The English we met have been very polite, chatty even. We did not have to worry about language differences this trip, though the truth be told, sometimes they had trouble understanding us because of our accent, and we, them; that problem was always solved by just slowing down. Or having a second beer, which helps to focus the mind. The countryside is cute and quaint, but to us, not beautiful. England is not the Europe of late nights outside at the cafe, drinking and people watching, wandering the streets late at night, seeing sunrises over the mountains and sunsets over famous monuments. At least for us. It is a place where you need to be prepared for rain every day, you really really appreciate an hour of blue sky, and you sit in a warm pub or afternoon tea. Which is a problem if you prefer wine to beer, coffee to tea.
The best sight? Stonehenge, hands down. Best hike? The Catbells in Keswick. Best meal was at Maggie Jones's, near the High Kensington Tube stop. I cannot remember any other truly memorable meals off the top of my head; ask me about Turkey, Greece, France, Italy, Germany, hell, even Albania, and I can tell you about meals and restaurants. But England? The food is forgettable.
Gail says you can always count on good soup and bread, which she enjoyed after the the cold days.
So all in all, England is not on our list of places to return to. But we are glad to have visited. After all, even on the worst days, we are still on an adventure, we are still exploring; we are still traveling!
Today, we are looking forward to Scotland.