England, well it was certainly green when I was there in September. There had been lots of rain and there was a bit more for us when we arrived. With so much carefully protected swaths of countryside dotted with charming villages and towns, it is a pleasant land. William Blake was right. However, it could all be a lot more pleasant if it wasn’t clogged up with road traffic. Big sigh, not many of us, on either side of the Atlantic, are ready to give up our motorized wheels.
But I would like to talk about Dorset, on the south coast, about in the middle, a beautiful county, so let me stop grumbling, please. Not only is Dorset a rural gem – those who watch BBC’s “Escape to the Country” will have visited it several times, it is also bursting with history and culture: Thomas Hardy country, the Tolpuddle Martyrs and the Jurassic coastline, just for starters.
I have a wonderful niece who lives in Dorset, so on this UK trip, we visited EJ (as I call her). Bonus, her two university-age kids were home too. On the way there, my husband and I stopped in Wareham. This now, silted-up port, used to be a seafaring doorway. So, they all came: the Romans, Vikings, Saxons, Normans. With a break in the rain, I walked along the Saxon earthwork fortifications, along with the school kids in their uniforms, just out of school.
The next day, the rain just bucketed down, water sitting on the sodden meadows and gardens, hedgerow ditches doing their best to keep up. But not to be deterred, I am a diligent tourist, so EJ piled us in her car and we set off for Clouds Hill. This is T. E. Lawrence’s (as in Lawrence of Arabia) cottage. He was stationed with the army nearby. He bought this humble cottage and did some fixin’ up. This was truly a bachelor pad; he did not put in a kitchen! Ground floor: great big lounging bed, Arab style and bathroom with great big bathtub (WC outside). Upstairs, small writing/ music room, and a slip of a bunk room for a guest. Very sadly, he died at this time in a motorbike accident and is buried nearby.
The next morning, blue skies and sunshine so we went to a famous beauty spot: Lulworth Cove. High rugged cliffs on either side of a lovely wee bay and beach with a few fishing and tourist boats. We had crab sandwiches for lunch along with a latte. Thus fortified we drove along the coastline, but high up on the Ridgeway. In this part of Dorset, you do not stray from the path as it is surrounded by acres of land that belong to the military and this is tank central. This is where the army do their exercises and firing practices, when the flags are up, it is happening – just in case you thought you could wander hors-piste.
England has so many little roads, tracks and laneways. As Google sends you down one of these narrow ways, and you feel this can’t be right: “Isn’t this someone’s driveway?” you pass many quaint cottages, desirable houses and some very posh residences. So now I appreciate how “Escape to the Country”, helps people unearth these dwellings as they search for their ideal country house. Just to locate these houses for sale could be quite a challenge.