Football and Hot Dogs

After our fun but insane Paris trip, it was time to wind down the honeymoon with a few low-key activities. To leave Paris, we woke up at 5:45 am to stumble through the dark streets of the city. We walked to the train station, took a train into Calais, took a ferry from Calais to Dover, and then another train from Dover to London, a tube from one station in London to another, and finally a train from London to Macclesfield. This sounds complicated, but I'll break it down.

Calais: This is the main port city to get to Paris, or really, to any part of Western Europe, from the UK by ferry. For a port city, you would think Calais would completely sell-out in its Frenchness, with tourists traps everywhere. Well, you would be wrong. Calais was definitely anticlimactic. Here's a few pictures:

What do you see? That's the point – you don't see anything. It was just kind a barren town, with nothing going on at all. In comparison to England port town of Dover, Calais didn't have a leg to stand on. So now that you know everything there is to know about Calais, on to the sea...

We took a ferry back from Calais to Dover, and the ferry ride was a really nice little adventure. I love the feel of the open water all around with the wind and the smell of the ocean, so this was great for me. And I think Seth really enjoyed it, too. The best part of it was the view of the white cliffs as we were re-approaching Dover. Here's a few pics, which are actually from the trip towards Calais, but a perfectly good representation of the ferry ride in general:

It was pretty cold on the boat – the wind was crazy!

Dover: We were glad to get to revisit one of our favorite places by coming back through Dover. We were actually able to get a ferry earlier than we expected, which meant we had plenty of time to relax in Dover before getting on our next train. We went by the library to check on our emails, as we were at this time finalizing things for our apartment in London, went by the grocery store to get a few snacks for the train, and visited a great chip shop as a welcome back into the UK with a hearty meal of fish and chips. We sat in the park enjoying our meal and the sunshine, which we had been spoiled into expecting after France. Going to have to get used to those rainy days in the UK again...

So there aren't really any pictures from Dover, since I've already revealed most of that to you. Just revisit the Dover blog, relive the memories. It's all there for you.

London: We got off the train, went downstairs, got on a tube, got off at another station, went upstairs and got on another train. It was easy and painless. By far the most satisfying travel experience we've had in London.

Macclesfield: This is probably the part of the journey where you, the reader, are confused about where we are going. What is Macclesfield? Macclesfield is how we got to the home of some of the most amazing people we have met in the UK. You guessed it, they're Americans! Before we found our way to our final destination, London, we made another quick little trip up to see Jack and Sunday Austin, and their two kids, Jack and Tom. They are friends of Seth's family, and fellow Southerners. I was excited to meet them, since from my past experience, it's been a great moment to find another American. After another train ride, one that was relatively peaceful (yay!) we arrived at the Macclesfield train station. Sunday and Tom came to pick us up, and immediately I could feel the warmth and love of this family. Sunday greeted us with a huge smile, and I knew that we were welcome. It was very natural talking with them, relating. They had actually just returned to England after a break in the States, so I think it was good for them to hear from other American expats as well.

Compared to the insanity of our trip, the peace and quiet of Jack and Sunday's was almost surreal. When we first arrived, the Georgia game had just ended, but Jack was still tuned into good ole American football. I remember having this weird, surreal feeling as we walked into their living room. Jack was relaxing on the couch with a Georgia sweatshirt on, and the TV showed football – American football. The next thing I knew, Sunday was offering us Coca-Cola and Dominos pizza. I took it almost without realizing what I was doing. I felt like I was watching us from somewhere far away. It was like a little piece of America here in England, and until I had it, I didn't realize how much I had missed it. Just the little things, like hearing Seth and Jack talk in the background about how the UGA football team was expected to do this year, while Sunday told me about their life in the UK with her sweet, Southern drawl. They were great, genuine people, and Jack told us several stories that made us laugh. I was glad to see how proud they were that they were Americans. I guess this is something I should discuss further.

