I know it’s been nine months, but I’ve finally managed to put together a report of sorts on my trip to England. Things did not go as planned.
Sept 4, 2024
My flight from Grand Rapids to O’Hare was probably the best part of my trip over. I got there around 10am and then spent almost a full day at O’Hare, waiting for my flight. Once I was finally seated my seat mate sneezed and hacked her way across the Atlantic. Unfortunately, the plane was full so I couldn’t be moved. Or she couldn’t. Anyway, I hoped for the best.
It had been agreed that Anne would pick me up and that we’d head for her brother’s house. I had worn a mask during the trip over and kept it on in the car. I’d met Neil and his wife, Andrea, during a previous trip, and was eager to spend time with them again.
Sept 5, 2024
It was a lovely day, so we decided to do some sightseeing.
Our first stop was the Middle Littleton Tithe Barn, one of the largest and most notable tithe barns in England. It’s rumored that Richard and his men camped in the barn on their way to Bosworth, but there’s no historical evidence to confirm it.
From there we drove to Pershore Abbey. Its main claim to fame is its age. Its foundation is alluded to in a charter of King Ethelred of Mercia (675-704 AD.) Fires, storms and an earthquake battered the Abbey, but Henry VIII came the closest to destroying it during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. Most of the Abbey was demolished, with only the tower, choir and south transept remaining.
From there we drove back to Worcester, where we made time to visit its cathedral.
While some form of the Cathedral has been in place since 680AD, the present building was begun in 1084. It’s a magnificent building, whose major claims to fame are the tombs of King John, and Prince Arthur Tudor, Henry VII’s eldest son who died at the age of sixteen at Ludlow Castle.
The River Severn runs behind the cathedral, which stands on a cliff on the left bank. It’s a lovely spot. Lots of swans!
Sept 6, 2024
Left for Middleham. It was evening by the time we got there, so we checked in at the Priory and then walked over for a creme tea at the Middleham cafe.
The next day it rained all day, so we stayed in. Mostly watched tv, until dinner time when we went down the street to the Richard III Inn. Their food is usually excellent, but my appetite wasn’t what it normally is. By the time we got back to the Priory I was feeling a bit under the weather.
Felt pretty good when I woke up, so we went down for breakfast. That’s when it hit. I barely made it back to the room, where I collapsed on the bed. The proprietress had a covid test kit, which she kindly gave to us. It was positive. Luckily, Anne had had covid just a few months before, so was still immune. I slept most of the day and that night.
Sept 9, 2024
I was still feeling low, not bad, just not great. So no visiting Middleham Castle or York; no heading up to Hexham and Hadrian’s Wall. Instead we decided to drive back to London.
Apparently, having had the covid vaccine, I had a mild case of it. For the next week I either slept or we watched movies. It wasn’t a terrible time; Anne is always fun to hang out with. And we both love horror movies, so there was
A Knock at the Cabin, and all three
Quiet Place movies. A little different was
Wicked Little Letters. I loved it, though certainly wasn’t what I’d had in mind!
Sept 17, 2024
I tested negative! And since I was feeling pretty good, we decided to try for a short day out. I’m not what you’d call a Tudor fan, but I’d always wanted to see Hever Castle, where Anne Boleyn grew up. We met up with Chris, another good friend, and spent a few hours roaming the grounds and the castle.
It’s not as big as I thought it would be, but the grounds are spectacular. I bought an Anne Boleyn bear, but not an Henry VIII.
Sept 18, 2024
We headed into town, stopping first at the Jewel Tower. THere’s not much left of it, but it was still interesting. At one time or another it’s been a Tudor storeroom, a House of Lords record archive, and the National Weights and Measures office.
I’d been to Westminster Cathedral before, but it’s so huge, there’s always something to see. So many outstanding people are buried there that have nothing to do with royalty.
Of course, there are those, too.
We only stayed a couple of hours. Though I felt fine, I still tired easily. So back to Anne’s for another movie. Later I packed up for my trip home.
Sept 19, 2024
It’s lucky that I hadn’t had a worse case of covid, because getting home was a nightmare. They changed my seat on the plane (from aisle to a middle seat,) which wasn’t terrible, but I’d payed for the aisle seat (I was later able to get a refund.) The flight was okay, but O’Hare was a mess.
Customs was its usually trial. I think it took over an hour to get through (as opposed to at Heathrow where it took 10 minutes.) Then I had to get my bags, go through security again, then take a bus from the terminal where we landed to where my gate for home was. AThe line for that was another half hour, at least. Of course the bus dropped us off on the other end of the terminal, so I had to hoof it all the way to my gate. I managed to get there with twenty minutes to spare.
I’m hoping to go back next year. Of course that all depends on what’s going on with the Orange tyrant and his minions. By then they may be pulling citizens aside and not allowing them back in. I don’t know, maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing as long as BA flew me back to England.
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In recent years, I, like many others, have pretty much completely fallen off the Marvel bandwagon and stopped watching all the Disney+ shows, the spin-offs, even most of the theatrical releases like Madame Web and Brave New World. Whatever your reasoning is, whether it’s because there’s simply too much stuff to get through, because the original gang we all loved is long gone, or you’re just burnt out on superheroes, tons of other people are in the same boat as you.
