Saturday, July 24, 2010

"You will not expect to hear that I was asked to dance!": Southampton and the Isle of Wight

Day 12

When I arrived into Southampton on the previous night, I must admit that I was disappointed with what I found. The city is like any other city at first glance, with few remnants of its powerful past. Most of what I immediately saw were shopping centers and modern hotels. I knew that it wouldn't have the charm of other places I visited: I read about its current state and many people I encountered in England didn't really have anything positive to say. I was still hopeful that I would learn from the city and enjoy it.

In some areas, you can still see parts of the medieval wall that used to enclose the city. Unfortunately, Southampton was bombed extensively in World War II and lost much of its architectural history. Jane Austen would have known a much different place than the one I encountered.

On my first full day in the city, I decided to change my attitude, and so it was done! I decided that instead of being upset that I wasn't in an aesthetically pleasing city, I needed to see it for what it was, and find out as much as I could about its history. So, what else would I do but go to a museum. The Maritime Museum there has a fairly extensive supply of relics from the port of Southampton. Southampton is probably most famous as the sight of the launching of the Titanic. So, in the early 20th century, the city lost many residents to the sinking of the ship, and then later to the war. In seeing and reading about these events, I appreciated the comparison between Southampton and the other locations I visited. I was sad to think about the long-lasting effects of devastation on this city, and it made me appreciate even more the history that has been salvaged.

I walked around the older part of the town after the museum, and was able to locate the street where Jane probably lived with her brother Frank. The original house is no longer there, and no one is sure where the house was. It was a very quiet, creepy sort of street though. I didn't see any people or cars . . .

I stopped back in at my hotel, because yes - this is the very same hotel where Jane celebrated her 18th birthday. The heading of this entry refers to a letter she wrote to her sister about the time she spent at the Mercure Hotel. It was one of the first places where she danced with a boy! I did go into the room where she had her birthday celebration. Again, like the rest of the city, it has been modernized . . . let us not forget though - she was there! The room next door is named for Gilbert, who was supposedly a love interest for her at the time.

To add to the general creepiness of Southampton, I will fill you in on the hotel hauntings. I asked the concierge about them, and he said that there have been some stories about Molly the maid moving things around in room 6. I had a slight panic attack then, because that was my room! Then he said it USED to be room 6, but it is now room 16. There have also been stories of an old man and a little boy walking in the basement together. I really am not a person who scares easily, but I must admit that I had trouble falling asleep that night. Any time I heard a floorboard creek or someone walking down the hallway, I just got a bit nervous. Maybe it took me back to the days of reading scary stories at sleepovers. Even though the hotel has been renovated, it is still old and creeky.

Day 13

Because there really wasn't too much to see and do in Southampton, I decided to take a ferry to the Isle of Wight the next day. I took a quick 25 minute ferry to the island, where I decided I would go see two things: Osbourne House and Carisbrooke Castle. Osbourne House was the vacation home of Queen Victoria, and Carisbrooke Castle has a very very long history of important residents.

I took a fairly long walk to Osbourne House. The grounds were immediately impressive and well-maintained. I first walked around the walled garden, home to many varieties of flowers and plants. Then I went to tour the house. It is HUGE and ornate - again in Victorian fashion. When he died, it was Alfred's wish that the house remain the way it was, and so Victoria didn't change a thing. Rulers since Victoria have also respected that wish. There is incredible artwork that adorns the walls and even the ceilings in some rooms.

I appreciated the fact that they make you go in order through the rooms; this way you know you aren't missing anything. I do NOT appreciate when museum/palace visitors have absolutely no concept of personal space or manners. I found myself getting annoyed because people were bumping into me, and I had to remind myself to ignore it. If that's really my only concern, I think I'm doing just fine.

Nearly a mile away from the house, there was a separate cottage for the children to play in and do their schoolwork. Apparently they didn't want to see or hear the children! In that same area, there's a cute little fort and pretend cannons that the children would play with. You can also see Queen Victoria's bath house. It would literally be carted into the ocean, so that when she went for a swim, no one would be able to see her with less clothing on. The Victorian Era was, after all, all about modesty and restraint. We will see later that this is why the Brontes were thought to be a scandalous family.

I had lunch at the cafe there, and then headed to Carisbrooke Castle. I didn't realize it at first, but the Isle of Wight is actually very large! It took me probably an hour to get to the castle (I had to change buses and walk quite a ways). I actually walked up the wrong path I think, because I had to literally walk all the way around the castle in order to find the drawbridge that covers the moat (it no longer has any water in it).

Once inside, I found a gigantic fortress. Some parts are in ruins, and some are fairly well preserved. Princess Beatrice was the last resident of the castle in the early 1900s (she was Queen Victoria's daughter). She decided to make it into a museum and a place people could visit. Parts of the castle were originally built in the 13th century. In the 17th century, Charles II was imprisoned there for a while until he was executed. It wasn't exactly a rough life for him there; he still had 20 course meals and entertainment. I was somewhat distracted again by the visitors of the castle - there were many children endearingly pretending to be knights. One dad told his little boy, "No knights were much quieter than you are right now."

I walked around the top of the castle wall, where there were incredible views in every direction. I am finding that you learn so much about people based on their reaction when you ask them to take a picture. I've decided that I want to be in the pictures so that people know I was there (rather than just have a picture of the scenery). It is rather awkward to ask people to take a picture of you by yourself, but I'm pretty used to it by now. Anyway, the man I asked at the castle was very nice, and actually has relatives who live in Galveston. It is such a small world!

I left the castle, hoping that I would somehow locate the bus stop. The Isle of Wight is pretty user friendly with transportation, but you have to first find the bus stop. I ended up on a neighborhood road, and I stopped to ask a husband and wife how to get to the main road. At first they said to just walk with them and they'd point it out, and then they offered to drive me to the bus station. See - people are so nice! The husband was funny because once he learned I was from Texas, he excitedly said, "Oh well you get to ride in my pickup truck to the station!" They asked me how we were feeling about the oil spill (not the first time it has come up). I think they were under the impression that Americans are mad at the British. I just said I think people are mad in general, and looking for anyone to blame. Anyway, I so appreciated their kindness, and made it safely back to my ferry stop after that.

So, in short, I'm glad I went to Southampton after all. It provided an interesting contrast with the other places I visited, and I was able to see the Isle of Wight (maybe one of my favorite stops!)

What I'm reading: Wuthering Heights in preparation for Haworth. I forgot how scandalous it is! There is so much swearing and anger and anti-religious comments - really on the part of all the characters (except maybe Edgar). It just seems outrageous that a situation like that could have ever happened. Regardless, Emily did have a flair for drama and character description. Her characters are disturbingly vivid, Heathcliff in particular.

Other observations:
- Seagulls are REALLY noisy at all times of day.
- Walking to places is so nice and I will try to do it more often once I'm home.
- It's important to try to make the best of a situation that falls short of your expectations.

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