Day 5: Onward Toward the Midlands

RANDOMOSITIES

Holly and ivy really do grow together in the wild. Huh.

For some reason, my cartoon bubble of a thatched roof was a bunch of straw stacked helter-skelter on top of a house. Not so. It's lined up quite nicely and packed tight.

And I thought Minneapolis houses were crammed together? The homes around here are like sardines in a can.

Steam engines smell like a hot iron.

We haven't been rained on yet.

Trebuchets can throw things a crazy amount of distance.

Geese are really loud and sheep are fat.

TIMELINE

9-10 Ate a leisurely breakfast at a local coffee shop . . . malted waffles with bacon on top, oh yeah!

11:00 Explored Blaise Hamlet, a thatched roof TINY village of 7 or 8 houses.

12:30 Walked the village of Bewdley and hung out in the museum.

1:30-5:30 Rode the Severn Valley steam train to Bridgnorth, where we walked the city and took pictures of a castle that's tipping over.

6:00 Ate Chinese food on the Severn River.

7:30 Arrived in Ironbridge after a harrowing ride.

THOUGHTS

Seriously, by now I should not still be praying every second I'm in the car. Will I ever get used to riding in the passenger side on the wrong side of the rode. Yeah, no quotation marks around wrong this time because it is JUST WRONG! We got lost on a "road" tonight that was little more than a path. It will be a miracle if we don't kill ourselves over here, but I suppose I've got to die somewhere, and where better than England, eh?

This afternoon we toured the English countryside via a steam engine. Sheep dotted the hillsides. I drank PG Tips as the train chugged along. Ahh. Does it get any better than that?

One thing that surprises me is how much of the landscape around here is like Minnesota. Well, I suppose not in January, but right now when I look around, it's a lot like home . . . sans all the English ivy and holly, of course. Is that why I feel so attached here?

Staying in Air BnB's is really the way to go. In case you're not familiar with the system, you book a room in someone's house. I know, sounds kind of creepy, like what if you're staying with axe murderers? I suppose that's a risk, but we've met some great hosts and have had some fantastic discussions about life, politics and coffee.

You may be noticing we're not out till all hours of the night. Seems like we ought to make the most of every second of every day, right? The thing is, though, that after dark (which is around 7:30) the things-that-are-called-roads are even crazier to drive on, so we both feel safer if we park the dang thing and wait for sunlight.