My Top Ten

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It’s taken me a long while to settle into life overseas and appreciate how lucky I am to be living the life that I am here in the UK. Travel has always been the dream…and I still need to pinch myself when I remember the little girl I once was dreaming of travelling to faraway lands, without even knowing what I was hoping to see. And here I am.

True, the realities of the dream haven’t all been peachy. Like everything in life, there is always a trade-off, the biggest being that almost all the people I love are on the other side of the world. Christmas time in particularly hard for travellers the world over as thoughts turn to festive celebrations with family and loved ones. As my second northern Christmas approaches, to stave off any longing for home, I'm reflecting on the things I enjoy about life here and I've come up with my top ten.

1. English country lanes linking up the most gorgeous little villages
The cities of the industrial north are not exactly picturesque. They are busy and bustling and filled with activity but one doesn't stand around with jaw gaping at their visual splendour. That said, you don't have to venture very far to find truly gorgeous little villages that feel like they could have just sprung off a canvas or from the pages of a picture book. One of my favourite things here is driving from village to village through gorgeous country lanes (which I'm lucky enough to do on a daily basis as part of my OT job working in the community). There are a million shades of green in the countryside, not to mention the old stone fences and the farm animals and the gorgeous old trees looming overhead. The English countryside is undeniably very beautiful and I never ever take for granted how amazing it is to drive down a narrow lane with grasses rising on either side of my car, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, only to emerge moments later beside a small stone cottage or a village centre dating back to the days of yesteryear.

2. Pubs
Pubs in the UK serve as an extension of every Brit's living room. People gather for celebration or commiserations. There are all kinds, ranging from the slightly dodgy dilapidated little hardy plank pub that greets it's regulars anytime from 10am right through to the upmarket, ale-pouring, cocktail shaking glitzy establishments where the 'who's who' of the social stratosphere gather in their masses. Everyone you meet has at least one 'local'. Even I have found a few where I would gladly venture for a bite to eat and to wile away some time on a lazy afternoon. Adam takes great joy in exploring the ales on tap in each establishment, with real ales having become his drink of choice of late.

3. Deciphering accents and the local slang
The first job I took in the UK was in Scotland. I caught the train from Leeds to Glasgow before swapping to a local service which would hopefully deliver me to my intended destination. As I sat pouring over my map and trying to figure out where I needed to go next, three or four teenagers boarded the train and sat directly opposite me, chatting away loudly and laughing. I paid them little attention initially, but after a few minutes they were the trigger of my first real panic attack in my UK life. Initially, I thought they were foreign as they were jabbering away amongst themselves in a completely unfamiliar tongue. However, it wasn't long before I realised with horror that they were indeed speaking English, albeit heavily accented, but English nonetheless. It was at this point I became paralysed with fear as it was clear, I couldn't understand a word they said! This was just the beginning though. My first post I was working in an Acute Stroke Unit, providing therapy to many patients who had cognitive or speech impairments related to their medical conditions. I could barely understand my work colleagues (who I believe were speaking more slowly and carefully choosing their phrasing in an effort to be helpful!), much less understand those who had unclear speech, altered speech patterns, word finding difficulty or completely nonsensical speech content. Looking back though, I remember these few works as being the most comical in my working life to date. In part because I had to laugh at my predicament (lest I cry!) and in part because the Scottish folk are so merry and keen for a chuckle. They would often make a statement and burst out laughing at themselves, while I stood looking puzzled as I endeavoured to decipher the phrase and eventually start laughing much after everyone else, only causing the locals to laugh even more. It was the beginning of a love affair with the various tongues and languages of the world. It's a huge sense of achievement when you actually decipher some of the slang or the heavily accented English that has been causing you to scratch your head for weeks.

4. Travelling with family and friends
Just last week, my gorgeous friend Holly left a little note on my facebook page to say she'd be over this way next year and we should have a little adventure together. To me, 'that's like gold dust' (as they say over here). I've been completely blessed to have had the opportunity to travel with so many close friends and family over the past two years. While we don't get to see loved ones regularly, when we do have the opportunity, the time we spend together is even more precious. And we get to experience some truly amazing things as we discover new places in the company of old friends. Knowing someone you love will be on their way to this side in the not too distant future warms my heart even on the very chilliest of days.

