To the ‘average’ American, travel outside the fifty states is perhaps a rare thing, maybe stretching to the Americas, central, south and norther than North to Canada, perhaps even Greenland while it’s still in Danish hands. Some stay state-bound nearer home, but then you can count the number of states bigger than the United Kingdom on two hands and an open fly. Some find the South scary or North somewhere they’d never go. My point is that travel to Europe and the UK doesn’t attract the average American. This isn’t veiled or even explicit criticism. Having travelled in the US, there are so many sights to see, environments to visit, roads to journey on, adventures to have, that the diversity means you don’t really need to leave. Add in Mexico, Costa Rica and cousins, Canada even, there’s a homespun magnetism to the place. And it’a a BIG .4 .place. But perhaps as a result, I’m grateful and proud to host those who venture this far off the beaten track, to explore our own beaten, unbeaten and occasionally beaten up tracks.
By way of a little consideration, introducing a little familiarity to their visit, and frankly to make communication a little clearer I’ve found myself slipping into American usage, pointing out the sidewalk (pavement), pavement (road) elevators (lifts), bathroom/restroom (loo), offering silverware (tools of culinary destruction), 8:30s and :45s instead of half (past) and quarter to. I still think we drive on the left which is right, and the A&E is on road and hospital signs not ER, so tend to steer clear of too much adaptation. Nevertheless although we get into debates about the price of gas, no-one understands our respective neighbour’s electoral or political system, can make sense of religious denominations and ethnic classifications, and the North-South divides in US and UK are rather different so luckily we stay well away from those too. Unless pressed. And quizzical.
This year’s first tour started wonderfully in London, a few days added at the start of a trip ostensibly to experience the best of Scotland and Ireland. Well, having spent a day or two in the air, why not add a few days to take in the international flavours or the vibrant and welcoming city that is London Town? And a wonderful welcome included a day of protests for Palestine, against racism, and for so-called British values and against immigration. Getting across the city was a challenge with two routes closed to traffic and footfall, so that either leaving the city (a sudden desire to see Windsor) or using the famous Tube, officially the London Underprotest, were the two available options. Like William, I decided to divide and Conquer, which worked wonders.
You do have to have a sense of irony and flexibility in this job. Rather like last year when a lovely bunch of American travellers drew on calendars and bank balances to travel to Scotland as the capital celebrated 75 unbroken years of the iconic Edinburgh Military Tattoo. We broke it. With wind. On the very day our enthusiastic, dedicated guests were due to experience the spectacle, Scotland’s weather invited a continental cousin to blow a hoolie, threatening a castle keep that had variously kept out English and Scots for centuries. The castle in the capital decided that day was the one to add Americans to the list. But we lay siege and the following day, shored up with windcheaters and warm drinks, a few lucky souls managed to outstorm the storm and see the show. Outstanding.
After London’s sights were seen, we turned our sights to Stonehenge and the City of Oxford. There’s nothing like a 5000 year old stone circle to silence, temporarily, those of a nation where history, heart and heritage for more than 200 years is worth noting. Oxford itself is around 2000 years old, although it didn’t become a city until the 20th Century, and the University started just before 1100, still over 1000 years old and one of the earliest universities in Europe, so this degree of history (pun intended) has a certain cachet too, attracting the majority of most tour groups. This sort of long day excursion shows the mettle of the educational tourist compared to the tick box butterfly. We don’t get many of the latter, and even before the jet lag has truly worn off, I find it amazing how people rise to the challenge and still want to take everything in, dwell longer, experience and understand, not just scratch the surface. That doesn’t stop them asking the Harry Potter and Hobbit questions along the way of course. And why not!
Stonehenge stunned, Oxford’s dreamy spires delighted, and I developed a new found respect for our travellers’ ability to consume a pie and a pint in a Victorian covered market in 15 minutes, and still leave time for a little shopping. Oxford’s history, famous alumni and film locations make it a wonderful place to visit, from priceless collections in the Ashmolean to colleges like the decidedly un-new New College (late 14th century) that rewrote the rule book for college design, and physically tiny but perfectly formed college quadrangles like St Edmund ‘Teddy’ Hall; the unparalleled Bodleian library; the pubs, churches, tea shops … We never quite have enough time to take it all in, but as always we gave it as good a stab as any subtle knife or Morse villain.
London never gets quite enough time either – a decade or more can still leave you wanting, but heading to Edinburgh from Potter’s Kings Cross gives a taste of the stunning scenery England unfolds alongside the tracks and the coastline before sneaking into Scotland at Berwick on Tweed. I imagine Jackson peering out of the window watching as crops give way to sheep, cattle, deer, all happily ignorant of the 125mph dog whizzing past. He’d taken to watching the proceedings, or more accurately the recedings, out of the back window of the car, so it seems only natural to imagine the same on a train journey – something not yet braved, not knowing quite how toileting works for our four legged friends on a train journey of several hours at a time. Although, given how well he coped on the transatlantic flight, a train ride from state to state may not be out of the question.
International-Eyes.org 