Ah, the ancient city of York.
Hey, don’t laugh, that’s what Sarah called it.
Hang on, maybe I should backtrack a bit.
We left our heroine on a fast train to Northallerton,
speeding through the snow-covered fields of the English countryside. Shortly after
my last entry the train I was on went through Doncaster, where I promptly lost
my mind, for reasons I will not detail here (but which anyone who knows me well
will be able to figure out). After we’d passed through here it was only about
forty minutes to our destination, during which I experienced my first bout of
homesickness (I don’t know if crying while listening to sad songs on your iPod
and staring out the window actually counts as being homesick, but lets say I
does so I feel better, shall we?).
Fortunately, this was cured almost instantly upon arrival in
Northallerton, where I was met by one of the most beautiful sights I’d seen
thus far; my friend Sarah, complete with a car. (Not that I don’t love public
transport, I do, but sometimes home comforts are nice, you know?) My reunion
with Sez was made even better when we arrived back at her place, and I a) got a
piping hot cup of coffee, and b) got to see her dogs (a twelve year old black
lab called Tara, and a nine-ish week old golden lab called Amber).
We didn’t hang about at the house for too long though, as we
had business to attend to in the bustling centre of Northallerton (Sarah
assures me it’s not that great – I, with no trace of irony at all, loved it).
The first matter was sorting out my phone and getting it working over here
(which in the end took two days, but no matter, we’re in business now), while
the second, vastly more important matter, was getting some caffeine in me
(jetlag’s a bitch). The prices are comparable to home ( 2.25 for a large mocha, but I think once my body’s
got a handle on the time zone, coffee will unfortunately be getting the chop.
It was then off to get my first real taste of Britain’s
chain stores. Oh sure, I’d done a quick Sainsbury’s stop in London (why was I
paying $4 for a bottle of water at home, when I can get one here for 95p???),
but I had yet to experience a Superdrug or a Tesco’s, both of which, in the
end, are very normal places, with the only noticeable difference being that
makeup doesn’t cost an arm and a leg here – a very welcome change.
Then home for tea (which I think I’m still full from now,
two days later), and dessert (which I didn’t realize was a thing people did
regularly – mum and dad successfully hid that from me), and I was in a definite
food coma, and about ready to fall asleep (a feeling that hasn’t subsided, even
after three days). Did some skyping (hi babe) and fell into a mostly restful
sleep until 6am (which unfortunately seems to be the time my body clock has set
itself to), when I did some further skyping (hi mum and dad) and continued my
attempt to blog.
Made it out of the house around 11, just in time to catch
the train to York. Twenty minutes later we were disembarking in the ancient
city, where, upon passing under the equally ancient wall that surrounds it, I
turned into a fantastically obnoxious tourist, and started taking pictures of
everything, some of which I’ve included here for your viewing pleasure.
We wandered about the cobbled streets for a few hours,
stopping in at a Sports Direct, TKMaxx, Poundland and Topshop (my British
retail chain adventure continues), and soothing our grumbling stomachs with a
tasty bite at a small café (Cajun chips & cheese washed down with a glass
of mulled wine. As you can tell I’m really embracing the local cuisine).
Headed home shortly after our little lunch stop, as we
wanted to beat the oncoming darkness. As it turned out, I didn’t beat much of
anything, falling into a fitful sleep almost as soon as we were through the
door. Homesickness definitely did hit me quite hard here, and my short
appearance at dinner that night was cut even shorter by the need to go upstairs
and cry into my laptop for a bit.
I won’t sugarcoat it, being a world away from people you
love is hard enough, but as I always like to make things difficult for myself,
I went and fell in love with someone
(coughJarrydcough) before I left, and if I’m completely honest, that’s the
worst part. It’s very strange to be travelling quite by yourself, when your
first reaction upon encountering something new, or exciting or amusing, is to
turn and share it with someone that isn’t there. I think that’s been the
toughest pill to swallow thus far, and will probably be the biggest challenge I
face on this trip (aside from sorting out my UK passport so that I don’t get
deported lol).
The good news is, it’s not all doom and gloom. There are so
many new and fascinating things to see and do that, even if I’m not quite sure
what I’m doing here, I can at least distract myself from wondering.
So for the time being, it’s onwards and upwards (literally)
to Edinburgh for me, and we’ll see how things pan out.
To everyone at home that’s already celebrating, Happy New
Year, and I’m sure I’ll see you before it’s finished.
Bri xoxo
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