Dahl's House and the End of Matilda June

I seem to have a doll house theme, as well as a Dahl theme, so it's pretty fitting that my last full day was the day I scheduled my trip out to see the Roald Dahl Museum. Truthfully, I bought a train ticket and a museum ticket for yesterday morning, but I am SO WIPED at this point, and it was pretty stinkin' hot yesterday (90s). I stayed in and rested for the most part. I rebooked my train ticket for today, and got a new museum ticket. I also had to move out of my dorm; I packed up and left my luggage at a store through this service called Luggage Hero. It's like AirBnB for your bags - it's awesome! I didn't have to lug everything around all day, and it gave me the day to explore.

I took a train, and the museum was just a few blocks from the station. Here are some of the neat things I got to see in Great Missenden!

Dahl had terrible back issues from when he crashed his plane in the war. He made his own custom writing chair so he could write in comfort in his hut.

Pages from his work. Did you know that Matilda went through several drafts, and he had to completely start over when he realized he didn't want Matilda to be a bad child? I'm so glad he rewrote. The Matilda in me is honored.

Matilda!

The BFG wanders past the museum to check on everyone's good dreams.

This gas station features in Danny, Champion of the World, one of Dahl's more autobiographical books.

I took a hike out to see where Dahl is buried. Matilda had to sit and cry a little more. The BFG left his footprints to his maker's grave.

The bench is for Dahl. The concrete beneath it has quotes from The Giraffe, the Pelly, and Me.

I had lunch at Matilda's Cafe (fitting, right?), and went back to London to get my bags and trudge (I mean really trudge) to my hotel for the night. It's back to America tomorrow.

I honestly can't wait to be home. My house, my cats, and my bf(f!) are there, and I won't be freezing any more, and I won't be a tourist for a while. It was a great Matilda June, and as much as I love London, I'm flying back without a single regret. Back to Missippippi!

A Blur of Days

I've been recovering from all my journeys these last few days, but I've made sure to get out of the dorm every day for something.

I got a particularly useless haircut near Kings Cross, but I picked up a very cool souvenir for my nephew:

I also visited Westminster Abbey. You can't take photos inside, but I was surprised to learn that Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, and Stephen Hawking are all there in the church. 

I was looking forward to seeing the Poets' Corner, but when I got there, I was overwhelmed. I sat in the chairs and used up all my tissues. If you've ever missed a loved one's funeral, but then visited their grave, you'll know the feeling I got here. And it wasn't just one loved one, it was many of my most beloved authors and poets whose work has been a huge part of my life any my career. Oscar Wilde, who was condemned by the church for his sexual preferences, even has a stained-glass window in his honor here now, as the church and England has come to recognize his genius and his worth as a human. I didn't stay long after that, because grief, even of the long-dead, is draining.

I had a ticket to go see A Midsummer Night's Dream, and I'd gotten the ticket because I just wanted to see Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie) up close. Here she is in a box!

The play began with her in a box, staring at the audience. She was Titania, queen of the fairies. There were also these dancers throughout (they were the fairies).

It was a great play, and I've never laughed so hard in a Shakespeare play. The interacted with the audience, used the whole space, and had the standing audience be part of this dance and ball toss at the end. So much fun! This was one of my favorite experiences of the whole trip!

The Land of Sheep and Hedgehogs

I had to be on the train not long after 5 am this morning. We had free days, and I wanted badly to see Beatrix Potter's house. I had been warned that it was a trek, but I figured, after my brush with death to see Kipling's digs, how bad could it be?

I snoozed on the train; luckily, no one sat by me, and I managed to kind of lay down about 3/4 of my long-ass bod. I've never heard so many bones crack and pop as when I woke up and clunked everything back into place on the train.

I got off the train, and found myself in a much more tourist-heavy spot than I'd expected. It looks like the Lakes District is extremely popular among Chinese tourists, and the area is super well-connected with buses. I got the info I needed, and hopped on a local bus to the town I needed to be in (Hawkshead). It was a windy and slightly scary journey, and I had no idea how long it would take. There were no announcements for stops, and I just kind of winged it. I got off in a little touristy town with Beatrix Potter and Peter Rabbit all over everything, and asked for directions. A shop keeper told me it was about a 30-minute walk. This turned out to be about half of the time it took, trudging uphill with no sidewalks. But it was worth it.

I finally made it to Beatrix Potter's teeny tiny village, and got a ticket to her house. This is the walk up to her house through the garden.

It's June, and they have a fire roasting. It's actually nice. Also, there's wallpaper on the ceiling, which I loved.

Her writing desk:

Beatrix's "treasures" room:

A view inside her dollhouse. She bought this to display all the little items she'd used as models in her stories.

 Inside a closet:

Her hat and shoes.

The wallpaper on the ceiling!

I left just as a giant tour group was shuffling in. I ventured off to find lunch, but look! Peter has his own sign.

That's bleu cheese rarebit the bottom right. It looks horrible, but it was amazing. Just bleu cheese melted over toast!

This is where I had the above tea:

I walked back to the village to see what I could see before hopping the bus back to the train station.

Back in the village, I bought a few small things, and then caught the bus back. It was definitely a trek today, but I can see why Beatrix decided to spend most of her life in this land of lakes and greenery and sheep (how did I not get a photo of the sheep?!).