It's time for another England update coming to you from Bournemouth, England! The last few days have been non stop adventure and fun! Yesterday we had a visit with Auntie Vera (my great grandpa's brothers wife, aka my great great great grandmother), and also Auntie Valerie (my grandpa's sister, aka my great aunt.) It was so nice to meet family who I have never met in my life. Also we got to hear about Nessy's cousins who she has never met. I understand this is hard to follow along with..... to help us, we have written down a family tree with names to all of our family members.
Last night we also got to meet Chris's son, Nick and his wife and daughter. Ella is their daughter, the most adorable 4 year old with a British accent!!! It does not get much cuter than her. I was playing hide and go seek with her all over the house. We ordered Chinese "take away" also known as take out, and had a wonderful meal around the table.
Today we went ALL over the place. An 11 hour journey.... with Nessy, Chris, Terri, Uncle Tom and I. We went all over the south of England. We first stopped in Milton Abbas, which is the most unique little town. All of the houses have thatched roofs. Then we were off to Dorchester, traveling through the back country roads. This was my favorite part, just seeing the open countryside, with the brightest green hills I have ever seen. There were many properties with horses and sheep grazing. Our nest stop was at The Cerne Giant.. if you have seen this before, you will know why Nessy and I couldn't stop laughing. Its basically an outline of a naked guy on the side of a mountain! Private parts and all! haha. After we finished making jokes and took some pictures, we were off to eat lunch at a local pub. Where I of course had a glass of white wine and some fish and chips. After that, we stopped at Lulworth Cove, one of Uncle Tom's favorite places he said. He walked all the way down to the beach with us. Where he bought Nessy and I each a painted rock. If you know our family, we are very big on painted rocks, it is just kind of a thing that we have done as a hobby for a long time. After we picked out the rocks we liked, the local artist painted on the back the date and "to: Elise Love: Uncle Tom" on the back. It was so sweet and special. I will have that rock for the rest of my life. Our final stop was at Colfe Castle (I don't know if I have the spelling right) but we had afternoon tea here before heading back to Bournemouth. A long day, but SO many memories and amazing sights.
We have just gotten back to Chris and Terri's house and are having a glass of wine before go out to a local pub. I have noticed that the British have this great sense of humor. Everywhere we go people are cracking jokes, and laughing constantly. It really shows me part of who I am, and my roots. Our family is so funny/sarcastic/joking that I feel like I understand it a lot better coming here! Nessy and I have nick names for each other now...she is "Winey" because we tease her about drinking wine (not like she drinks any more than I do) or sometimes I call her "Windy" because the chair she always sits in makes a farting noise. She calls me "Porky Pie" because last night Andrew said I was telling a "Porky Pie" which means lie, but since I love the little pie pastries they have here, Nessy has stuck with the nick name Porky Pie now....yey thanks Andrew!
Here are some pictures from the last few days! ....enjoy!!
(Nessy, Me, Auntie Valerie and here husband Dave)
(Nessy, Auntie Vera, and me! She gave me my birth announcement that she had from 21 years ago)
(me & Nessy at 22 Kinson Park Road)
(me and Uncle Tom at the Church Grandma & Boppa were married)Cheers!
Elise Diane
What a fun time you're having! Great pics. I love the painted rock story. A naked guy on the side of a mountain? These English DO have quite the sense of humor. Glad your having a good time! I'm loving these updates, keep'em coming. Love you Porky Pie and Windy!
ReplyDeleteLove,
Mom
Hi Elise:
ReplyDeleteI just showed your new blog entry to my "Trouble and Strife", otherwise known as my wife - she enjoyed it. Your literary skills have improved a lot since high school and you write an interesting blog. The Cerne Giant is of an unknown origin but there is a parish record of some repairs made to it in 1645 so it is even earlier than that. Milton Abbas is one of my favorite villages but I think you may prefer the ones that you visit in the Cotswolds because they have more activity going on. The house in Kinson Park Rd. was one that my father rented from the Bournemouth Fire Brigade, I actually liked it better when we lived at the main Fire Station in the heart of the town. When I was a small boy my friend and I would often slide down the brass pole into the fire engine room as well as climb up to the top of the 60ft. drill tower in the fire yard. I see that my sister Valerie is now a blonde whereas she used to be a brunette - the same thing has happened to my wife and also to you - it must be a very rare and strange genetic defect possessed by the females in our family! By the way, your grandmother's nickname is "Wonderful Wino".