The European Extravaganza!

Back in England... a super fast update! We swear!

We last left you before heading off to Mary King's Close. It had been recommended to us by Clart, our guide on the Lit Pub tour. We had signed up for the latest slot, although it didn't really matter as since it was below ground, it would dark always. We couldn't find a place to eat that satisfied all of my vague requirements: no potatoes, something with cheese, maybe meat, not fish and chips. Thus, we went back to The Elephant Cafe and had a fabulous salad while talking about JK and HP. The tour of the Close was... goodish. It was pretty interesting to see the underground alleyways (although they were not underground originally), although it would have been better if they had not bothered to try and be remotely scary since that just made things cheesy. If we wanted scares, we would have gone on the City of the Dead tour and then required new trousers, because when we first went into the Close, it was pretty scary on its own. We didn't like how the guides had to reenact the time by pretending to be people stuck down there; our guide was purportedly Mary King's own daughter. Still, it was pretty interesting, and we did like hearing about all the nasty and disgusting things they did in/to the Nor Loch (now Waverly Station and the Princes Gardens).

We had the most traumatic wakeup call the next morning as 2 of the people in our room decided to engage in activities perhaps best left for private rooms rather than 12-bed dorms. Even though they had constructed a little cave out of covers, it wasn't soundproof and they managed to wake up the entire room with their shenanigans. So frightening. More effective than any video in health class. Eep!

We left Edinburgh to go to Alnmouth/Alnwick (pronounced: Annick) to visit Hogwarts itself. It was really cool, and our tour guide Sid was fantastic. Alas, we could not totally enjoy ourselves as we had nowhere to put our rucksacks, and so we had ot carry them with us the entire time. We eventually abandonned them just past the spot where the kids take their first flying lesson. While at the castle, we also saw the improper site of the womping willow, the archway that Hagrid carries an Xmas tree through, the quidditch pitch backdrop, and a little area that the kids cluster around when Ron says that Hermione is a nightmare! So great!

We then took the train to Manchester, where we checked into our hostel and then went for chinese food (our first time in like, 43 days or something!). It was quite expensive everywhere, but we got a good deal in China town, and stuffed ourselves well.

The next day we took the train to Disley where we visited Pemberley/Lyme Park. We had dodgy directions from the station (read: walk half a mile from the station), so we thankfully found a woman who told us how to get there by foot (apparently this is uncommon). After much traipsing up cobbled laneways and across very hilly grasslands (lyme park itself), we made it to The building. We took pictures of the stairs that Darcy runs down when he is trying to catch Lizzie from leaving Pemberley, and of course, took pictures of the back of the house, and The Pond. We then spent a lazy afternoon dozing on the lawn near the pond and reading. No good gifts in the shop (zut!), but we did have a cream tea there, since how could we pass up that opportunity? Suck it, Taryn! Ha ha ha!

Got in very late to Oxford, and shared the train with many weirdos. One man had broken glasses and kept moaning and moving backwards from us but kept staring at Laura. Also, there was another man who was dressed as though he were an Indian chief.

Hostel provided us with full English breakfast (yum!), and since then we have been out and about wandering the streets of Oxford. Visited Christ Church, where we took pictures of the cloisters, the great stairway, and of course, the Great Hall (had to wait an extra half hour just for it to open, but only paid £2 instead of £3,50 for our troubles). Next we're off to do some more HP-themed sightseeing, and will head to London later today.

No more time to write, but we daresay there shall be time enough in London. Can't believe the trip is pretty much over. Can't say we want to come home... we're English girls at heart now! Haven't we always been?

posted by Steph @ 10:48 am