Look at me making progress! We've made it to Thursday, October 27, and we are starting Day 3. Muffins, milk, smoothies, and granola bars had all been left in our room for breakfast. Our room didn't have a bathroom en suite so we had to shower right across the hall. There was a long cord hanging from the ceiling that turned on the light with a good, hard pull. And upon turning on the television in our room I discovered that children's programming in England can be as crazy as American...except maybe even crazier because they were crazy-looking puppets.
A view of our hired car from our window (the little short one)
We were in Jane Austen country that morning, and I was excited. It was also the first sunny, clear-skied morning we'd experienced thus far. It was a beautiful and cool start to the day. Our first stop was the village of Chawton, where Miss Austen spent the latter years of her life.
Her brother, Edward, owned Chawton House and would live there when he came to
check on this portion of his estates.
England was experiencing an uncharacteristically warm October.
Flowers were still blooming and beautiful.
The grass was as green as in an Alabama spring.
All that rain helps, I suppose.
We were there a little bit before opening time, so KJ walked around snapping the above pictures, and I walked into the tea rooms across the street to acquire a Diet Coke. It was a really lovely morning.
It was always hard to wrap your mind around the fact that we were standing in the places of our imagination and here where Jane walked and wrote, where her mother worked in the garden right before our very eyes.
And don't think for a moment I'm the only admirer of Jane Austen in the family. KJ quotes her constantly, albeit from movie adaptations of the books, but still. Also, I've read most of her works aloud to him over the past seven years. I'm such a fortunate girl.
We walked in and bought our tickets, then wandered around the shop while we waited for a showing of a brief film about Jane's life. I don't think we really learned anything new, but it was still enjoyable.
This is between a couple of outbuildings where they showed the film and
had some modern restrooms (or toilets as they like to call them).
the back of Chawton Cottage
The bottom floor back windows are in the kitchen.
the side of the cottage and entrance into the kitchen
a side view of the garden
We'll make it inside the house next week. It will be worth the wait, and all the treasures inside might take some time to look through...
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