Tell Us About Your Home Land

[Teresa]

In another thread I ask Marine Mom where her ;home land" was. She replied that it was in England.
If you don't mind.. would you tell us a bit about it? 

I know that when Kjell posts pictures and news and information about Norway in Europe, everyone always really likes that and we get so many nice e-mails later on about it.

I for one, am always curious about the daily way of doing things in other countries compared to "our way" of doing them here in SE Kansas.

Example..
When Kjell came here, he had never had Macaroni and Cheese or Cornbread.
I could probably tell more things like that on him than he could.. and maybe I will later on.. LOL

Anyway, share with us pictures and customs...If you want to and if you would.

Anyone else that has traveled or lived other places.. please share also your experiences.

[MarineMom]

The part of England I grew up in looks a lot like this area here around Howard--rolling hills, lots of small towns and farms, trees,  lakes and ponds. People do not travel as far (for shopping or work) over there I grew up 20 miles from Oxford and probably did not go there more than once or twice a year, when we did go anywhere out of town we used public transportation buses or trains, in town we walked where we needed to go. The schoolday was longer (8-4) than here and summer vacation started in mid july and was over at the end of august but we had a whole hour for lunch at school and 15 minute recess morning and afternoon everyday until we graduated. It does not rain nearly as much as people say it does, average rainfall over there is less than kansas but it is spread out over the year and is usually a fine misty rain once or twice a week rather than a downpour once or twice a month. tempretures are a lot milder as well summer highs in the upper 70's and winter lows in the low 30's. When I first came to the US we lived in Nevada for a couple of years luckily the plane landed at night or I would have taken one look out of the window and gone back home LOL, since then I have lived in PA SC GA,  Western Kansas for 14 years and now here for the past year. This is a photo of the main street through the town I grew up in

[Teresa]

Oh thank you so much for sharing.
I love hearing about that.
I drive Kjell crazy sometimes about wanting to hear 'in detail' life in Norway.
If you want to tell more.. PLEASE feel free to do it. 

[Janet Harrington]

What's even better than having MarineMom write about her home land is hearing her talk about it.  She still carries that "English" accent that we all love to hear.  Thanks, MarineMom.

[MarineMom]

What's even better than having MarineMom write about her home land is hearing her talk about it.  She still carries that "English" accent that we all love to hear.  Thanks, MarineMom.

I think you have the wrong person my accent disapeared years and years ago you must be thinking of one of the other English ladies in the area there are at least 4 of us in Elk County 2 here in Howard

[Janet Harrington]

You know what?  You are right.  I am thinking of someone else that lives here in Howard.  She has lived here longer than a year and she is the one I have been thinking about.

[W. Gray]

I hope both would get a kick out of the folllowing. Neither BOAC (British Overseas Airway Corporation) nor Pam are now in existence but this happened several years ago:

The German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are renowned as a short-tempered lot. They not only expect one to know one's gate parking location, but how to get there without any assistance from them. So it was with some amusement that we (a Pan Am 747) listened to the following exchange between Frankfurt ground control and a British Airways 747, call sign Speedbird 206.

Speedbird 206: " Frankfurt , Speedbird 206 clear of active runway."

Ground: "Speedbird 206. Taxi to gate Alpha One-Seven."

The BA 747 pulled onto the main taxiway and slowed to a stop.

Ground: "Speedbird, do you not know where you are going?"

Speedbird 206: "Stand by, Ground, I'm looking up our gate location now."

Ground (with quite arrogant impatience): "Speedbird 206, have you not been to Frankfurt before?"

Speedbird 206 (coolly): "Yes, twice in 1944, but it was dark, -- and I didn't land."

[MarineMom]

You know what?  You are right.  I am thinking of someone else that lives here in Howard.  She has lived here longer than a year and she is the one I have been thinking about.

Actually both of us grew up in the same county about 20 miles apart from each other she was on the northern edge of the county while I was on the southern edge

[MarineMom]

here are more pictures of my home town the first is the shopping centre next is a church built about 1100 next is the hotel that has been around since the 1200's and last the old grade school they built a new one in the mid 70's but I went to school in this one

[Jo McDonald]

Thank you, Marine Mom, these "sharings" were wonderful !!!!  When I was 10 years old I had a "Pen Pal" in England that I wrote to for over a year.  That was so much fun and you know, I still think about her and I wish so very much that I had kept in touch.  I have often wondered if she has thought of me in the past 66 years.  
 Our Grade school teacher was Miss Olive McConnell, and she encouraged those of us that wanted to, to have a pen pal. If I remember correctly, she had a magazine that gave  names and address of those that wanted a pen pal. We went to the one room country school west of Howard that was Mound Branch.  The old school house now belongs to Sandy Dunbar, and is located behind her house.  Guy Morgan Denton purchased the school and moved it to its present location   While we were in school that year there was a terrible storm that came up, and we were all told by Miss McConnell  to move to the center of the room -  it got black as night, and two of the windows on the west side of the school house were sucked out by the tornado.  In those days that kind of wind storm was called a cyclone.  My Daddy and our neighbor had come to the school to get his girls and me, my sister and my brother. Before they could come in the school house and get us, the storm hit and they had to take cover in the ditch just outside the school yard until the storm passed.
 That little one room school was full of wide eyed- scared kids from the 1st grade through the 8th.