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Published: October 22nd 2017
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1st October 2017
I've been in Nottingham for a week now and people ask "what is it like?". My only answer I guess is same same but different. The big things in life are the same; work, home etc, but the little things make me realise that perhaps I'm not in Kansas anymore. Humans are all essentially the same, Australian or Brittish so work is essentially the same, except the little things like testing less for snake bites and more for haemoglobinopathies. Home is still the same because I still need to cook dinner and wash my clothes, but watching squirrels out my window instead of kookaburras is a little bit exciting.
I'm excited that I will have heaps of quirky little memories like how the bus driver literally stopped the bus, got out, picked up heaps of chestnuts that had fallen, piled them on the seat at the bus stop, got back in the bus, and kept driving. I still have no idea why.
So far I'm enjoying the little things :-)
6th October 2017
After work I went to the Goose Fair! (Think Ekka but just sideshow alley and less food). It started when different towns would herd
their geese to Nottingham to trade so they could kill two birds with one stone (pun intended) to have a fresh goose down doona for winter and eat goose for Christmas dinner. It now has no animals, just rides and food. I ate the local specialty of mushy peas while walking around all the rides and crazy people. This little daredevil even took herself on the ferris wheel! I got some fresh doughnuts from the scouts and a cookie from the CWA equivalent before it got too cold and too late so I went home. I thought there would be more local stalls but I had a good time regardless.
7th October 2017
Today I went on a walking tour of Nottingham city. It was interesting to hear the history of Nottingham; how it was first populated by tribes 4000ish years ago because of hunting in Sheffield Forrest and gathering in Trent river. Then conquered by Spainish and Danish and everyone else because of its defensibility. It became a city during the industrial revolution where it was super into coal mining and lace making. Now it relies on the university for economy. It is also home to a few
famous people including the man who wrote Peter Pan and the founder of The Salvation Army. After seeing the major sights around town (fancy architecture buildings, churches, etc) the tour ended at the castle and the Robin Hood statue (who isn't a real person, rather a legend of thieves who's story was retold so many times and went around the world to suddenly become a charitable character).
14th October 2017
Today I went to Wollaton Hall. It is some old building built for some purpose that I have no idea about, but today it is a natural history museum. At the moment they have a dinosaur exhibition inside and it seemed both odd and perfect that there was a dinosaur skeleton in the middle of the main hall. Outside is green grass as far as the eye can see. A golf course on one side and parkland with squirrels and deer on the other. With the sun shining and hot chocolate in hand, I walked through the gardens and lawns in pretty much perfectness.
15th October 2017
Today I went to Sherwood Forest to find the elusive Robin Hood. After a missed bus stop and consequent unexpected bus
tour of the surrounding rural towns, I finally made it. I went to the visitor centre there to read about the legend that is Robin Hood before going on a walk through the Forest. It was very peaceful out there with the birds (and children) squarking and dogs running around. I saw the big oak tree which Robin used as a meeting point for his Merry Men. Then I had lunch at the restaurant before catching the (correct) bus home.
21st October 2017
Apple festival today! I caught the bus to Southwell which is a cute little town where they have an apple festival inside a church! I saw some super manly, bell jingling, handkerchief waving, folk dancing in the graveyard before going inside the church to celebrate all things Bramley Apple. It was full of stalls from local food makers: cheese, pies, pigs, and of course apple. I drank apple cider and warm apple something or rather that tasted amazing, and ate apple tart and brought home some apple pie for later. I also picked up a wild deer pie that has a warning: "may contain lead shot" (must have added to the flavour because it was delicious).
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