I visited the Barrow site for work last week. Its a 5-6 hour drive north of London and its just south of a beautiful region known as "The Lakes". I haven't made it to the lakes yet, but Barrow is close enough that you can start to see and feel the beauty. Its basically a region of pristine lakes with mountains and fields.
One joke that came up in Barrow was that its 'junior prom' season. Apparently its a season that didnt exist one generation ago, but 'America' has brought it over. One dad had spent over £500 on a dress, and he knew of a family that was using a helicopter to take their sons/daughters around that night. I learned these things while we went out for dinner. At dinner they warned me that the 'mixed grill' dish was a very large portion. I was fascinated to see how large it might be, and sure enough, I could only finish half of it, but it sure was delicious, especially the local sausage. We shared a good laugh about it all, and many other things.
In light of Indedepence Day in America, they had "Independents Day" in Guildford. They gave away prizes for people that shopped at shops owned by independent folks. It was a really nice way to celebrate local business. My older daughter decided to take part in it directly, she opened a lemonade stand and took donations. She explained to people that donations were going to two local charity shops in Guildford. I stood a few feet behind her in support, but she made the lemonade herself and talked to 'customers' herself. Proud daddy :)
Saturday night we went to a live show of James and the Giant Peach. It was a great show and it was their final night, so I think they poured a little extra effort into it. I think the audience included many family members of the actors and actresses so thats always nice to see. Our younger daugther did very well, she watched and even enjoyed the show. She only made a lot of noise one time when she yelled out 'oh no', but it was well timed with the story, so mostly people just laughed or smiled.
My wife had taped the entire day of Wimbledon that I was there, so I spent a few minutes going through the video to see if I could spot myself on video. Sure enough, there's about 1-2 seconds of clear video that shows me in the stands, fun! I also watched the final championship match on Sunday, what a great match that was! I found myself rooting for Federer, but mostly because I wanted good, competitive tennis. The positive of Djokovic winning is that I can say I saw him play from the second row at Wimbledon!
On Sunday morning we drove down to Brighton. Many local folks have mentioned how much they like it there. The drive was pretty quick and easy, and the family loved it. We had a great time and I think we've already all agreed that we'll head back someday for more time there. The beach is nice, the pier has a lot to do, the food looks great and the shopping seems amazing. It has the feel of a 'holiday town', which is great. Oh, there's some great architecture there too, a dome and a theatre right in the heart of town...
To wrap up the weekend, we had dinner at a local friend's house. They invited us over and we had a great time. We cooked together, talked about our interested, and we didnt even discuss US/UK very much. We did learn a few little things such as flashlight = torch, 911 = 999 (in UK) = 118 (in France). There's something really special about sharing time and meals like that, it helps you really learn about people and life.
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