The next day I went with Phil and had an extremely lovely walk down, over, and up the River Wye. This was more spectacular scenery AND weather! Haha, everyone thinks it only rains in England, but I really had great weather for the greater part of my trip :-) Anywho after we finished our walk, we took the rope ferry across the Wye and back to the car park. After that we spent some more time enjoying the scenery from Symonds Yat Rock, a cliff above the River Wye, then drove south along the river to Tintern Abbey (which was just in Wales!). Its kind of a forlorn place, being a ruin and all, but beautiful at the same time.
We then went back to the Forest to have dinner with the Pattenden family. Sister Pattenden was the RS Pres while I was in the Forest so it was really great to see that whole family again. Dinner was lots of fun. After that, we went back to the Moretons and pretty much chilled for the rest of the evening, which was nice.
The next day was rainy but not too bad. Phil and I ended up going to Monmouth and having a look around, which was nice as it is a really pretty town on the river. We then went back to the house, had lunch, and all drove to Gloucester, where the Moretons dropped me off at the train station. From there I rode the train straight to Nottingham!!
I was picked up by the Wilshers in Nottingham, and I stayed with them for my time there. They are fantastic people (and Sis. Wilsher is a GREAT cook!) so I really loved my stay. Of course it helped that I love Nottingham as well. I got to see lots of the people I grew to love there and that was fantastic. I also got to see Hardwick Hall, which I had read about whilst on my mission but had been unable to see because it was out of the mission boundaries. I also went on a (rather large) shopping spree with my friend Lisa, and that was lots of fun, kind of expensive, and our lunch afterwards at Red Hot was delicious.
During my time in N'ham, I took a day (well, afternoon/evening) trip to Burton-on-Trent, one of my old areas. It was great! I got to see the famous Kinnard family, and go to dinner with the Watson family. I really loved it. I also got to go to the Notts 2 Ward for church on Sunday, and that was as fun as it always was. I went to Gospel Principles and that brought back some great memories, like the time Marie was there and she started spraying her armpits with deodorant during the lesson, right in front of everyone.
On Tuesday, May 5, Lisa and I set off for the North! We missed our train (my fault) but soon got another one, and got to York just after 11am. We set off and soon explored the city walls, which are really cool and surprisingly complete, then got some nice chips at the Codfather, explored the town a bit including a church with wonky floors and walls, before heading to the Minster (like a cathedral). It had gorgeous stained glass, which was the thing I was most interested in, along with the stonework. Lisa and I took the arduous trip up the tower and across the roof and up the tower to the top and it was great! Nice views, although rather windy. About 5:30 pm, we went back to the train station and got on a train to Durham, which is north of York. Once we got there, Lisa's brother-in-law and niece were waiting for us and drove us back to their house in a village outside Durham. We had an EXCELLENT dinner there and I really loved being with them. Lisa has a great family. That night, and the next 2 nights, we stayed at Lisa's mum's bungalow, and it was really nice.
On Wednesday we rode the bus into Durham and spent the day there. It is a beautiful town on the river with both a cathedral and a castle. The castle is now Durham University so we pretty much just saw the outside, but we went inside the cathedral and climbed the tower there too! Lisa was super scared of heights but it was a lot of fun. We also got some delicious ice cream! Yumm. Oh I also REALLY like the northern England accent (well, the Durham one at least). They say "aye" instead of "yes," which I think is awesome.
Friday we got a ride into Durham, ate at the Chinese buffet, and then took the train back to Nottingham. We met the Wilshers there; they brought some luggage I had left at their house and also took Lisa home. I had about 10 minutes to catch my next train to Wolverhampton but I made it. I was picked up in Wolverhampton by John Chaproniere, the ward mission leader in the ward I served in there. He and his family are excellent people and I enjoyed a relaxing night there.
The next day I left with a carry-on and rode the train to Birmingham Int'l Airport. I flew RyanAir from there to Derry, N. Ireland. It was a very no-frills flight (which was fine, considering I only spent 20GBP on the fare) and the landing was the roughest I've ever had. I was picked up by Bryan Graydon, my first companion in Nottingham. I spent 4 wonderful days there relaxing and enjoying the beauties of the Emerald Isle. I was lucky enough to have the sun visit all 4 days I was there, allowing for beautiful weather. I spent a lot of time with Bryan's mom, and she is a lot of fun. I saw one of the most beautiful beaches in the world....or actually the whole coastline....walked a rope bridge, saw the Giant's Causeway, and enjoyed the Irish accent. Ahh....good times.
On Tuesday the 12th I left Derry to go back to Wolverhampton. My train passed thru B'ham city centre so I got out and did a little shopping. I couldn't pass thru B'ham without a little visit!! I love that city. That night I was back at the Chapronieres and the Mitchells (from Wednesfield) came by to visit and it was a lot of fun. That night I packed and stayed up late, anxious with anticipation for my flight home.
Wednesday morning I woke up early and caught a train from Wolverhampton straight to London. I called a couple missionaries on the way and it was fun to talk to them.
Once my train got to London, I had to take the Underground to Heathrow airport, and that was NOT fun. I had to go down lots and lots of stairs, with 2 rolling suitcases, a side bag, and a giant duffel bag. The duffel bag strap broke when I got off of the tube at one station, which made things even more difficult. However, I eventually made it to the airport. The rest of my trip home was pretty uneventful. It was nice to be back on American soil; however I really think I could live in the UK and be very happy. The only bad thing was that when I arrived in SLC, my baggage wasnt there--it had been put on the flight after mine. They delivered it to me, but not until 3 or 4 in the morning. Oh well. My friend Miguel was nice enough to come and pick me up from the airport. I wasn't in the best of moods, having not slept for 24 hours and having my luggage lost.
Thus was the end of my UK adventure--the best trip I've ever had.
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