Okay. okay, I am somewhat recanting what I said about bad fashion here. There are a lot of very interestingly, well-dressed people, but I am confused by the unbelievable amount of wool coats I saw parading the streets today in Bath. I saw many, many women in wool jackets and boots with tights. This is just breaking all kinds of seasonal fashion rules! It is an abomination to wear wool in August! Admittedly, it did not get above 65 degrees f today. It is Autumn already here, but I was fine in my cotton blazer and jeans. I even donned the scarf as I love to do, but come on. Boots, stockings, scarf and coat or wool in August?? I hope that the French have more sense. The styles are very distinct here; kind of dark, very edgy and a bit "emo" for my taste, but life indeed is tres posh here when it comes to clothes.

UK Fashion

Surprisingly, not many people here have good fashion sense. It's really strange. There are some, but most people obviously try very hard and to no avail. Maybe I am just partial to French fashion, but almost everyone I have seen on the streets dresses up, but it looks sloppy. I mean, the amount of leather boots I witnessed with these knee-high stockings paired with a skirt and scarf was frankly just not working at all. Very urban, without the chic. Just a comment, feel free to disagree.

Warwick and A Little Bath

After I left Pippa's house, which was no fun, I got on a train, well a few trains, to go see the town of Warwick. I really didn't know how I was going to get around with my huge backpack, but I thought I would just figure out as I went along. I really impressed myself with my ability to get on the right trains. I say this because I typically am completely and utterly directionally challenged, but train traveling is obviously made for me. I have gotten on a ridiculous amount of trains and have not made one mistake. I had to change trains three times to get to Warwick, so that was a bit exhausting. When I finally arrived in Warwick, I had no idea where I was to put my bags so that I could tour the city. I ended up walking all the way into town and finally finding a hotel in the middle of the city. At this point, it had been almost an hour with what felt like an old man being carried on my back and I was exhausted. So, I went in and asked for a room and the guy actually gave me a really big discount on the room. So with grandpa off my back, a swanky hotel room in the middle of Warwick and a moment's respite, I was good to go. I just toured around the entire day. Took pictures, read and had a coffee and scone, ate by myself at a delicious Thai restaurant. I got a little lonely after eating out; I have never really done that before. As I got back to my hotel room, I began to feel the loneliness of not having anyone to talk to or to share all of the grand sights I had seen that day. It felt strange staying alone in a hotel room, but I cheered up eventually! I opened my window because it is actually Autumn here, no joke; and just enjoyed instead of being annoyed by the solitude.

The next day, I checked out and prepared to make the long trek back to the train station. This time, I strapped everything much better to myself. On the way up, a man shouted at me from across the street, "Well, Love! That backpack is as big as you are! You going to make it all right?" We both just laughed and I retorted, "just as long as the wind keeps from blowing, I'll be fine." I made it, and continued on to Bath with three train changes. I am a pro at this point. The scenery from the windows was particularly beautiful. It must be where they film all the Jane Austen BBC movies, or at least some of them. I love listening to music on the train, whether it is Nick drake for the morning, David Gray for the stormy afternoon, or Kanye West when I am feeling bold and need to break all the seriousness. I get lots of reading done as well.

Well, I finally got to Bath and was delighted to meet Mrs. Mary Porter at the station. How incredible is this. Okay, so Mary Miller recommended this Bed and Breakfast in Bath. She adores the owners and the place. The couple, first of all, comes and picks me up from the station. I just can't understand why God has lavished so many blessings on me this week! We pull up to the manor, and yes I said manor, and it was like someone punched me in the chest. I couldn't breathe when I saw the house and the hills surrounding. John and Mary Porter are an older, incredibly vivacious and kind couple. I am going to get a picture of them because they are just precious. John is tall and thin with this incredible white hair that's perfectly messy. He looks like an Oxford professor and she is round and sweet as pie. We chatted over a cup and tea and a biscuit. Then I headed out to explore their gardens and then the canals. I kept ooohing and ahhhing out loud. It would have been quite embarassin' if someone had been with me, but I couldn't help it. I have never seen a garden with so many things growing in such fullness at once. The variety and use of space was a sight to behold. After my recontrer with Peter Rabbit in the abundant garden, I headed for the canal. I was just tripping down the lane enraptured by the landscape. What makes this kind of landscape so beautiful to me is that everything is so delightfully uneven. One minute, you are up high, and the next you are in a valley. I chatted with people boating along the canal as I walked. It is Autumn here, at least everyday feels exactly how Fall should feel.

