Penshurst or Pemberley?

Penshurst: my new dream house

We are nearing the end of our tour of the Penshurst gardens and I have this literary moment of feeling like Elizabeth Bennet when she was touring Pemberley. I too am a visitor of someone else’s beautiful house and grounds in the English countryside. Another elderly lady is gently and earnestly showing us around Penshurst telling us about the history of the Sidney family (fun fact: Sydney, Australia is named after them!) and the house that the Sidneys continue to occupy to this day. I, like Elizabeth, am also awed by the grandeur of the parlor, dining room and stare at the portraits of the family wondering what they were like and what their stories were. Elizabeth and I share a mutual love of the outdoors and gardens. We both believe in rest and renewal of the heart, mind and soul by spending time in nature and enjoying the beauty of flowers and trees. I did not meet any Mr. Darcy but I did greatly relax and delight in the gardens, topiary, flower beds and trellises of Penshurst gardens.

In our continuation through the English countryside, we stayed a couple of nights in a cute, cozy youth hostel in Holmbury St. Mary. Class was held both inside and out, seating ourselves on the chipping picnic tables or eating lunch on the grass. Travel writing was simply taking a walk in the numerous trails in the area and potentially getting lost. A class right up my alley. After dinner, I take a deliciously long stroll, following a wooded path on and on and on, never wanting to stop. We were exhausted with the rush and hurry of London and all were happy for a couple days of quiet and stillness. At least, this introvert certainly was. 

The boy who never grew up and
two girls who don't want to either

Quick backtrack to London. I really wanted to go to Kensington Gardens where we wandered the grounds, admired the palace and said hi to the late Queen Victoria and took pictures with Peter Pan. I forget how many famous authors originated from England, J.M. Barrie being one of them. I saw my first ever production of Les Miserables. I have never seen the movie but I want to watch it now which I'm sure my sister will be thrilled about. I, like many others, want to re-listen to the soundtrack again and again. I now understand the attraction and magic of this story set against the second French Revolution. I am beginning to appreciate theater a lot more on this trip. As I see my friends who moved to the point of tears, who are sitting on the edge of their seats and who sing the songs all the way home, I am better understanding the magic and the power of theater. 

Groundling view of the Globe

Also, our whole group went to two Shakespeare plays at the Globe Theater. We saw The Merchant of Venice and As You Like It. We got front row groundling standing places for As You Like It as you can see in the picture. Literally being at the actors' feet gives a whole new dynamic to being at a play. The boundary between the actors and the audience is blurred. You are brought into their world, in As You Like It, we experienced both the court and the "green world". We laughed along with Rosalind and Celia as they cavorted as shepherd and shepherdess with their usually lovesick comrades. We, too, flinched with Antonio as Shylock holds the knife to his chest. We can see the actors' exchanged smiles, looks and raised eyebrows as they communicate silently with one another whilst onstage. We can hear the music of the hurdy-gurdy and lute-like instrument as the revelers dance at the finish like a true Shakespearean comedy. 

True English "pubbing"

On our last day in London, a group of us did a day trip to Oxford where we ate lunch in The Eagle and Child where the Inklings always met. We walked through the botanical gardens, viewed the outside of Christ Church, explored little shops and peeked in at Magdalen College where both Lewis and Tolkien taught. The architecture of Oxford and just England, in general, was/is incredible. I am blown away by the beauty and obvious age of the buildings. There is just nothing like this in the States. The churches evoke this awe-inspiring feel just by looking at them. The colleges look like they are made specifically for learning Greek, Latin and all other scholarly subjects. The streets with their cobblestoned streets filled with students bicycling everywhere quietly display their steadiness of having stood for hundreds of years and will stand for hundreds more, Lord willing. England has so much history, I can't begin to tell you how much there is or I have still to learn.

Stay tuned for updates on Dover (I went to a real castle, y'all!) and Canterbury.