The United Kingdom

Backpacking through the United Kingdom is an experience which we would describe as Old World broke. There is nothing like wandering through the charmingly dismal cobblestone streets, smelling the heavenly aromas of comfort food and not being able to afford any of it to bring the works of Charles Dickens fully to life.

This might come across as a tad over-dramatic, and perhaps it is. In truth, we did manage to split a plate of fish and chips, a serving of haggis, and a chai latte between the two of us. And we must admit, haggis is pretty darn good!

Bath

Our sojourn started in Bath with the Jane Austen Festival. We enjoyed high tea at the Jane Austen centre, where we also explored the museum and learned about her life and works. (Clotted cream!) While there, we dressed up in Regency-era clothing and took a photo with a somewhat haunting mannequin of Colin Firth (replicating the iconic moment in British television when he emerges from the lake in the BBC’s Pride and Prejudice). Much to our admiration, the centre was dedicated to having every portrait of Mr. Darcy be Colin Firth.

That evening took us to the Royal Bath Theatre, where we saw an excellent adaptation of Jane Austen’s Emma. Almost equally delightful were the many theatregoers fully decked out in their Regency finery. It felt like an evening from another time.

Oxford, London, and Bletchley Park

An evening in Oxford was our conduit to London, both similar in that most of our time was spent looking at the exteriors of very old buildings. London also brought us the British Museum, with its questionably acquired ancient mummies and Ethiopian artwork, the Tate Museum, with its Warhol and Rothko, and the National Gallery, with its Seurat and Monet. And one major highlight: Hadestown in the West End! We absolutely adore this poetic, bittersweet folk opera; so much so that our first dance at our wedding was to one of its songs (‘All I’ve Ever Known’). The production was fantastic, with a live band (including a stellar trombonist) sitting on stage alongside the talented performers who sang, danced, and acted with incredible skill. It was mesmerizing, thrilling, and heartbreaking all at once.

Another highlight was The National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park. If you’ve ever seen the movie The Imitation Game, then you’ll be familiar with Alan Turing’s Bombe machine, which helped decode German messages from the Enigma machines used to send them during WWII. Plus Colossus, an early semi-programmable computer used to Lorenz ciphers from the Germans, and the WITCH, the oldest original working digital computer in the world! With BBC micros, refrigerator-sized storage towers, and elderly British men who were once computer pioneers explaining their way through the galleries, it was a visit not to be missed!

Scotland

Scotland, oh Scotland, how we yearn to be back. Hiking to Arthur’s Seat, an ancient volcano in the heart of Edinburgh, felt for a mxoment like we had escaped to the Scottish hills. Rolling green slopes and craggy rock, prickly gorse and a lavender haze of heather. And then Edinburgh spread out before us, melting into distant farms and stretching all the way to the sea.

The next day we really did escape to the Scottish countryside, taking the bus an hour out of the city and walking another thirty minutes to get to the Pentland hills, where we had a lovely ramble around the reservoirs. We also visited the best named bog you ever did meet. In Canada bog names are so quotidian; this Scottish bog was named after the local town, but while in Canada it would have been called something like ‘Balerno Bog,’ here they called it The Red Moss of Balerno. Absolutely, spectacularly whimsical. This particular peatland is a raised bog, 94% of which have been destroyed in the UK. Indeed, we found that The Red Moss of Balerno is the site of active restoration, as disturbances (including drainage ditches) have left the bog much drier than it should be naturally, and heather is taking over as a result. Despite its disturbed state, we still saw plenty of beautiful sphagnum, including some which was a gorgeous crimson color (THE red moss?)!

The other highlight of Edinburgh was the local arts scene. We spent one evening in the upper floor of the old Waverly Bar, sipping fiery Scottish whisky and listening to storytelling by a local group from The Scottish Storytelling Centre. Earlier that day, we had even nipped into the physical centre itself, whose inhouse cafe is called ‘The Haggis Box.’ On a whim, we ordered a helping (to share), and found it to be a savoury, nutty, and comforting food; our review: would definitely, absolutely order again! We heard some excellent stories at the tellaround, and even saw a casually kilted man sing.

There were two absurd stories which caught our fancy completely. One was told by a very excited elderly man, who was so enthused by his own tale that he kept forgetting his words. It featured a farmer telling a stranger the story of his miraculous pig, who had saved him from drowning after diving into the river drunk, a fire, and a flood (always leaving him in the recovery position). But when asked repeatedly why the pig had a wooden leg, the farmer finally answered ‘well if you had a pig as amazing as mine, would you eat it all at once?’

The other incredibly absurd tale was delivered completely deadpan and ended with ‘and then Robert’s ass fell off.’ And that’s pretty much all you need to know.

We also spent a lovely evening in another historic pub (Sandy Bell’s) listening to Scottish folk music. The musicians clustered around what looked to be a kitchen table in a side room, and played song after song on bagpipes, fiddle, drum, recorder, and piano. We stood in the doorway, sipping our cider, and tapping our toes relentlessly, as good folk music demands.

Overall, we had a lovely time in the UK, and our dreams are now chock-full of fried fish and haggis, Scottish melodies and tolling bells, and rolling green hills dotted white with sheep.