#10: Planning your holiday

It’s the middle of winter and still pretty cold. You’re fed up with the ceaseless drizzle, mizzle and other assorted precipitation. You haven’t seen the sun for weeks on end, and you’ve finally polished off the last of the Christmas food. Time to spend a few happy hours contemplating your next summer getaway. Pilgrimage is probably a safe bet – travel with a purpose and free accommodation along the way. Not bad. Home or abroad, the choice is yours. A few phrases might come in handy in the ensuing discussions...

...but Æthelmod went to Rome in 962 - ...ac Æthelmod eode to Rome [‘ack Ath-el-mod ay-oh-duh toe Roh-muh’]

Norway isn’t safe right now – Norweg is deaðbærlic todæg [‘Nor-way is day-ath-bear-litch toh-day’]

We’ll take our own turnips – We bringað ure hamnæpas [‘way bring-ath oo-rruh haam-nap-as’]

...many barbarians in that place - manigfeald hæðene men in þam stowe [‘man-ny-fay-ald hay-then-uh men in tham stow-uh’]

(this is pretty much the same as Foreign Office advice not to travel...)

The boat leaves on Friday – Scip færð on Frigedæge [‘ship fair-th on Frree-yuh-day-uh’]

There are good relics at St Alban’s - Gode reliquias æt sancte Albane [‘Goh-duh rel-ick-wee-as at sang-tuh Albaan-uh’]

Comments

Unknown said…
I think your travellers ought to remember the financial situation, since we are all watching developments with Northern RagnaRock very closely over the next few months, as livestocks and ploughshares feel the crunch worldwide. For those not relying on turnips and trying to predict the currency markets for foreign travel over the next few centuries, the Chief Warlock of the Depository of Angle-Land has recently prophesied that the FTSE 869 will close down one thousand and sixty-six points, prompting widespread sightings of fiery dragons and the panic-buying of Norman-French phrasebooks. Chancery advice to all travellers is: don't....there be dragons out there.