Jane Austen, Here I Come...

It's Really Happening

2008-11-26T09:28:00.002-05:00

We're going to England. Our dates are set, tickets have been purchased, and now the packing must begin. Well, not really. May is still a few months away, and I can hardly determine what to pack let alone what size I will be wearing by that time. Hee hee! But it just feels more real right now...knowing that we have our tickets purchased and are working on the hotel reservations. WOW! It's just all so exciting!

We're really coming, Jane!

England May 2009 Fund

2008-08-26T08:40:00.005-04:00

With my England trip less than 9 months away, I am really trying to save more and more money back. I'm still optimistic that the dollar might regain a bit more before we leave for Great Britain, but I don't want to count on it too much. I guess I want a bit of a cushion just in case for the extras that might come along, too. Thank goodness for digital cameras. I would be spending a lot on film if I hadn't gone digital. HA!

Becky, Jessica and I have wheedled down the list a bit more as far as how much a person can see in 2 weeks in country. We've tried to be more realistic with planning our time, but my guess is that we're still a bit heavy on sight seeing. It's all good though. I think we are going to see so much and have lots of stories to tell when we get back. It's very exciting to think and plan ahead.

My Mom and I have also been chatting about the Netherlands, Germany, Austria and other parts of Europe. I think it would be wonderful to join her and my Dad as they visit Margraten Cemetery, where my Mom's Dad was buried. I just found another site that kinda gave me chills. I typed in my Grandfather's name just to make sure that he had been interred at Margraten, and when his name flashed up in black and white, it kinda startled me. I can't explain that really...

My Mom and I do make good travel companions. We love history, museums and all that kind of stuff. We can't get enough of it. I remember growing up that it would always be my Dad and sister hanging out at the exit while my Mom and I enjoyed filling our heads with new information and seeing all there was to see. I'm like her in that way. OK, I'm like her in a lot of ways...but I think that is mostly a good thing!

Free to Move About the Globe

2008-06-10T07:48:00.003-04:00

I got my passport in the mail this weekend, and it made me giggle, as I scrambled to open the package. WOOHOO!! I can legally travel globally now...not that I ever traveled globally illegally, for the record. I just mean that I am now free to move about the globe. My passport photo is rather hideous, by the way.

My co-worker Barb emailed me from London this morning. They went to Windsor Castle, Bath and Stonehenge yesterday. Today, they are taking the Hop On Hop Off bus tour around the city and are seeing Wicked this evening. Tomorrow, they are going to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre to see King Lear. Apparently, England is having unseasonably beautiful weather this June. She said it is warmer than normal in London, and they haven't had a bit of rain...that's because the rain is all in the Midwest here in the States. HA! She is having a fabulous time, and I am eager to see her pictures, etc.

I was thinking that we should try to take Barb to dinner when she gets back and quiz her about everything: the buses, the hotels, was it worth seeing Stonehenge, etc. I'm sure she'd love to share her insights. She's like a 2nd mom to me, and I know she'd love to help if she could. What do you think?

Less Than a Year to Go

2008-05-30T15:51:00.003-04:00

Hmmmmm...it's been months since I posted any news on the upcoming England travel, but it is still on and it's really happening. We have less than 12 months to go. In fact this time next year, we will probably be are on our way back home to Indiana by now. WOOHOO!!

I haven't started packing yet. HA! But Becky has bought a new camera and a bag/purse already for our English adventure. I don't know if Jess has bought anything special for the trip yet, but she has her 3rd Ukraine trip coming up this fall as it is, and so she is quite the world traveler already. Me? Well, I finally got my passport application filed. I don't know why I delayed for so long. That's not like me, but I just kept forgetting about it. It's done now.

We have decided to just stick to England only on this trip, but that means that we'll have to go back and explore Scotland on a later trip. Maybe we'll start a travel club and go to 1 new country each year. Now that would be awesome! But we'll start with England and see how things go...

May 2009 it is!

2008-01-15T07:36:00.000-05:00

Back a month or two ago, we set the month for our England travel, and I am giddy with excitement already. 16 months to go, and I'm already packed. HA! No, I'm not packed. I'm a bit wired, but I'm not that crazy!

But I will say that just having something so exciting to look forward to is a great motivator...to save money, lose weight so that I can enjoy all the walking we are going to have to do, and plan to my little heart's content. WOOHOO!!!

It's really happening...

Travelodge in the UK

2007-10-17T15:15:00.000-04:00

My co-worker Jen is a wealth of England info that I hadn't thought about resourcing until today. See, I forgot that she was married to a Brit for 18 years, and she lived over there for 5 months and visited several other times while she was married. Today we were talking, and she has some great suggestions she share with me, and I think she will be a wealth of information in the months to come, too.

She suggested that we stay in at least one B&B or manor home to get the ambience and feel for it. In other words, we need to experience it at least once. However, she stressed that the true savings can be had by staying in a Travelodge in the UK. It is more comparable to what we are used to here in the States--comfy rooms with TVs, bathroom in our suite, etc. A country B&B is nice, but having to share a bathroom with 12 other guests down the hall and stand in queue for a shower could get old...

So we will have to investigate further and see if any of the Travelodge locations would be beneficial to us.

Process of Elimination? It's going to be a struggle!

2007-10-01T08:36:00.000-04:00

I got a 2005 version of Hudsons Historic Houses & Gardens book from Half Price Books, and I'm struggling with picking and choosing what homes to see. I knew there were a lot of estates in England, but I had no idea how many we were talking about. Let me just say, I am enraptured...

I guess the Landmark Trust and a couple of other entities stepped in a few years ago and saved some of these homes, but there were many that were beyond repair or were destroyed before the trust could get to them. They talk of the losses to the national heritage because of it, but I'm just amazed at how much they still have left! There are thousands of these buildings to see in England in comparison to our few national landmarks and trust buildings.

Here in the States, we have some preservation and some trust organizations around the country that are working at conserving our heritage for future generations, but nothing like they do in England. And our old buildings are still relative babies in comparison to some of the manors, castles and halls of Great Britain.

So now you see my dilemna...how can I eliminate them? I mean, it's not like I can take a year-long sabbatical to see every home in England. And even then, I am probably being overly energetic and optimistic. It must take a host of writers to visit all these homes every year! HA!

More and more, I'm just thinking that I need to contact somebody (not sure who) and let them know that I would love to work on a book like this. I need to find out how to get this job! To be able to travel and visit these homes, to write about them and talk them up, to share the beauty and mystery of these magical places, and invite others to do the same -- I know I could do that. I want to do it. It would be like a dream come true...

I don't need to live in a home like that. This small-town girl doesn't need a lot, and my small one-bedroom flat will continue to do me fine. Thank you very much! But I do enjoy visiting places of beauty and history, which is why I am pining to visit England so very much.

I'm 33 years old...

2007-09-27T13:05:00.000-04:00

And I've never been out of North America. I've seen a lot of the USA. Well, maybe not A LOT, but I've done a moderate amount of traveling--actually quite a bit for a Midwesterner. I love my home country, and I enjoy exploring it immensely. I've also visited several of the Canadian provinces, and in particular, fell in love with Prince Edward Island.

But now, I think it's time to spread my wings and cross the Atlantic. [Wait! It is the Atlantic Ocean, right? You know what they say about Americans and their geography skills! I'd hate to plan to cross the wrong ocean...that would not be good. AHEM!] All right, so it is the Atlantic...I checked.

Now let's get planning.