Sandwich, Canterbury, Etc.

When we both woke up at midnight last night, still a little delirious from traveling so far, Mike and I discovered that we were BOTH thinking two very specific thoughts at that moment:

1) What were we thinking, coming here?

and

2) I want to go home!!!

Don't worry, we no longer feel that way, but I can't think of a way to describe what it feels like to be THAT tired and realizing you're THAT far away from home and anyone else you know even thrugh acquaintanceship on the whole planet.

Luckily, we both were able to quickly fall back asleep and about 7 more hours rest. So by morning, when I woke up to an old friend of mine, English breakfast tea, I (and Mike, as well) were refreshed, rejuvenated and eagerly anticipating exploring jolly ol' England!!

Such a treat! And these FreeFrom brand oaty things were so delicious, I thought I was in heaven with each bite. such a surprise! Maybe I was just realllly hungry!

Good morning, Dulwich! We later learned they drop the "w" on the wiches. So they pronounce it Dulich or Sandich, or Greenich. This is our view from our room...Dulwich is a London burrough.

This morning we drove about an hour and a half to Sandwich which is near Dover by the English Channel. We were not excited to get back into that car, let me tell you. Stress city. We began to learn it was like drive wherever you want to pole position craziness and you just have to act like you either own the road or get out of the way. Cars park IN the road, there is not really room on the sides for cars to fit.  So while driving in order to avoid the parked cars, you literally have to drive down the WRONG SIDE of the road to go around the car and continue on. This means if a car is going in the opposite direction they wait for you to get back in to your lane. Bi-ZARRE. In some places, people just drive up onto the curb! And that is only the half of what it is like to drive either in a big city like London or a small teeny tiny village like Sandwich or Wingham with roads as narrow as our Cal king sized bed ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE ROAD THAT AMERICANS DRIVE ON. I seriously think they should have a masseuse set up at every car park (parking lot). The motorways (freeways) were the only places we could breathe normally.

Let me tell you, driving in the UK is bringing us closer to God. And it is making our relationship stronger! hahahaha Prayer + teamwork = safe driving I have literally prayed each and EVERY time I get in that car! Flying is a piece of cake compared with this craziness!

So after dropping Mike off at the golf course this morning, guess who got to practice driving??? Me. I could not imagine making Mike drive the entire two weeks and having to deal with that stress and not get get to see any sights along the way. In order to be able to get used to driving here, I had to practice. After high-fiving one  bush and scraping 2 curbs, I got the gist of it pretty well. But I am constantly on high alert and can't let up for a minute until I get to go straight on for a mile or more.  

So I drove myself here:

The Secret Gardens of Sandwich at The Salutation and found this:

And this:

And these:

It was so peaceful and quiet there, all I could hear we're the birds and the bees...the tolling of the church bells...a bubbling fountain nearby. The PERFECT retreat after being on the road.

And finally, I got to discover first hand having to PAY to go to the toilet (what they call the restroom). The lady who manages the toilet was SO nice. She gave me brochures and talked to me about Wimbledon and we chatted for quite a bit. She kept that place very, very clean and tidy. Nice toilet. 

Then I got an ice cream....and me, the crazy tourist asked the ice cream lady if she wouldn't mind me taking her picture.  Meanwhile, someone was practicing the violin in the park behind us. It was such a nice experience.  I am easy to please. :-)

After a quick lunch of carrot and coriander soup, I got back into the car and drove 6 miles to Deal intending to find a gluten-free bakery I had researched. Well, I panicked a little at this one really weird intersection-type thing (which I thought I was suddenly about to go down a one way street the wrong way, but NO it was really that "let's go around the parked car and drive down the wrong side of the road" thing happening). So I ended up taking a break in a car park which turned out to be a grocery store called Sainsbury's. I went inside (after learning you had to PAY TO PARK TO GO INSIDE THE GROVPCERY STORE...What???) and got Mike some snacks, because I had an inkling these golf courses wouldn't have carts with hot dogs like in the U.S. ( so far I was right about that ). By the time I finished, it was time to pick Mike up...so I never made it to the bakery. And I as hoping to go up to Herne Bay for gluten free fish and chips, but I wasn't sure I was ready to drive 30 miles into the unknown in this different car business. All in all, I had a great time, though. Everyone I came across was really friendly and helpful.

This is the clubhouse of where Mike played today...The Royal St. George's.

This is their professional's shop at The Royal St. George's.  He played with a man from Manchester and his caddie was Scottish. Both were very friendly. This golf course is usually member's only. The members were not as friendly apparently, so sad.

Mike wasn't quite finished with his round yet, so I discovered this path that cut straight through the course he was playing. It led me to this:

The English Channel!  I looked really hard for France on the other side, but I couldn't see it.

After golf, we hopped in the car, said a prayer for safe travels, and headed to Canterbury Cathedral. It's like really old. Mike could tell you how old, but he is sleeping. Why is it he is always asleep when I am updating the blog!?! ;-)

I liked this stone in the memorial garden.

You wouldn't believe the details!

See the different shields in the ceiling of the corridor from the picture above?

I can't even tell you how tall the cathedral is, I think it might be the biggest cathedral I have ever seen...

There is so much more to it than this, pictures just don't do it justice.

Can you spot Mike standing in front?

This is one of the shops on he outside of the cathedral walls.

We ended the day by driving back to Dulwich and after a small respite at the B&B we went to a very late dinner at an Italian restaurant. So far, we have been pretty lucky with the food!!!

Tomorrow, we are having a car-free day!! Taking a guided tour of London and then the train to Cambridge....can't wait!