We had a superb dinner together, straight from their garden. I love living so close to the earth! This is, I know, how Wendell Berry lives. Some friends popped in for coffee and rhubarb crumble, c'est delicieuse! I was chatting with Mr. Porter all about rowing and he was so happy to find a kindred spirit in the sport. He loves rowing and we just talked and talked all about it. He is going to take me down to see where he rows tomorrow. We ended up watching his recording of the olympic rowing from a few days ago. Tomorrow, Mr. John is dropping me off in town to spend the day seeing everything from the Roman baths, to the Jane Austen Centre. I am blessed beyond measure with all of these wonderful people. It's so nice, kind of strange, jumping from one place to the other. Everything is so different. One day I am in the countryside, the next day I am in London! I am here until Thursday and then I head to London. Ciao for now!

Birmingham, Pippa's home.

Leaving Swansea was bittersweet. I knew that after Friday I couldn't depend on any more motherly affection to keep my spirits high. Mrs. Mary and Mr. Rick were so sweet to me and I felt so at ease being there with them and their friends. I got to meet so many lovely people. We went to a cream tea in the city center with Jo, a friend of Mary's who is about my age. She was so vibrant and fun to be around, and she had this phenomenal Welsh accent that sounds like one is singing a song. They lift the ends of their words up very melodiously; and it sounds a bit Scottish or something. The cream tea was great; little scones(scons) as they say, with cream and sandwiches. SO cute! We walked on the beach and went into town.
That night, Mrs. Mary got the idea to go out for coffee, music to my ears, in Mumbles. Mumbles is a posh sort of vacation spot( what isn't in Swansea?) in Swansea. It is Catherine Zeta Jones' hometown! Mary, Bernie, and I went to Verdi's cafe overlooking the sea. Tres belle! I had the best latte of my life. It was Irish Cream and it put all of the lattes I have made and consumed to shame!

Oh man, I forgot to mention Trivial Pursuit night. The Lifelink church in Swansea was having a get together one night at a friend's house and so we went. It was just Mary, Jon and myself. The owners of the house were hilarious, just adorable people. Mr. John, the owner, kept trying to get me to "fatten up" so he would put pieces of food on my plate and say, "oh dear girl, nothing is going to be said for you if you don't fatten up a bit!" I laughed pretty hard. Okay, so there were a lot of young people there and they are all really loud and well, British or Welsh. I loved it. During the game, everyone was yelling, being uber-competitive, and just really getting into it. Mrs. Mary and I got a little frustrated because there were a lot of answers that all of these smart kids knew and we didn't until we came to find out that it was a British version. We were relieved that it was not expected for an American to know where some obscure river meets in some obscure town in Britain. It was a great night. The Millers just made everyday a delight. I couldn't have been happier.

So, I left Swansea on Friday after getting some fish and chips( I had to have these by the sea ONLY) and famous Welsh ice cream. I got on the train to Birmingham New Street and got off about two hours later. From here, I stayed with Pippa Rimmer, who is just well incredible! She, among other things, speaks five languages, drinks really good wine and has a killer accent. She made me laugh so much, which really made everything so comfortable. I will admit that I had felt anxious about staying with people I don't know, but she made everything super fun and we talked about music, languages, life, the arts, politics. Her music library is unbelievable and I don't know that I have met anyone so aware of other places and cultures as much as she is. We went out for authentic Balti Indian...bon apetit, then had a glass of really good wine and listened to albums I was drooling to hear! So we basically just had girls night every night because her husband was out of town. Pippa knows Corinne Bailey Rae and all sorts of other famous people. Oh and her cat, Taffy, is absolute fun. It has been such a lovely, perfect time so far.

Birmingham is the second largest city in Great Britain. It holds one of the most diverse populations in Europe.

God has just taken care of me traveling by myself and getting on and off the right trains in safety. Even more, it has been such a joy to be around these people. I have truly already learned so many new things. I am learning to be even stronger in the Lord, trusting in Him and therefore adding strength to my own self. My point in all of this going around by myself is to gt outside of my typical comforts and learn how to do things REALLY on my own. It's such a great challenge and my character is getting stronger; I can already feel it and I am not even being immersed in French everything yet! I thought I was independent, but after this summer and so many of my weaknesses became so apparent, I have begun to try and fix some of those things that I don't trust about myself. I plan to defy gravity this time, knowing that I will be flying and falling, but at least I will get off the ground every once in a while. The falling isn't bad because I have my Foundation.
Well, I am off to visit Warwick Castle tomorrow for a day. Many pictures to come. I am headed to Bath tomorrow night to stay in B&B for a few days. Thus continues adventures in Austen land. Can't wait!

p.s. I am sorry about the butchering of the English language in these ramblings, but I have to type fast and carelessly in order to get it all out!

