Now living in London is an embittering experience. The people are utterly miserable and impossibly reserved, it's fantastically expensive, and the weather is permanently overcast, which I wouldn't have a problem with were the people a bit friendlier. As a result of this, I have had an increasingly negative view of this country. So this Easter weekend, a holiday was definitely on the menu for us, having been relegated to work and study for 7 long months.
Since we only had a few days off and, this being London, not much cash in hand, we had to go someplace close. There are dozens of small holiday cities around southern England, and after mulling indecisively about which one to escape to, we chose Exeter in the end, as it wasn't too far, it was close to the sea, and was rumored to have a fantastically beautiful coastline. So on Friday we set off.
We weren't disappointed. Maybe it was because of the prolonged period in London, but we found Exeter to be absolutely charming. The lack of people and slower pace of things took us aback, and people were actually friendly and spoke to you.
Now if you're ignorant of English geography like myself, Exeter is a medieval city on the coast in Devon, which is in southwest England, right next to Cornwall. It's a charming county abound with lush green hills, plenty of sheep, and thatch-roof cottages. It is indeed the English countryside of your imagination.
Devonshire.
Exeter is Devon's largest city and boasts a huge medieval cathedral, a good amount of Tudor houses several hundred years old, and a series of underground crypts and other historical gems, despite being nearly completely destroyed by Nazi air raids. We spent the first day exploring these little historical bits, and when it got gloomy and cold, we retreated to the warmth of the pub.
Longest uninterrupted medieval nave in the world.
Untouched by the war
On Saturday, we set out towards the real reason we came to Exeter: the Jurassic coast. Now being locked up in a concrete jungle for months on end makes one crave a bit of nature, and although London has vast, numerous parks, they're just not the same. So the Jurassic coast, which gets its name from the period in which its geological magnificence was formed, seemed like a good destination, as it is possible to walk along its cliffs and take in a good lungful of sea air while doing so. So we planned a decent hike along the coast and took the bus to the tiny fishing village of Beer (alas, no pic!!). From Beer, we had decided to walk west towards Sidmouth, about 7 miles, and then catch the bus back to Exeter. Shouldn't be too bad of a hike, we thought.
Untouched by the war
Beer
Well, trails are never as the crow flies, especially when you're hiking along hundred-foot cliffs and up and down combes every mile. It turns out we walked a total of about 9 miles. As we never exercise, or walk farther than the tube station, our legs were stiffer than wood at the end of the day, and we were absolutely knackered. But it was worth it. Have a look for yourself.
Pastures are indeed part of the trail.
Although the next day we wanted to relax our legs, it was our last day, and we took a walking tour of the city and went to a museum. Being Easter Sunday, all of the shops were closed and there weren't many people. It was perfect.
A bit later, we struck up a conversation with a kind couple in the pub from Cornwall who were also on holiday here. The conversation eventually turned to London:
"Yeah, London's horrible. Everyone's so miserable. And you've got all those different nationalities there! No, we'll stay in Cornwall, thankyouverymuch." It was nice to have a real conversation with real English people.
As we left the pub to head for the bus station, the sounds of musicians playing a medieval tune and the smell of Cornish pasties drifted down the street, and I thought, "England's not so bad after all."
