England. Setting of the famous Harry Potter books. Known for the English language spoken and written differently from Americans, the rainy weather, the double deckers, the castles and ruins from ancient times, and so much more. For some people, England is just like another America, with all of its praises and problems, but for others it’s an exciting adventure. What a dream it is for some people to just step outside of one’s homeland, especially after being in one place for so long, but what if it could become a reality? What a trip that would be!
Upon hearing of my parent’s final decision to go to England along with Bangladesh, I was overjoyed! I would be spending my summer vacation in two countries, far away from America. Not having gone anywhere far since our last trip to Bangladesh many years ago, at an age too little to remember clearly, this was an exciting time for me. Our trip took place in the summer of 2007, the year of my 8th grade graduation (I guess you can say this was a graduation present from my parents and a vacation t o relax before high school!) I told some of my teachers and friends that I would not be attending the graduation ceremony because of a trip that would take place before the school year ended. My 4th grade teacher, who I visited while my peers rehearsed for their graduation ceremony, told me that her daughter had gone to London and really enjoyed it. She told me to have fun and stay safe. One of my “friends” told me that she had gone and did a pigeon feeding and for me to try it! Overall, I was eager for my first trip to England!
We arrived at my aunt and uncle’s house after over an hours drive from Heathrow airport
in London. I noticed the houses in the area were very similar to one another, just like on Privet
Drive in the Harry Potter movies. I felt like I was dreaming. Not only was I finally in England, but I saw my cousins after many, many years. I even had another cousin who I didn’t have when we last met. We had so much catching up to do with our lives! My mom was doing the same with my aunt, her older sister in the kitchen.
The first couple of days were for family time, recalling memories of when my cousins had come to America in 1997, the games we played when we were little, our trip to New York and two years later to Bangladesh, the good old days of the past! One night my cousins and I told ghost stories (it was a “tradition” my cousins did), and boy did they have stories to tell, with all the shows they watch on TV! I remember thinking of England to be full of haunted houses from the stories I would read when I was younger. The next day we showed them a scary picture of a girl with a disgusting face and another one where a guy screams suddenly! It might not sound scary, but when one of my cousins saw the skeleton, she screamed and covered her face. I thought she had a heart attack, but she was bent over laughing! My other cousin laughed and said that was cool (they are really into anything that is scary, shows, stories, you name it!) Some days later, my uncle, brother, sister, 3 cousins, and I went to Rochester Castle. We climbed to the top and could see the cathedral nearby. The days passed quickly but it was almost time to leave England. My dad met up with us from America a few days before we had to get ready to go to Bangladesh.
After spending over a month in Bangladesh, which I enjoyed most of the time, we got a chance to stop at London again because our flight was rescheduled for a few days later. One of those days, my uncle took me, my dad, brother, and 2 cousins sight seeing. At first I didn’t want to really go but I’m glad I changed my mind. I would have really regretted it! We took a trip to London, since my cousins live far away from there. We took a train for some parts of the trip. It was the first time I went in a train and it was fun.
Our first stop was to Buckingham Palace. The gardens and fountain were beautiful! After going around the garden and fountain, we went in front of the palace (we couldn’t go inside though…). It was huge! Tall gates separated the palace from tourists, but we did see soldiers guarding the palace grounds. We later headed to the Tower of London. I recalled doing a social studies project in the 7th grade on the Tower of London and it was great that I was actually able to see it in person! We crossed the Tower Bridge and later came to the Palace of Westminster where the legendary Big Ben stands. We also saw the London Eye, which I later discovered was a Ferris wheel and the Swiss Tower, a rocket shaped skyscraper. Night fell by the time we got back on the train, our car, and finally home. The day finally came for me and my family to head back to America. I will never forget my vacation to England and hopefully will be able to visit again sometime in the future!
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