It's official - booked tickets, got myself a straw hat, had some celebratory prosecco in the sun...
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| Scarborough |
I know, i
know, when i said i'd post pictures of sandy beaches and tropical waters
this is not exactly what anybody had in mind… But we’re still about a month
away from the Caribbean, and lately my only contact with the sea were the (sandy:
yes, sunny: nope) beaches of Yorkshire. I spent a week in England when M. got back from Costa Rica (you can read about some of his adventures here). We hang out in Lincoln, but also went to Leeds and Oxford to visit friends (i'm in love with Lincoln, didn't get to see a lot of Leeds, more on Oxford later...) and spent some time wandering around Yorkshire. It was a bit surreal to walk around, practically
in mid-summer, all bundled up in jackets and scarves and look at the people
surfing the freezing cold waves of the Channel. We only got a quick look of
Scarborough (it was freezing!) before we headed back to the Yorkshire moors – kept thinking of this song and this book. It was exactly like I'd imagined it - wild, unfriendly and a bit frightening but also strangely beautiful.
We camped in a little place called Rosedale Abbey - there was a little river right next to our tent,
and a village pub with good beer and excellent food - still daydreaming about my glazed pork with thyme and mash. Oh pub food, i love you too much for my own good (**sigh**).
After a proper english breakfast (**sigh**, again), we headed back to the beach - to Whitby this time, where none other than Count Dracula's ship landed when he first arrived in England (apparently, that is where Bram Stoker got the inspiration for the book). Quite cool, hey?
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| Whitby Abbey |
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| St Mary's churchyard |
Looking at the ruins of Whitby Abbey, standing eerily on a big cliff overlooking the stormy sea and surrounded by tombstones eroded by the rain and the sea winds, you can kind of understand why Bram Stoker chose to make this Dracula's first playground in England.... (though it was sunny and warm-ish when we were there, which made the place look slightly less intimidating). We had scampi and chips with salt and vinegar, hiked up to the Abbey, and walked along the colourful line of "chalets" on the beach (you can rent them and hang out!).
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| photo by M. |
The drive back was perfectly lovely - sunny hills, little cottages, big country homes, village pubs and lots of sheep.
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| sheep! |
I kept thinking of my parents, who love all things english (the four of us used to have afternoon tea when my sister and I were little, such a fun little ritual!). Parents, you'd love it over there!
