Whitby

[osprey_archer]

Whitby today! It was an excellent trip before I even reached town; the railway wended its way through the moors and stopped at every tiny town it passed, which slowed things up considerably but also gave me a chance to ogle England's small towns. I don't think you understand a place, really, until you've spent some time in the countryside, and while obviously "passing through it on a train" doesn't count, I'm glad to have at least seen it.

Turns out I picked the best weekend ever to visit Whitby. See, Whitby is where Bram Stoker wrote Dracula; and Whitby has the biggest jet jewelry industry in England (incidentally, did you know that jet is the petrified remains of monkey puzzle trees?); and it has an awesomely old and creepy abbey; therefore, every year around Halloween, Goths descend on the town: in packs, and in costume.







The residents of Whitby thus set up in the abbey a bunch of presentations about Gothic Victorian things. Victorian mourning and Victorian phrenology and Executions in the Georgian and Victorian periods.

As I'd just been reading about Georgian executions, I was dead impressed by the coincidence.

There was also a terribly charming bookstore called The Whitby Bookshop, which had stacks of interesting looking books inside (one of them was called "The Boy with the Cuckoo-Clock Heart," which reminds me of my very favorite Philip Pullman book, Clockwork), but tragically I had to catch my train so I only got a browse for a very little bit.

Lovely train ride back. By the second half it was too dark to look out the window, but fortunately I had brought along a book (Peter Pan, about which more anon), and by the time I'd finished that, a family had sat in the seats in front of me and I entertained myself by eavesdropping shamelessly. Research! For my hypothetical writing which may or may not happen someday!

Next week: Bath! I've already bought the tickets, so I can't panic and decide that it's Way Too Much Money. Is it a terrible idea to just show up in Bath and go find a hostel/B&B/wherever to stay, without making reservations first?

Comments

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

Would you believe the whole time my family was in Bath, I slept in the van?

True story.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

That seems like a very poor use of time in Bath! Were you sick, to spend so much time sleeping?

No, wait. Did you mean that you slept in the van during the nights, because there was no room at the inn, and spent the days walking around?

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

Nope, it was the first one! We only spent like half a day there. I have no idea why I was so tired... stuff like that just always happens to me.

On our family trip to Ireland, I got sick and had to miss the Ring of Kerry and kissing the Blarney Stone!!!

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Woe! How sad!

When I was, oh, around seven, my family took a trip to St. Louis. We ended up having to go home early, because I got strep throat. (Fortunately it became clear that I had strep throat rather than merely a bad attitude after we'd seen the traveling Monet exhibit, because I'd hate to have deprived my parents the pleasure of seeing it.)

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

Haha, okay, I love how your comment is basically, "I'm glad they just thought I was being a brat."

Fortunately, I was a teenager/adult on the two occasions, so I was able to take care of myself while everyone had fun without me.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

You know, that didn't occur to me, but I think you're right. Just replace all the jet jewelry stores with magic potion stores, and WHOOSH! There you are.