Worms Head

Today was Wuthering Heights day. Mr. Rick and Mrs. Mary drove me out to Worms Head in Swansea to see the view. The drive was beautiful, though the roads are so narrow. By narrow, I mean that the white lines often end, meaning that only one car can fit, meaning that I freaked out a little. However, Mr. Miller is such a fantastic driver that it ended up being really fun. We got out to Worms Head and my Jane Austen fantasy world began to unfold before my eyes. With the vast, grey ocean spread out before me like a feast for my eyes, ever looking over it, but never having my fill. The velvet green, massive cliffs were the dessert of the whole thing. With the rain and let me record here, sleet, yes sleet in August pouring over us and the thick fog blanketing the giant rocks, I couldn't have asked for a better scene. It was very cold, probably low 50s, but it was all just eye candy, no time to think about inclement weather. After being soaked to the bone, we headed for a pub to get a coffee. I have been needing a latte for days, so this was perfect. We sat overlooking the sea in quiet admiration of God's designing so many delights for the eye and soul.
We came back for lunch. The people who work at the Bible College of Wales here, all eat together. I have never experienced such community. Everyone eats together, washes dishes together everyday. This adorable old man whom I had the pleasure of meeting, just melted my heart with his "oh lovely, lovely!"s and his pure gentility. We spoke a bit of French and I just fell in love with his manner and his story. Mrs. Mary told me that He waited to marry the woman he loved for 30 years. They both lived here and had declared to keep their vow of celibacy until someone told them that they could marry. They both kept their promise, working together in love with each other for 30 years until a new director came to the school. They got married in their 60s I believe and never go anywhere without holding hands. So sweet.
That's it for now. I am just working on my itinerary for the rest of the time. It sounds perfect.

Lesson 2: For once in my life I need to wear more clothes, it's cold!!

I can't post a ton of pics on here, but check my facebook for full albums if you wish!

Swansea, Wales

Trek to Swansea

Today I was glad to get off of my flight at the London-Heathrow Airport. I had to sit next to a middle-aged man who kept telling me that he could "extract poetry from my eyes" and other annoying nonsense for eight hours. Basically, I pretended that I was asleep almost the entire time so he wouldn't talk to me and I wouldn't have to look at him. All this to say that my flight would have been perfect, but my delusion of a pleasant flying experience this time, was quickly destroyed. I got off of the plane at 5:05 London time, 11:05 Central time, mind you so the jet lag began to set in as I had to make my way through customs and onto two different trains. Customs was horrific; I almost didn't make it through because I purposefully forgot to put the address of my destination; big mistake. Being bleary-eyed and completely disoriented, I surprisingly just stared him down while he railed on me about how stupid I was to forget this information. I didn't get upset but I just gave him an alternative and he angrily put me through. Then I cried a tear or two when I was safely out of view.

The next challenge was to get on and off of the Heathrow Express in one piece. I have been carrying two big suitcases, a big backpack and my messenger bag. I am a bit petite in size so there was a lot of swaying and such that went on. I felt pretty ridiculous. However, my one success of the day was that I even told a British guy which platform he needed to get on for the Heathrow Express to Paddington. I was proud. This temporary high was brought down by my getting on the wrong end of the train to Swansea, Wales and having to drag all of my bags through the train to the back while the thing was moving. I felt so UN-chic with everyone around me in scarves and leather briefcases and there I was tripping don the first class aisle bumping the elbows of tailored shirts. "Pooh, pooh" I said to quote my lifetime heroine, Madeline, and set my self down for another three hour journey. All worked out well. I played Harry Potter in the train. It was just like I had imagined the Welsh countryside. It was gray clouds laden with rain, chilling, damp wind and David Gray playing on my IPOD that brought to life the painting I had always conjured in my head of England.

I am jet-lagged for sure now and ready to sleep. The rain never stops in Swansea supposedly, but I got to walk out to the sea today and it was beautiful; from a dream really. Pictures to come of Swansea. I plan to feel better tomorrow and explore, explore to my little heart's content!

"How can I convince you it's me I don't like
And not be so indifferent to the look in your eyes
When I've always been distant
And I've always told lies for love

I'm bound by these choices so hard to make
I'm bound by the feeling so easy to fake
None of this is real enough to take me from you

Oh I've got reservations
About so many things
But not about you

I know this isn't what you were wanting me to say
How can I get closer and be further away
From the truth that proves it's beautiful to lie

I've got reservations
About so many things
But not about you
I've reservations
About so many things
But not about you
Not about you
Not about you
Not about you
It's not about you"


Wilco

"Did you believe it,
when they told you they discovered you?
And that everything is free,
as long as you do what they tell you to.
You think it's true?

But nothing could be farther from the truth,
my love.

Did you even listen,
When they told you to change your name?
And that nobody wants honesty when looking at a perfect frame
play the game.

Nothing could be further from the truth,
my love..
And nothing is more powerful than beauty in a wicked world.
Play it girl,
play it girl,
play it girl.

Does it make you feel good,
when they tell you what you want to hear?
And after they suck all your soul,
well that's when they'll disappear.
Disappear.
They disappear forever..

Like a prince in your little fairy tale.
And you will find,
one day you put your soul on sale..

Nothing could be further from the truth,
my love..
And nothing is more powerful than beauty in a wicked world."

Amos Lee