Home is where the Heart is…

What countries do you want to visit?

This royal throne of kings, this scepter’d isle,
This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars,
This other Eden, demi-paradise,
This fortress built by Nature for herself
Against infection and the hand of war,
This happy breed of men, this little world,
This precious stone set in the silver sea,
Which serves it in the office of a wall
Or as a moat defensive to a house,
Against the envy of less happier lands,
This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England,

William Shakespeare from Richard 11.

If I could I would love to visit Australia, New Zealand and Canada but there are many places around Britain I have yet to see and get to know.

When people tell me they have been to a place and say they stayed in a lovely hotel and visited the sights. I don’t feel they have visited the heart of the country or community.

To really know a country you have to become part of the community, to understand the history, its people and culture. A week’s holiday and seeing the local tourist attractions doesn’t give you a true insight into what makes that country tick and its values.

Whitby Abbey, North Yorkshire.

Too many people coming to England these days have a Hollywood image of what it is to be English. When they arrive they miss what was the beating heart of their culture and country. Suddenly, they want to recreate their country on English shores.

An Ancient English Bluebell Wood

England isn’t English any more, and that makes me sad. My small English home with roses around the door, and sky lark on a bright summer day is fast fading.

To truly know and understand a culture and its people, you have to immerse yourself among them and not expect them to change. If you truly love your culture and identity, stay in your country with your culture and fight for it, as generations of British people have. Britain is made up of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales—four separate countries under one flag.

By all means, come for a visit and enjoy England’s beauty but don’t try to change it.

Wishing you a good day. Keep smiling and stay positive.

Chat again soon.