MissElaineous

Reaching New Heights in Edinburgh

Reaching New Heights in Edinburgh
[ PART 1 ] [ PART 2 ] [ This is a continuation of last week’s post about my explorations of Edinburgh on a sunny autumn day. Check out the first part or keep reading to see whether I managed to face my fears and get a new perspective on the capital city. ] As I finished my circuit of Princes Street Gardens,… View Post

Exploring Edinburgh in Technicolor

Exploring Edinburgh in Technicolor
[ PART 1 ] [ PART 2 ] Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is known for many things. There’s whisky, which I don’t partake in, but I can vouch that tastings are a popular activity on offer for those who want to sample a beverage that is practically synonymous with the country. There’s its architecture: the “newer” parts were built during the… View Post

Thanksgiving Thursday

Thanksgiving Thursday
Today the United States celebrates Thanksgiving while we in the UK go about what is known as Thursday. I have found explaining this holiday to friends in the UK quite difficult, but I suppose it can be summed up as Christmas without the gift-giving and based loosely on a historical event (very loosely). It is also a chance for couples… View Post

Bristol Bound and London Memories

Bristol Bound and London Memories
[ As Seen on Social Media: I’m afraid there’s no new MissElaineous blog post this week, but I have put together a collection of photos based on the daily photographs from Facebook and Instagram. However, if you’re interested in reducing your waistline as well as your “wasteline“, check out the new Off the Ground blog post about how I lost… View Post

More Thought, Less Waste

More Thought, Less Waste
[ In addition to writing the MissElaineous Blog, I also tackle the problem of litter and waste over on Off the Ground.  I’ve written an environmental gift guide over the past few years, and this year I’m continuing the tradition with a greatly expanded look at eco (or at least eco-ish) presents. The topic of waste reduction is one I care… View Post

London Accompaniment

London Accompaniment
Our inside joke started way back in the distant year of 2010, when MrElaineous was still known as Jon and I was just about to embark on the phase of my PhD euphemistically known as “writing up” (reality: “academic hell”). I had a paper accepted to an archaeology conference in Granada, Spain and Jon was interested in going as well;… View Post

A Walk in the Woods: Wonderful Westonbirt

A Walk in the Woods: Wonderful Westonbirt
Every year, as September gives way to October, MrElaineous and I start to have heated discussions about a very important topic: when do we go to Westonbirt, the national arboretum? Too early and there’s not much autumn colour. Too late and the colours are faded and most of the leaves are on the ground instead of on the trees. It… View Post

Opening Doors in London

Opening Doors in London
Imagine a house you’ve lived in for years. You can navigate to the bathroom in the middle of the night without turning on a light or stubbing your toe. You know those spots of scuffed paint or the peeling wallpaper you keep meaning to fix. You are familiar with every step, every floorboard creak, every quirk of architecture or design.… View Post

Dive into Bath

Dive into Bath
“Hi, would you like to participate …” “Hello, I’m researching the audio guides and …” “Hi, would you like to take part in a survey about the audio guides here at the Roman Baths? You would? Great!” Over a period of months, I accosted hundreds, if not thousands, of visitors to the Roman Baths Museum with a spiel like this.… View Post

The Autumn Collection

The Autumn Collection
[ If you have been following along with my daily posts on Facebook or Instagram, this might look familiar! ] Growing up in Florida, plants consisted of flowers, palm trees, pine trees, and evergreen shrubs. There were two seasons—hot and hotter—but every building had air conditioning so most time was spent in a climate-controlled bubble. So going to Bryn Mawr… View Post

She seeks seashells (and fossils) by the seashore

She seeks seashells (and fossils) by the seashore
Fishpond Bottom. Thornfalcon. Monkton Wyld. Cricket Malherbie. Beercrocombe. Curry Mallet. Cheddon Fitzpaine. Queen Camel. MrElaineous and I were heading south, and as I followed our route across the map I couldn’t help but wonder about the subconscious impact of cartography on a nation’s mindset. After all, this is a country that has given the world both Monty Python and Middle… View Post

Wiltshire Round Up

Wiltshire Round Up
If you have ever watched any television series, you’ll be familiar with the phenomenon of the clip show. These often string together the best segments from previous episodes, or perhaps are built around a particular theme. Welcome to the clip show in blog format! This past summer I’ve been exploring closer to home and enjoying the wonders of Wiltshire, but… View Post

Summer, Shakespeare, and Sightseeing

Summer, Shakespeare, and Sightseeing
It was Shakespeare—and a very dedicated English teacher—who brought me to the UK in the summer of 1999. Since then, I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying a number of plays (and the odd musical or two) in gardens across the country. This is because once the weather warms up, outdoor spaces are converted into open-air theatres for local amateur dramatic… View Post

Down the Garden Path

Down the Garden Path
Although I have lived in the UK for nearly 15 years, I am still discovering new things on a regular basis. One such recent discovery has been the National Garden Scheme. While I had been vaguely aware of their existence before, I have to admit I had never actually visited one of the participating properties. What a mistake that was!… View Post

Seduced by Salisbury (Part 2)

Seduced by Salisbury (Part 2)
“The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.” This famous quote by writer L.P. Hartley opens his novel The Go-Between, and I think it gets to the heart of why I enjoy history so much: it’s just like travelling, but in your imagination. There’s the same excitement of learning and discovery, of figuring out how things work,… View Post

Seduced by Salisbury (Part 1)

Seduced by Salisbury (Part 1)
[ PART 1 ] [ PART 2 ][ VISIT WILTSHIRE ] [ If you follow along on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter you may have caught my trip to Salisbury this past weekend — I am reposting it on the MissElaineous Blog to make it easier for everyone to access. ] I have a confession to make. Narrow, winding stairs are my… View Post

Making the Past Present (Part 2)

Making the Past Present (Part 2)
[ PART 1 ] [ PART 2 ] We are all time travellers. We just happen to be moving towards the future at the pace of one day at a time. But the past is all around us and, with the help of the right person, it’s possible to find it. John Swann of the Travelling History Company is one… View Post

Making the Past Present (Part 1)

Making the Past Present (Part 1)
[ PART 1 ] [ PART 2 ] Car parks are not exactly known for having great views. Indeed, that is one of their defining characteristics: whether situated underground, in a multi-storey tower, or sandwiched between shops, they tend to prioritise function over form and practicality over aesthetics. So pulling into Chepstow’s Castle Dell car park was unexpected: as the view of a medieval… View Post

Life in Lavender

Life in Lavender
It is twenty-five miles between our house and MrElaineous’ hometown. Due to the “you-can’t-get-there-from-here” phenomenon, it takes us about an hour to drive there on winding country roads, which allows us to avoid the often grid-locked city of Bath, and instead takes us through picturesque towns like Bradford-on-Avon and small villages such as Faulkland. I hadn’t paid much attention to… View Post
MissElaineous Travel Blog: Escape, Explore, Discover, Enjoy