Hogwarts, Neil Gaiman, and a Love for Coleridge

If I could begin this post off with a nice long sigh, I would.
England Term has been completely INSANE. This is honestly one of the first times I've had simply sit down and clue in the one's I love that I am safe and happy and having a wonderful time. Not that I had any doubt in the enjoyment of the trip.
So we started in Edinburgh. Previous home of JK Rowling, Sir Walter Scott, Robert Burns and the illustrious Neil Gaiman (for a handful a nights). So, where do I begin? At Hogwarts, of course!
Edinburgh Castle IS in fact Hogwarts. JK Rowling sat at the Elephant House cafe (www.elephanthouse.biz) staring off at Edinburgh Castle carved into Scottish cliffs. Literary, it is Hogwarts. If you don't believe me, check out the video postcard I made for Rhys on our youtube channel. (Watch in HD!)


More Hogwarts' popped up along the way. Nearly every bus driver we had in Scotland showed us some version of Hogwarts. One boarding school on which the scouters based the sets. Another that was actually used in the movie. And a third (St. Cuthbert's Cathedral) that the at which courtyard scenes were filmed. Our tour guide at the cathedral told us about it at the end, and then added that he got the autographs of some of the cast! Don't worry. There will be photos of all the these great places, I promise.
Back in Edinburgh we move away from Hogwarts and to the great Neil Gaiman. Mr. Gaiman was in fact in Edinburgh for the International Book Festival. While I did miss out on the talk he gave, he kindly stayed around after for a signing. And for the handful of us stragglers who did not have tickets, he still signed our books. I sadly didn't bring any Neil with me (England Term does NOT need any more books), so he kindly signed my red moleskine travel notebook. When I can, I'll prove this to you with a picture. And for those who want to know (though I didn't actually MEET him), Neil is an extremely nice and funny man in real life. He's witty and kind, and still very nice after signing his name and drawing cute pictures 300 times over. He really is a great person.
Moving on to the Lit nerd stuff. Bobby Burns impersonator was HILARIOUS. He made some of the boys down a bottle of whisky (which turned out to in fact be tea), and he was pretty darn knowledgeable about Burns. Then on the way out of Scotland we visited Sir Walter Scott's house: Abbotsford. An absolutely breath-taking place, it served as Scott's home for the later part of his life. The gardens are colorful and full to the brim with butterflies. Scott's collections of old artifacts are completely unbelievable (Marie Antoinette's clock? Napoleon Bonaparte's pen case?), and domestic horses simply roam the grounds by the riverbed to pet and photograph. Destination wedding anyone? Yes, please.
Now we're almost up to speed in the Lake District. The home of (my personal favorites) William and Dorothy Wordsworth, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. We visited Dove Cottage where they all lived in the Lake District, and hiked up some absolutely gorgeous hills and trails that Coleridge and Wordsworth would have hiked for inspiration for their poetry. When we returned from the walk we met the curator of the Wordsworth exhibit at Dove Cottage, who showed us ACTUAL manuscripts (as in, we got to touch them) from Wordsworth's Prelude (written on some old bit's of parchment), Dorothy's meticulous journals, and a $17,000 2nd edition copy of Lyrical Ballads (published in 1798). Honestly, my jaw hit the floor, my stomach clenched and the tiny balding curator of the museum became my new hero (and a very, very attractive man). In the museum we later got to see the actual journal entry that Dorothy wrote, tears streaming down her face as her brother, her best friend, got married and (she feared) left her behind. Annie and I tried to find the tear stains, but were unsuccessful.
Suffice to say, the trip has started off with MORE than a bang. Life in England is everything I hoped it would be, and then some. It is no longer simply an option after college. I AM moving to England upon graduation.
Hope you are all doing well! Thank you so much for the kind words and prayers, and I'll try to update again soon. Love you all so much, and miss you even more!!

Miles

Lists

So I head out in less than four days, and I can barely wrap my mind around the fact. I will be in Edinburgh in five days. I will be experiencing England Term in 56 hours. Three thousand three hundred sixty minutes until my feet finally step onto the glorious British soil I have so desperately wanted to land on for years. I can't believe it. I'm a mix of worried, nauseous, and excited. 2 parts worried, 1 part nauseous, and 10 parts excited. So how does one prepare for four months in Europe? Get a language book, perhaps? Start packing? Even say a couple of prayers?
Nah.
I prefer to just sit in front of my laptop, and make lists.

List 1: Preconceived notions of Europe/England Term:
1 - We will drink tea at nearly every hour of the day.
2 - All Brits hate Americans.
3 - Something will most likely go horribly wrong with something I've brought.
4 - I will not take as many pictures as the 8 gigs I am bringing.
5 - British men love saucy American women (ie - me).
6 - I'm really only going so that I have time to finish my novel. I won't be taking any classes. Nope.
7 - If I speak with a British accent at any time while there, I may very well be mugged.

List 2: Top Ten Rules I Must Stick To:
1 - England Term, while fun, is not a giant shopping spree. I can't spend all my money at Burberry.
2 - Speaking in a British accent is a strict no-no. Seriously. The British don't appreciate it.
3 - It is impossible to visit every major city in Europe during free travel. I must pick one.
4 - I cannot buy every book I see solely because "it's from England!"
5 - The same goes for music. "But the band is British!" is not at all a sound reason to purchase a £15 album.
6 - I am not allowed to go around the streets of London, asking locals if they know the fastest route to Diagon Alley.
7 - I must avoid bad puns at all costs. This is just a life rule, but one I must adhere to strongly, should I want to find my British soul mate.
8 - Journaling every day is a must.
9 - When I see Platform 9 and 3/4, I will be laughed at when I run at the wall and nothing happens. I will be laughed at, but I will most likely not care. I need to accept this fact.
10 - Every castle I see is not Hogwarts. Sadly.

So, time to head out. Start packing, buy all the last minute toiletries, and finish all those England Term playlists. I'm off, you'll hear from me again when I've crossed the pond, and am sitting in a nice little internet cafe somewhere in Edinburgh. Wish me luck, keep me in your prayers, and don't forget about the five hour time difference!