric as there are fewer tourists (in mist or light drizzle it is even more so).
Rosemary Sutcliffe wrote a terrific book, “Sun Horse, Moon Horse” set there … in the time when people lived, worshiped etc. there. Robin may have a copy. The Ridgeway, a long distance hiking/riding path begins near there and up above Lambourn Downs ( a short drive by car, about two day’s walk) you can see them training race horses if you go very early in the morning. Dick Francis, a fantastic mystery writer, sets many of his books there. “To the Hilt” is my favorite.
Have a terrific time, and I look forward to hearing about your family’s adventures!
Hey, this is Ruby. All your touring tips soung amazing! I would LOVE to go see Avebury. We were going to do it one day but we ran out of time : (
I would also absolutely love to go see the racehorses. I am OBSESSED with horses (especially Thoroughbreds) and i ride two TBs at the jumping stable i ride at it America. I would also love to do a riding trail but my mom is the only other person in my family that rides and they think it’s “annoying” when i constantly ask to go riding. Imagine that! I think i may take your word for it and try that book you mentioned. Bye thanks!
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Hooray, guest bloggers! Howdy from the midwest. :)
I seem to recall the first time I was in England, one of my friends got really flipped out about the gravestones in the floors and was practically doing olympic gymnastics to try not to step on any of them–I think we were at Winchester, and it was like nearly every freakin’ bit of pavement had a body underneath it. After a while, you gotta figure they’re used to it, you know?
Stonehenge and Salisbury both definitely rock. Have a great time tomorrow, thanks for chipping in on Robin’s blog!
Welcome, welcome! We’re glad to have the chance to read your guest blogging experiences, and hope you have a wonderful visit!!
“I got a little freaked out because when we were walking around, we discovered that on the floor there were little marble squares that said things like “Here lyeth the body of Joe Smith (they had more interesting names, don’t worry)” So I spent most the time trying to dodge stepping on the bodies.”
— I had to laugh at this because I had the same reaction. I can’t remember which English church I was in (probably Westminster Abbey), but I noticed all of the people buried in the ground and was most uncomfortable at having to walk over them (not sure if there’s some sort of American cultural taboo about this or if it just feels disrespectful, but…). I too tried to dodge, although I eventually gave up (for the most part) because so many of the markers were so faded I couldn’t even always tell when I was walking over someone. Oh well; no hauntings as of yet, so I can’t have offended anyone too badly. :)
Hi Becky & Ruby!
The coming-off-plane-in-freezing-temperatures thing is normal. Everybody does it. Once.
Yes, our weather is weird at the moment. We had snow at Easter, which is just _wrong_. Allegedly, spring is scheduled for next week, so watch out!
I’m glad you’re enjoying the sightseeing - this country might be small, but it’s dense!
Hi Becki and Ruby, great to hear from you. I’m glad that you like the countryside, StoneHENGE (lol) and the local accents and have forgiven Tescos & co the limited kosher supplies.
And how good that Robin told you to bring jumpers. I didn’t realise that what seems freezing cold over here, is actually VERY freezing cold. BBBRRRR!
Do keep giving Chaos & Darkness loads of cuddles, which seems to be a favourite pastime of theirs, and I hope you have a great time in the New Forest today, meeting “wild” ponies who will mug you for treats!
My daughter (aged 12) says to keep looking ’cause there ARE cute boys out there, but the best don’t realise how cute they are!
… and keep guest blogging so we hear all about your visit :) Where do you really really want to go before you leave?
Hey southdowner it’s Ruby. I was actually just now cuddling with the Hellhounds. (Chaos was lying on my face and wiggling around everywhere and Darknedd was calmly licking my nose). We had an AWESOME time in New Forrest. The ponies do not really fit the description of “wild”. There were a few walking on the sidewalk in town. Tell your daughter thanks, we will keep an eye out for the boys and to answer your last question i would very much like to the the White Cliffs of Dover before i leave. But i think i am going to have to save that for another trip because it’s a little far from where we are.
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Hi, Becki and Ruby!
While you’re here, you must visit Winchester - I was at school there, and it is still an awesome city! The Cathedral is even nicer than Salisbury, I think (mind you, we used to have to DUST the chairs, can you imagine?!). And will you do a trip to London, too?
Hey, girls! I’m glad you’re having fun! I’d like to visit England someday…but I probably won’t get to visit Robin. Meh. Lucky! While you’re there could you try to get some hellhound pictures up? Please? Since you’re guest blogging and all? Robin…hasn’t yet. :P
Wecome! You could go and look at Jane Austen’s remains in Winchester, if you are into cathedrals… Or authors… and get Robin some Hotel Chocolat plain - oh wow…..
I don’t know the general feeling of Eddie Izzard ’round these parts as he is a little … subversive, but he has a fabulous joke about druids and floating-or-pushing rocks from (200 miles!) away.. “What are they doing with all this bit of rock” v. welsh druid “oh, they’re building a Henge!” v. welsh Druid”oh a Henge, are they?! how nice!” Also “200 miles! I don’t know where I live now! 200 miles in this day and age? I might as well be in a new country!”
That’s what came to mind from this post. *chuckles* thanks for the only tentatively adjoining giggle.
Hi Becki and Ruby, and welcome to England.
Hope you’re enjoying the sights, and that the weather pixies will produce at least ONE day of nice weather for you while you’re here.
Actually, there are no cute British guys. But have fun anyway.