Stops in the Road

Here are our intended destinations for the literary trip that will begin in less than two hours. When Jenn and I put our heads together to plan a strategy for spring break, we decided we'd rather stay in England to see these places than to travel to another country. All of these cities and places have literary merit of some sort, specifically associated with my favorite authors and settings from favorite books.

1) Chawton: Jane Austen's House Museum. 'Nuff said. I know, I've already been there, but Jenn hasn't and it's a sight that no true Austen fan should miss. Plus, I've been dying to go back and read Pride and Prejudice in the garden.

2) Winchester: Winchester Cathedral. The gravesite/memorial for Jane Austen. It's not quite as cool as her house, but it's only a fifteen minute bus ride away, so it's worth the journey. It'll be one of the shorter stops on the trip.

3) Bath: Jane Austen Centre, plus all sorts of other attractions. Are you starting to notice a pattern here?

4) Lacock: a cute little village located near Bath which was used for scenes in the film versions of Pride and Prejudice and Emma. Also, I've found out that it was J.K. Rowling's inspiration for Godric's Hollow in the Harry Potter series.

5) Oxford: The house of J.R.R. Tolkien and The Eagle and the Child Pub. The former is self-explanatory; who wouldn't want to visit the house of such an awesome writer? It's one of my favorite series. The second attraction is the place where Tolkien and C.S. Lewis used to meet with their literary group, the Inklings. It was rumored that they would read their manuscripts aloud in the pub, but I've found evidence to disprove this. Either way, it's still awesome. Also, if we have the time, we'll go exploring around Oxford College. Besides being incredible, it was also used to film many of the scenes at Hogwarts in Harry Potter, including the Great Hall and the entrance hall.

6) Bakewell: Chatsworth House. One of the most beautiful estates in England and also used as Pemberley in Pride and Prejudice.

7) Manchester: the hometown of Elizabeth Gaskell, author of North and South. Another one of my favorite books, adapted into one of my favorite movies.

8) Haworth: The Bronte Parsonage Museum. The childhood home of the Bronte sisters, turned into an attraction for all lovers of their books. I'm hoping this will be somewhat like the Jane Austen House Museum. This is also the last stop on our trip before heading home.

So there you have it: eight different cities, eight different attractions. But did I mention that we'll be seeing all of these in four days? What a marathon!