England - our Fatherland
"British by descent" is how the UK passport office describes Quiggy and I due to both our Fathers being born in England and married before our births. Although our Dads both took a leap of faith and made the long journey to Australia back in the 1960's, they never relinquished their British citizenship. Rules were different back then with Australia sending the call out to the world to emigrate and 'help build the nation'. How times have changed.
Quiggy and I were raised in Australia and like so many other children of migrant 'nation building' families in search of prosperity, we unfortunately had no cousins, aunts, uncles or grandparents to share our lives with. That all changes in England where we are swamped with relatives and spoiled by them all. It's wonderful!
Liverpool - Quiggy's Dad was born in Liverpool and has an enormous family of the most welcoming, loyal and hilariously funny people you'll ever meet. It's not just his family, all Liverpudlians are the same making this city one of my favourite places in the world and a definite must see. Besides it's beautifully kind people, Liverpool has extraodinary architecture, a modernising landscape of pop up bars in derelict warehouses, museums and live music venues, and of course Beatle mania is everywhere. It's a cool city that's easy to get around and sure to please all ages and abilities. I highly recommend a visit to Liverpool but make sure you pick the right colour football team to support. They love their sport so when they ask "are you a red or a blue" be prepared!
London - There is so much to see and do in London that you would need at least a week to enjoy the sights. We spent a day here after buying an all day travel card that allowed transport by train, tube and busses all day. This is great value if you are staying outside of London but not necessary if you are in the city where the oyster card is sufficient. London's tube is quick and very easy to navigate. The double decker busses give you the best views but are slow in hectic traffic. Trains are spacious but expensive so plan ahead. You would be crazy to drive in London so son't bother. It's too busy, you'd never get a car park and they slug you with a congestion charge, public transport is the way to go. In one day we saw Camden Market (touristy), Borough Market (foodies), Hyde park (beautiful), Harrods (a maze), London Bridge and London Tower Bridge (did you know they are different), Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, Big Ben (under scaffold), we walked along the Thames, ate a delicious meal near London Eye, had a drink at a Paddington Pub and generally just got lost. The weather was perfect making our day on foot a pleasure. The travel card made it easy to get from A to Z.
Windsor - My Father's side live not far from Windsor Castle (sounds posh doesn't it) so when my Uncle offered to take us there for a look at the Royal wedding preparations we jumped at the chance. Regardless of the wedding, Windsor and nearby Eton are beautiful places to visit. Just a short walk's distance from each other you can visit Eton College (where William and Harry attended) then Windsor Castle (where Harry married Meghan). I'm always impressed by Eton College students who don white bow ties, pin striped pants and black coat tails to school. Though some suits are well worn and ill-fitting, these young men look smart in outfits some of us might only wear to weddings. From the college you'll walk past pretty shops including second hand stores where you can pick up affordable vintage items from the area. Over the bridge past the white swans you'll enter Windsor where the Castle may be the dominant view (it's enormous) but there's many more things to do. At the moment the news reporters, police and security rails are stealing the limelight but this town is still pretty. If you time it right you'll see the Changing of the Guard parade through town past Guildhall (where Charles married Camilla) and on to the Castle. There's lots of places to eat, drink and shop. At the small train station, inside the shopping mall, is Queen Victoria's private loo. You can't use it as it's glassed off but you can see where the Queen once did ones and twos.
Brighton - The seaside holiday town is actually a big city with fun for all. A walk on the stony beach lined with bars, shops, and the ascending viewing platform i360. Across to the many cool lanes filled with quirky shops both old and new. The great escape music fest is on and talented artists are loading the streets with music and style only the rock stars can get away with. The Royal Pavilion's park has resting bodies soaking up the sun's rays. Fish and chips on the pier while listening to the screams from the carnival rides. Gay pride rainbows and arty graffiti brighten the construction sites of ever changing growth in this rightly popular destination.
Our time in England is shorter than we'd like so we've concentrated on spending it with our families. My beautiful sister lives in the green belt of East Midlands, a quiet but historically rich area great for history buffs, RAF enthusiasts and open space lovers. We've cousins from lively Liverpool to the Cornish South with many in between. We couldn't see them all but loved our time with them and have every reason to return. Maybe next time with a dual passport we can stay a little longer and eat more chip buttys.
#Back to our Father's birth towns
#Skip to their local pubs down the road
#Go see where your ancestors lived