My trip was fantastic!!! I did hire a car, and did make it alive from Heathrow to Mersea Island. But it took hours because:
1. The M25 was closed due to a wreck that had happened 4 HOURS EARLIER!!!!! It took 5 hours to make what should have been a 2.5 hour drive.
2. I got lost several times in Colchester due to lack of proper signage and roundabouts. Don't get me started on those. They were put there by Satan to confuse me. I ended up at a gas station that was being manned by a family of (I kid you not) rednecks. Or the Essex version, anyway. They were a hoot! Made me feel like I was back home in Arkansas. Here is the conversation...
Me: I'm lost. Can you help me with directions?
Them: Where are going?
Me: Mersea Island.
Them: Why are going out there?
Me: To visit a friend.
Them: How long has your friend lived there?
Me: 14 years.
Them: So he's not from there, then. Where is he from?
Me: He grew up in Wales.
Them: What's a bloody Welshman doing on Mersea?
Me: He moved there to be near his in-laws. His ex-wife grew up there.
Them: What does he do?
Me: He's a sports writer and plays rugby on the weekends.
Them: If the rugby team asks you to get in the hot tub with them after the game, don't do it.
Me: Um....OK.....sure. Can I get directions?
Them: Just give us the address you're going to and we'll print them out on the computer. He knows how to work it (referring to the young silent man sitting at the computer.).
3. It got dark at 4:00, and I have terrible night vision.
But I did eventually get there. And had an AMAZING time. Spent a day in London. Walked on the beach. Saw gorgeous sunrises and sunsets. I'm going back again for 5 days at the end of January for the second stage of my study on the schools. Rural Essex is beautiful and very charming. The food, pubs, landscape.....I was the most relaxed I've been in years. Not a single migraine or even mild headache the entire two weeks.
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