It’s your home, so how can it be exotic?
Published by on September 7th, 2007
In recent weeks at home we have been catching up on past episodes of Coast: a BBC series (just completed series 3) which highlights areas of interest - that means pretty much every inch - of Britain’s coastline.
Scene after scene I spot places I’ve been to growing up but have forgotten, and Jen spots countless “want to go there” locations. Her genuine enthusiasm for her adopted home is gloriously infectious and has rekindled my passion for these islands above what are often considered more exotic places of the world.
My recent trip to San Francisco highlighted this when, after several days in the city, I realised that everything was just so young. No-where did I turn a corner to come across a wall, a building, something/anything more than merely several tens of years old. That was an unnerving realisation, a sense of impermanence, as though any moment a gust of wind might just sweep it all away because it’s roots had not the hundreds of years of growth to establish a firm foothold on the world.
Here in Britain I can visit and touch the remnants of kings whose whims influenced the entire world, I can step right inside a 5000 year old burial chamber, and I can walk the same dark alleys where Jack the Ripper fulfilled his murderous obsessions.
Travel to distant and exotic lands is mind expanding and worthwhile, of course, but what do we mean by exotic. To me, a holiday in the Carribean is most certainly labelled exotic, whereas Portugal’s Algarve is almost little more than a default sunny vacation spot for us Brits. In Jen’s perspective, it is quite the reverse.
Living here we can so easily lose a sense of the value, beauty, and uniqueness of Britain. I am grateful of Jen’s enthusiastic interest. The grass really is greener, right here.
4 Responses to “It’s your home, so how can it be exotic?”
September 7th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
Beautiful post sweetie. Makes me smile.
September 7th, 2007 at 8:27 pm
Geez, Neil. By the time we became a country, all the good monuments and buildings had already been built elsewhere
All we could do was learn to pave. And pave. And you know.
Our greatest blessing and curse has always been our size. We see an empty space and need to fill it up with something, anything. I don’t know if it’s greed or insecurity–probably both.
I’ve been in 23 states, and I’ve seen incredible natural beauty–the Grand Canyon, amazing Sequoia trees, the Mississippi, the Rockies, plains that seem to go on forever. We do take it all for granted. Familiarity breeds not contempt, but complacency.
That said, I do envy you the age of your country–the foundation, the history you have, and the visibility of it all. There have been humans in America for around 16,000 years, but we seem to have gone directly from mound building to concrete high rises. I wish we had a pyramid, a Stonehenge, a Temple of the Sun. Having a real interest in history and archeology, I feel the lack. Quite frankly, a bucketful of flint spear heads is nice, but. . .
I know the feeling you describe on returning home. I’ve felt it on vacations. Home is home, warts and all. I don’t think I could live any place else. Maybe the people who think their grass isn’t green enough are looking at it from the wrong angle.
I’m leaning toward warm and fuzzy–must stop
September 13th, 2007 at 12:36 pm
Hi,
I just arrived from Portugal. Just beautiful. It has everything: gorgeous beaches, delicious food, great culture, cool people (everyone speaks a bit of English), fado, Alentejo, Algarve…
Just loved it!!
If anyone wants info. here is a great site I found:
Portuguese Tourism
Obrigado Portugal!!
Abbey Reynolds
October 6th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
You know you are so right. I travel a bit for work and it’s great to visit all these places (Kuwait, Emirates, SA, most of Western Europe) and see all the differences, the wealth/poverty gaps and the variety of people, architecture and scenery BUT it’s even better to get home. Not just because it’s home and family but the UK (and specifically London) has a sense of historical purpose which I have a passion for.
Sure it can be a little grey, it CAN be a little tatty and it can even be a little depressing at times but just take a look round. It’s just, just, just, PERFICK!