5. English parks
Many people in Britain don't have a garden or much green space of their own. So they compensate by creating beautiful parks that are a treat for the eyes to behold and an adventure wonderland for those who brave the bad English weather and venture outdoors. Parks in England are not just your average little plot with a few swings and a see-saw surrounded by wood chips and a few trees. Firstly, the parks here are huge...they stretch for acres and acres. Not only do they house the most gorgeous old trees and tended garden beds, they often have a lake or a stream in their midst, as well as a restaurant or estate house or some other striking landmark. People strip off and laze about when there is sunshine on offer or explore the numerous walks and paths. A stroll through the park must be one of the best things in the world to do on a sunny afternoon here.

6. Markets
Whether its food or art or fashion or antiques, markets here have everything to offer. From the big guns of London like Portobello Road, Borough Market and Spitalfield, to your fortnightly little farmers market in your small town centres, I love them all. I could spend hours (and hundreds of pounds too no doubt) wandering from stall to stall-they each have so much to offer. Adam counts his blessings that we don't live closer to my favourites as we would be eternally poor! I do very much love buying food fresh produce from the growers themselves, as well as meat and eggs. I like buying locally and knowing exactly where my foodstuffs are coming from. The local farmers market is almost always on our weekend agenda.

7. The history
It's funny when I visit a building or see a statue in Britain than pre-dates 1788. As an Aussie, I still consider areas like 'The Rocks' to be almost ancient...and by Australian standards, they are! Yet here I can be strolling through a building that has stood longer than the any single man-made landmark in Australia. It really is a bizarre feeling, and while I've never prided myself on possessing any kind of astute historical knowledge, I get drunk on every bit of history presented to me in the places we've visited here. It's fascinating.


8. Autumn
My favourite season. Unquestionably. The descent into the cold, dark and grey Winter is lessened somewhat by the truly magnificent feast of colour this time of year offers. I love every single bit of it-the warm to cool days that lead into very chilly nights. The red, orange and yellow hues of leaves on trees or on climbers adorning the side of houses or buildings. Not to mention, the huge piles of leaves that are created as the trees shed. Watching these leaves get swept up by the wind is beautiful (albeit hugely messy and no-doubt a source of frustration to many occupiers who like to keep their paths and drives clear of debris). For me, this season provides the perfect backdrop for childish behaviour...a last hurrah before the long cold maybe. All I know is that Autumn feels me with the desire to be silly, and I love kicking up big piles of leaves and generally mucking about in the last remaining warm days of the year.

9. Christmas with all the trimmings
As Christmas approaches, you can't help but feel excited about the atmosphere created as the UK prepares to greet Santa Claus once more. The first sign is usually lights adorning the cityscape, with all UK cities making a big deal of the 'turning on of the lights' for which TV celebrities make guest appearances in towns all over the country to perform the honour. German-style Christmas markets spring up in most of the major cities in the UK and in Leeds itself, a pretty-huge German beer hall is built, alongside an ice rink and numerous little stalls offering food from around the world. Our flatmate Alex is super pleased when this time of year arrives as with the market stalls come the offer of German beer and sausages...which I must confess are pretty good. Not to mention the numerous other food stalls selling anything from Spanish paellas and Thai curries through to French pastries and favourite English sweets. The best thing though, is undoubtedly traditional British Christmas food. While it's very similar in essence to what we eat back home, the Brits really go all-out with making traditional stuffing for the turkey, as well as sides of chestnuts and brussell sprouts and other traditional fare. Not to mention the Christmas pudding which is doused in Brandy and set alight! How much better can it get?

10. Snow
The first week of December this year has been absolutely magical as true to every romantic notion I have of living overseas, snow began to fall on December 1st and continued for most of the week creating a winter wonderland in my own neighbourhood. We recently moved flats, relocating to a gorgeous suburb called Roundhay. In the streets surrounding our flat are beautiful rambling old houses, owned by the elite of Leeds. The houses are huge by English standards and the streets are lined with big old trees. Waking up to see all of these beautiful houses and trees covered in white has been an absolute thrill. Not to mention how great it has been to stroll down the street-I absolutely love the sound of snow crunching underfoot. Of course, the snow has brought about chaos in Leeds itself with hundreds of people unaccustomed to the white stuff having been 'snowed in', unable to attend schools or workplaces. But for us, the novelty of seeing snow falling outside our living room window, is a thrill we'll never grow tired of.

In short then, having done some reflecting as Christmas approaches, I’m realising that I have discovered a life that I do love and a world here that one day, I will no doubt be very sad to leave.

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