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Sunday, July 1, 2007

Explore Your English Roots by Rolls-Royce

There is an interesting advertisement on page 63 of the July 2007 issue of the New England Ancestors magazine. It says:

"Planning a trip to the UK to research your family history? Let me help you plan your itinerary, and then chauffeur you in my head-turning classic car, a Rolls Royce Silver Spirit.

"Tell me where you want to go and I'll work with you to produce a detailed schedule. I'll visit the places you want to see, check out and book accommodation, and do everything necessary to ensure a successful trip. Then I'll meet you at the airport to begin the adventure - our Historical Quest!"

That really sounds like fun ... and expensive! This would be a first-class research trip, eh? For the genealogist who has everything.

My mind wandered to what a trip like this would look like for me - to visit my ancestral villages, manors and castles. And throw in some history and museum stops too. I'd love to go to:

1) York in Yorkshire - my earliest Seaver was probably an Angle or a Saxon, or maybe a Viking).
2) Richmond in Yorkshire - "my" Richmond Castle still stands above the town - I would love to witness the medieval pageants on the castle green.
3) Oxford in Oxfordshire - "my" Henry Sever was a warden at Merton College in 1455 and is buried in the floor of the chapel. A side trip to Stratford-on-Avon would be enjoyable too.
4) Ashton-Keynes in Wiltshire - "my" Richmond Manor house still stands here, and is a bed and breakfast.
5) Bath - "my" Roman ancestors no doubt resided here a long time ago.
6) Trowbridge and Hilperton in Wiltshire - my "Richman" family resided here - I want to see the town and village, and visit/attend church in Hilperton.
7) Salisbury and Stonehenge - visit the church and the big rock cathedral on the plain - probably built by ancestors of mine a long time ago.
8) London - Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Tower of London, Greenwich, Windsor Castle, British Museum, etc.
9) Edinburgh - St. Giles Church, the Castle, St. Andrews, etc.

Um, wait. That's what we did in 1993 on our own. On the train, using buses and taxis, staying in B&Bs, over three wonderful weeks.

I wonder what this chap would charge for that tour? Let's see, say 100 pounds a day for lodging, say 30 pounds a day for food and drink, say 20 pounds an hour for escorting and touring (average 8 hours?), -- ca-ching -- equals over 6,000 pounds (about $12,000) -- just for the driver! I imagine that a single person might save some money by bunking with the guide, but I doubt that would happen very often. I wonder if he provides wireless internet access as part of this service on the Rolls Royce? Just think of the good and fun times - in the pubs, on the road, at the castles, in the churches, in the museums, with an expert and knowledgeable tour guide. Priceless!

When we go again to one of our favorite ancestral countries, I would like to visit different places, such as:

1) Land's End out at the west end of Cornwall - heck, let's hit the Isles of Scilly too!
2) Plymouth - where the Mayflower sailed from in 1620 with some of my ancestors aboard.
3) South Petherton in Somerset where my Vaux ancestors lived, and left from in the 1840 time frame to settle in Aurora NY.
4) Kent - where my ancestor William the Conqueror defeated other relatives of mine in 1066 at the Battle of Hastings.
5) Cambridge, Lincoln, Boston, Norfolk, and other towns where some of my ancestors left from back in the 1600's.
6) Wales - I don't have any ancestors here, but a tour through the countryside would be nice.
7) A tour through the Lake District and the Cotswolds - for the scenery, of course.

Ah, dreamers dream of happy times. In a Rolls-Royce. I can hardly wait. It sounds like a decent 40th wedding anniversary tour, eh?

Cheers...I'd better start saving!

Note to self: Cancel my trip to Fort Wayne for the FGS. Cancel the week on Maui later in the summer.

Note to Randy from Linda: I'm going to Maui - if you want to live past mid-August, you'd better not cancel anything!

Note to Linda from Randy: Hmmpphh! No fun at all...OK, Maui is in. When do you want to take our one week budget trip to England did you say?

1 comment:

  1. I'm jealous Randy, 3 weeks in England? And seeing the places your ancestors lived in the "old country" - wow. That would be so cool... the Rolls Royce would be nice too, but I don't think that would fit into my budget either!

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