area..
Many years ago I did a part time course in Stoke on Trent. Many of people there were graduates of the university of Staffordshire. All the people on the course were fairly local and some were from the Birmingham area. The area had a lot of connections with Birmingham and it felt like Stoke Trent relied on Birmingham in a lot of ways. Yet Stoke on Trent for me (living 3 miles from Manchester city centre) was simply a 40 minute bus ride into Stockport and a 30 minute train ride from there.
I once managed to do entire journey in just over an hour all on public transport. They were all quite amazed how far I was traveling as Manchester to them sounded like the other side of the country, they were shocked when I told them it is just half an hour away and actually closer than Birmingham.
I did write a lot more but it was waffle so I deleted it :).
Just always found that experience of me coming from a thousand miles away ammusing. The funny thing is on the course the member of staff that run it from was Litchfield and she lives there but she did mention the two main cities to stoke as being Birmingham and Manchester but I am sure that was just for benefit.
I suppose in the south east the pull will always be London so this probably dosn't happen. I know people who live 50 miles away in Bedfordshire still think they are in London sometimes!
Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Mon 1 Nov 10 at 23:59
|
>> I suppose in the south east the pull will always be London so this probably
>> dosn't happen. I know people who live 50 miles away in Bedfordshire still think they
>> are in London sometimes!
Because basically London has an influence over their lives. At a distance of 50 miles, a good percentage will be working in London.
|
I know a few lorry drivers who won't 'do' London
It needs an A to Z open on the dash, two Satnavs on the widscreen, a fag in each hand and a mate on Bluetooth in the ear to give exact directions.
And that applies to anywhere within the M25!
Pat
|
Didn't know that Manchester was a 1000 miles from Stoke, R!
Historically I think that the Potteries had more dealings with the Black Country than the north west, which tends to explain their relationship with the Midlands...
There are still many people around that appart from an annual holiday to the seaside in the UK (or the seaside on a hot island somewhre in the Med) have never really travelled outside their home area... they probably outnumber the rest!
I've always travelled round, probably becuase thats what my Mum and Dad did when I was a kid, so I've been to most places in the UK and am now working around northern Europe... some friends of ours, though, despite being the same age as us have only just made it to York! Their idea of going away was to find the nearest hot resort and then not move from there for the two weeks they were booked there! The rest of their lives was spent within a 20 mile radius of their home!
Last edited by: hobby on Tue 2 Nov 10 at 09:49
|
|
Tiny island syndrome, living and travelling in Australia, Canada, and the USA soon cures you of distance worries. Our Australian friends say we are so lucky that everything is so close in Europe.
Last edited by: Old Navy on Tue 2 Nov 10 at 09:56
|
>>Tiny island syndrome, living and travelling in Australia, Canada, and the USA soon cures you of distance worries.<<
Even living and travelling in France does that.
My friends were flabbergasted last year when I announced my intention to whiz up to Yorkshire from the Cotswolds before lunch on Sunday - 135 miles!
Of course, they were right. Allowing for congestion and the apparent isolation of Nottingham for M1 roadworks reasons, the trip turned into an hours-long nightmare.
If everywhere were as close as in the UK and the roads were as empty as in France it would be perfection.
|
I don't hold with the notion that a person who has been to four countries is twice the person who has been to two.
Same with money and sex.
There are small-minded individuals who think a man with £20 must be better than a man with £10, or a man who has had sexual relations with many women is superior to a man who is faithful to one partner.
Getting back on topic, some of the nicest and most grounded people I've met have been those who have not strayed far from home.
I've moved around a bit, but there's a lot to be said for belonging somewhere.
The advent of cheap travel, particularly between countries, has been a very mixed blessing.
|
|
Travel broadens the mind. That applies to everyone.
|
...Travel broadens the mind. That applies to everyone...
The trouble with that statement is it implies a person who doesn't travel must be narrow-minded.
|
>> Travel broadens the mind. That applies to everyone.
Applies to people prepared to have their mind broadened. I've met British and Irish people here in Munich who take a bizarre sense of pride in not speaking a word of German and spending their entire lives meeting only people from the English speaking "community". Fortunately they are a minority.
|
...Applies to people prepared to have their mind broadened...
That is the other point.
I've shown visitors around court, and some pick up a great deal, others next-to-nothing.
The 'next-to-nothing' types could visit 100 countries and learn not one thing.
|
The traditional relationship with the potteries and the midlands would probably explain it. I think the joke was I was actually closer by public transport and those that traveled up from Birmingham. In Birmingham the course was well established, in Manchester nobody knew about it.
I have now traveled to most parts of the UK, still need to explore the north parts of Scotland and travel to East Anglia (though I have been very close to it) but I have been to most parts of the UK.
Still need to go to South Wales but again I have stayed very close in Bristol, I just didn't have time to catch a short train into Cardiff but wish I had stayed there for a night instead of Minehead now.
I am not well traveled but I dont do holiday places, outside of the UK I have stayed in Paris (three times), Berlin, Amsterdam (twice), Barcelona, Lille, Lloret Del Mar (only because me and my mate we too skint to stay in Barcelona for the entire week!) but it was all mostly done by trains I so I got to see a lot of mainland Europe. The train from Berlin to Amsterdam via Bruseels was very interesting.
Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Tue 2 Nov 10 at 11:25
|
|
You've not been to most parts of the UK unless you have travelled to every county.
|
I have probably been to more than a lot of people my age. I have certainly been to every county north of Manchester (excluding Scotland). I would say the part of the UK I know the least is the south Midlands area.
|
|
Rattle travelling by train or bus is the best possible way to experience travel in a foreign country...
|
Indeed :). I really want to do do the Europe thing again but it will take a while until I get my finances in a better shape.
