Harrow to Berwick-upon-Tweed

My day started early.  I had bought the train tickets when we thought Chuck would be arriving in Kirk Yetholm today.  But, he'd taken a well-deserved rest day, and so I would need to entertain myself in Berwick-upon-Tweed until late Sunday afternoon.

Public transport in the UK leaves me in awe.  I love how you can get anywhere (or at least it seems that way) taking a combination of the Tube, overland rail trains, buses, etc.  In my case, I'd take the Tube to St Pancras station and then the train directly to Berwick-upon-Tweed. All in all the journey was a few hours long.  It took me 19 days to walk 130-ish miles, but this trip would be more than double that in length (and in fact almost triple) in just about four hours.  

If I hadn't mentioned it previously, this had been a rough November weather-wise for the UK. There had been record flooding throughout the country, and it was reported that 20-26 November had been the second wettest week on record in 50 years for England and Wales.  You could see the extent of the flooding as the train zipped through the countryside. It was no wonder we had had such a mucky, muddy journey!

Completely submerged fields

I was excited to get to Berwick-upon-Tweed. It is the northernmost town in England, and it has the only remaining intact Elizabethan town walls in the world (as there were no Elizabethan town walls built outside England, Ireland, and Wales, "the world" seems a grand statement, but .... it is true).  Elizabethan history is fascinating. Elizabeth I ruled England and Ireland for 45 years.  At a time when women's roles were primarily as wives and mothers, women who inherited the throne were expected to marry quickly and provide the next heir to the throne. But, Elizabeth established herself as the Virgin Queen and coyly eluded her suitors her entire life.  Her life was filled with scandal, adventure, and, I think, a lot of loneliness.  

Perhaps I identify with the loneliness I imagine she felt.  I have read enough biographies and historical accounts to know that she chose to be alone and even to give up the "love of her life" for her love of England and because she believed she was the one who could rule it well. I don't think I've chosen to be alone.  But alone I am, and alone I am likely to remain.  I sometimes wonder if Elizabeth felt that her sacrifice of personal love and family was worth it. I think she probably did.  Will I look back on my life some day and feel the same for the things I've prioritized over the years?

Enough morose musing!  On to Berwick-upon-Tweed.  What a lovely town - quaint and yet not too small.  It is nestled between the River Tweed and the North Sea.  It was only about eleven a.m. when I arrived, and so I had all the time in the world to explore the town.  I wandered around, browsed through shops, and stopped in coffee shops for warm drinks. I was staying in the local Youth Hostel, but I couldn't check in until after four. So, I decided I would do the Town Wall Walk (about 2 miles in total). I am terrible at visually estimating heights or distances - absolutely terrible. Let's just say, these were tall walls.  They were also wide; the Town Wall Walk is on top of the walls.  There was no way an army of Scots was going through these walls (well, unless they used the gates).

On top of the Walls

I strolled slowly and contentedly along the walls, stopping to read the little informational plaques and trying to picture the things they described - gun platforms, guards, artillery stations. It was so peaceful and lovely, it was hard to imagine it as an area of border skirmishes and battles.  

The walls were used as recently as 1908 for training volunteer soldiers how to defend the coasts of England.  You can walk right on top of the circular and rectangular concrete slabs where the guns were positioned to fire on attacking ships. In fact, there is no place on top of the walls where you can't walk. Nothing is cordoned off, nothing is "protected."  I am so used to going to see things where you are kept at arm's length from the thing you are trying to see. I could almost say it was thrilling - I could have had a little picnic on the slabs if I wanted.

Artillery "slabs"

There were so many things to see.  But of all the historical buildings and places, the most picturesque to me were the three bridges - the Old Bridge (completed in 1634), the Royal Tweed Bridge (opened in 1928), and the Royal Border Railway Viaduct (opened in 1850).  All three are still in use today, and it is strange to see so many bridges crammed into such a small area.

Front to back: Old, Royal Tweed, & Viaduct Bridges

My favorite: the Railway Viaduct

After my walk, I checked into the Berwick-upon-Tweed Youth Hostel, and it was a fantastic place. The staff were extremely friendly, the facilities were clean and modern, and it was perfectly situated.  I had my dormitory room to myself.  They even had a little binder in the room that contained walking and biking paths in the area. There was a nice 6-mile local loop detailed very clearly  - perfect! Tomorrow is sorted!

I spoke to Chuck a few times to arrange our meeting time (approximately), and then I finished off the evening up in the TV lounge to watch Strictly Come Dancing.  There was a family of four sharing the space with me.  The father and youngest child (maybe 4) playing Go Fish at a small table, and the mother and her son were already watching Strictly.  The boy, 8ish, was an expert on the dancers and openly critical of the judges. You could tell that this was a family event at home.  The mother mentioned that they were exploring England by train and hiking in the local areas. How cool!  As at the beginning of a journey, I could see how the love of walking that is so prevalent in England gets its start.

Finally, tired from my journey but excited for the next day, I collapsed into my bottom bunk and was instantly asleep!