Don't get me wrong, I love being an American. However, if I could find the means to do so, I would gladly move my family to England and live there. I would like nothing more than to own a house in the British countryside, where I could spend my days writing while my kids grow up learning to speak with British accents.
I'm not alone in this wish. My dear husband would pack things up and our little family would be flying across the pond tomorrow if it was possible. He has different interests than I do, though. He is a history buff. Big time. One of his primary interests? The British Monarchy. He can tell you just about anything you want to know on monarchs ranging from Alfred the Great to William the Conqueror to Queen Elizabeth II. He would spend much of his time in England studying everything he could get his hands on regarding Britain's royal line.
Mark my words, my husband and I will be taking this trip someday. We will be visiting the land of Big Ben, the Thames, and Harry Potter. When? I have no idea. A cross-Atlantic trip isn't really feasible for two full-time students/parents of two. (However, if anyone out there has a few thousand dollars/pounds/Euro just lying around that they would like to donate towards two round trip plane tickets to England, just let me know.)
Until then, I'll just keep on plotting this glorious vacation...ahhh happy day...
(PS: If anyone is interested, my husband's writings on history and other subjects can be found on his blog: www.RivitedHistory.com)
What a lovely dream. Keep hold of it, I am sure you will achieve it.
ReplyDeleteMy sister and I went to London then scooped through the bottom half of Ireland one summer and it was fantastic! Back then (this is about 10 years ago), I got the tickets for $500 each on princeline (roundtrip) and we stayed in hostels. It was totally, one hundred per cent fun! Though, summer in England is kind of like rainy fall/spring (depending on the day) anywhere else. My husband and I have a master plan to take our girl to Italy. She's four now and if there are no other kids, I'm thinking about researching a graduate program in Rome...how cool would that be?!
ReplyDeleteMynx: Thank you for the encouragement. We'll find a way to make it happen eventually! :)
ReplyDeleteElizabeth: That trip to England and Ireland sounds like so much fun! It's funny that you should mention a desire to do graduate studies in Italy. Tyler (my husband) would actually LOVE to find a way to do his graduate studies in England. What better way to study a subject than to go to the place of its origins? :)
Keep dreaming and planning. I planned for four years before moving overseas and it was the best experience of my life. It is far better to go for it than to always wonder 'what if'.
ReplyDeletexo The Empress
http://rantersbox.blogspot.com
You will LOVE England. Make sure, whatever else you do there, to visit Bath. It's completely beautiful, and when you are there you can picture perfectly what it was like when Jane Austen was there.
ReplyDeleteSigh.
Oh, and I wanted to write you an email but the link didn't work on this computer. It's about your YA novel. I want to help you get a query letter together, if you'll let me. I've done it for a few friends and I do it as part of my editing business. No charge, of course. Let me know!
Empress: Thanks for the encouragement! I admire you for doing something so gutsy! It seems so much easier to cling to the familiar, even though embracing the unfamiliar can be so much more rewarding.
ReplyDeleteAlexa: Bath is definitely on my list of "must go!" places. I love Jane Austen, and would LOVE to go to Bath and read her books while sitting in the very places she wrote about. Beautiful!
Thanks so much for offering to help with my query letter. I would definitely like to take you up on your offer, as I'm kind of clueless on that front. I'll try to e-mail you.