But I am only 28 so I have a long time yet to see the rest of the world and Europe - by train :p.
I can't wait to China build their railways into Europe as they are talking about doing. They have visions of running direct trains from London via the eurotunnel striaght into China although I doubt it will happen.
The German train operator are going to start direct trains from London into Germany though which will make things a little bit easier.
|
|
No No, direct trains are like driving or flying. Its insular, samey, boring.
Last edited by: Zero on Tue 2 Nov 10 at 12:29
|
...direct trains are like driving or flying. Its insular, samey, boring...
There was once a murder on the Orient Express, you know.
I bet that wasn't boring.
|
|
Having seen the film? don't be so sure.
|
you cant beat getting off a train or bus in unknown territory and looking for the next link in your journey and struggling to understand the lingo
you get on the transport and hope against hope its going the way you want
its frightening but oh is it fun
|
>> you get on the transport and hope against hope its going the way you want
>> its frightening but oh is it fun
>>
Yes great fun, we once got on a Prague tram in the "wrong" direction, an interesting tour of parts of the city we would not have seen othewise. We went to the end of the line and then returned to our intended destination.
|
|
The other alternative is of course a motorcycle - size doesn't really matter but they are a superb way to key into the locals........you get to meet the nicest people on a Honda/BMW/Kawasaki etc..
|
you get to meet the nicest people
>> on a Honda/BMW/Kawasaki etc..
ambulance drivers, emergency medics, policemen.....
|
...ambulance drivers, emergency medics, policemen...
You can also meet those driving a Seat and driving an invisible bus.
|
>> ...ambulance drivers, emergency medics, policemen...
>>
>> You can also meet those driving a Seat and driving an invisible bus.
Wouldnt know, never happened to me.
|
|
Of course it was a "friend" wasn't it ?! :-)
|
|
No, I wasnt driving a Seat at the time..........
|
|
Aha just realised left Renaults out of that list and add helicopter pilots to the list :-)
|
>> you cant beat getting off a train or bus in unknown territory and looking for
>> the next link in your journey and struggling to understand the lingo
>> you get on the transport and hope against hope its going the way you want
>> its frightening but oh is it fun
>>
Yeah, I did that a fair bit in Stockholm over the summer, at weekends. Just walked from my B&B to the nearest transport hub & randomly got on a bus. OK so the vast majority of Swedes speak English so not so daring, not sure I'd do it in Shanghai.
It has to be said, for a generally beautiful city Stockholm has some very very boring suburbs.
My record was all 3 tube lines, a ferry, a tram, a light railway and a bus all in the same day, and all on my one travel pass.
|
>> No No, direct trains are like driving or flying. Its insular, samey, boring.
>>
Good point, that, Z - I totally agree... the magic of travelling long distances includes the stopovers where you get time to explore... you can't do that with a direct service... And whilst we're at it try to avoid the Capital cities or larger ones and try to see some of the smaller places, they tend to be more interesting, and the people friendlier...
BTW Rattle, you can do Eurostar to Brussels and then ICE or sleeper to Berlin... Express to Moscow and then over the Trans Siberien... I believe the connections are quite good... that would get you to China in a week or so!
|
|
Rattle, dig out some of the Paul Theroux railway travel books....get you in the mood. Ditrect fast trains is like airline travel, best avoided if you have the time.
|
>> Express to Moscow and then over the Trans Siberien... I believe the connections are quite
>> good... that would get you to China in a week or so!
Just to get you in the mood for the Trans Siberian, here's a site run by someone who clearly has a lot of time on their hands. They've video'd the entire journey and synchronised the videos with Google Earth. It's the route to Vladivostok though. To get to China you have to turn right at Ulan-Ude.
tweetalink.com/go/FcZm
Last edited by: Bagpuss on Tue 2 Nov 10 at 14:57
|
>>
>> BTW Rattle, you can do Eurostar to Brussels and then ICE or sleeper to Berlin...
>> Express to Moscow and then over the Trans Siberien... I believe the connections are quite
>> good... that would get you to China in a week or so!
>>
My trip to Stockholm during the volcano challenge I used E* to Brussels, ICE to Cologne, overnight train to Hamburg, train & train ferry to Copenhagen, coach to Stockholm.
Not the easiest journey ever, but certainly one I'll remember for a long, long time.
|
"still need to explore the north parts of Scotland and travel to East Anglia (though I have been very close to it) "
Saving the bet parts until last- very wise :-)
|
|
Rattel saw the flat bit. The very flat bit.
|
>>Applies to people prepared to have their mind broadened. I've met British and Irish people here in Munich who take a bizarre sense of pride in not speaking a word of German and spending their entire lives meeting only people from the English speaking "community". Fortunately they are a minority. <<
Same situation in this part of France, sadly. Unfortunately I don't think they are in a minority here.
We've visited every departement in Metropolitan France and every city except Perpignan. Now stayed in 224 different towns and cities. Still don't really know the place very well...
|
|
For any advice on train travel throughout Europe go to www.seat61.com. An excellent website.
|
|
Dunno whether it's still published but any self respecting traveller has or has had a copy of Thomas Cook's International Timetable - stunning winter reading...yes indeed.
|
|
I use Baedekers, but It keeps telling me to fly over Bath and Exeter. It also insists the best way into France is via the low countries and the Ardennes.,
|
|
Funnily enough that was a topic of conversation in York last Sunday
|
The European Timetable is still produced I think - your local library should have a copy...
Though if you just want times then the DB (German Rail) site does all of Europe and is bang up to date.
Last edited by: hobby on Tue 2 Nov 10 at 18:43
|
Cities and their relationship between the wider... - Zero