Since coming here, I think it's been hard for me especially to know who I am. I arrived, realized no one was really like me here (different culture, accent, ways of life, etc) only to find out that I was a little skittish about being completely myself when no one else was that way. Talking with Kim first in Dover, and then secondly with Jack and Sunday helped me to see that it's okay that I'm different than people around me now, and that I need to be proud of that difference. Jack continually joked about how he embraced his “Americanness” at work. While his stories were very entertaining, this is something I really appreciated, because it helped me to see that I should do the same.

We headed to bed pretty early, since we'd been traveling since 5:45 that morning. The sofa bed was a dream – very comfortable, and very quiet. We had a great night's sleep and woke up the next morning to go to church with the family. We all crowded into one car – the poor boys were shoved into the very back – I felt bad about that! But we both really enjoyed the church. The people seemed genuinely excited to be there to worship God, and not for other reasons. The sermon was about accepting God's love and the fact that it is something bigger and greater than anything we could dream of repaying. I can understand that feeling literally through all the people that have been so good to us throughout our travels. From the beginning, everyone who has let us into their home has been great to us, and I'm overwhelmed by that generosity and hospitality. With Sunday and her family, I especially felt this way. I felt completely at home with this family, and I don't think it was just the Southern thing. I can understand what was preached in the sermon because Jack and Sunday were so giving and loving to us, and there was and is really no way we can pay them back. I just felt a little helpless about it, because I just have to accept it. I just have to accept that they are willing to do that for me, and that there is nothing I can do in return, and that they don't expect anything. How much more true is this with God? How much more real is this with God? It's amazing, how He loves, how He gives, the mercy and love He pours out, even when He doesn't have to, even when there's absolutely no way I can repay Him...

After the Austins treated us to a delicious lunch (at a carvery, which means MEAT), we all spent the rest of the day being lazy, for the most part. We watched some more football, which I hadn't realized I would miss. It was really nice to just be around for a day, to have some rest. Seth enjoyed throwing the football around with Jack and the boys, as well as kicking the soccer ball with little Jack. As for me, I enjoyed talking to Sunday and just lounging around. It was so great having her to relate to with our travels into the UK. Although she admitted her homesickness, her optimism really gave me hope for our next year here. Overall, the day was a great time of recuperation. Our travels have been great, and I wouldn't trade it for any other thing, but at the same time, I think we were both ready for a little rest from the traveling.

The next day, our last full day there, Sunday, Tom, Seth, and I headed to a little area where there were lots of shops. She needed to pick up several things, and Seth and I had decided it would be a good idea to go ahead and buy some sheets for the bed we would have in our apartment, so wouldn't have to just sleep on the mattress. It was a really windy day, almost blowing us all away, so we were pretty quick about it. The little town was really cute, and Seth and I had a lunch of Subway while we were there. It's weird, because Seth always hated Subway in America, but here in the UK it is quiet appetizing to him. I think it all goes back to this great deal we got on a breakfast sub in Glasgow...

Back to the subject at hand, it was nice just walking around the shops with Sunday and Tom, as well as the drive we took where she showed us around the area. As for our time at Sunday's, I did some documentation, as Sunday joked that there was nothing to document. I don't think she understood how greatly we appreciated the rest. Hopefully we can make it back up there for a more exciting adventure next time! So, to document our times there...

Our amazing place of sleep:

The windiest BBQ I've experienced (Seth was really excited about the hot dogs):

The Austins ready to eat American food (hot dogs!):

Sunday took a pic of us:

I wish I had taken more pictures while visiting the Sunday's, but I felt like I was freaking the kids out with my camera, so I tried to keep it to a minimum. Plus, I was just lazy as all get out during this portion of the trip. Hopefully we can return to see them again sometime soon and be a bit more active! But we very much enjoyed the solitude of their home, and their gracious nature towards us.

On Tuesday, the day we were scheduled to move into our apartment in London, Sunday was nice enough to take us to the train station. We had ALL of our stuff, which we hadn't been reunited with since Elgin. We repacked, and managed to have all our stuff on us. We looked ridiculous! Well, thanks to Sunday's photo skills, you can see for yourself:

So there we are, in all our glory. Of course, when you're carrying that much stuff around on trains and in London, things are bound to be way more ridiculous than they ought to be, but you'll just have to wait for the next post to find out all about it. :)