There are some places in this world you visit, and there are other places in this world you have a relationship with; and so it has come to be with the United Kingdom and most recently, the medieval village of Midhurst. On my most recent visit, in the late autumn of 2009, I was fortunate enough to spend ten days in the UK, one of which was spent in this scenic and historic village. But to understand why this is a relationship, and not just the adventure of an open minded tourist, one must go further back as all stories, and relationships, have a beginning.

It wouldn’t be until 2002 that I made my first visit to Britain. September 11, 2002 was the first anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Having run a secondary response unit that brought water, clothing and supplies down to Ground Zero during those first several days after the attack, I did not want to be in the New York City for the anniversary, so I boarded a plane to London. The year of the aftermath brought about a great amount of difficulty, including my brother John, my business partner who helped me out at Ground Zero, suffering from septicemia and a major heart attack, and my mother suffering from the complications of colon cancer. By the time of the anniversary, my brother was on his way to recovery, my mother’s cancer had gone into remission, and I thought it would be a good time to go away for a few days.

In the fall of 2003 my father, who had his own health battles during the past several years, was feeling quite well at the time and wanted to take a trip. After some discussion, I thought he would enjoy a trip to the UK. He had visited only briefly with my mother in the early 1990s for two days (a familiar pattern!) so we decided that we both needed to spend more time there, and so we booked a six day holiday. It would d also give me a chance to see my mates and have my father meet them.

In the years that followed 9/11 things had changed back dramatically not just in the worldbput in my life as well. The tough times included losing both my folks, almost losing my brother, and losing my own independent business for a period of time. But out of the tough times good things too. In time, my brother would reclaim his health and get married, and our business would come back and grow. During this time I gave up volunteering in law enforcement, and began dedicating my spare time to more creative endeavors. In 2005 I had become a member of the Amateur Comedy Club, a private theater company in NY that has been in existence since 1884.

When I wasn’t in the UK I was procuring my “homesickness” by keeping up with British television, which was one old habit that I never abandoned. In the last several years the flow of British television to the states increased with the addition of BBC America, as well continuing to come to us by way of other cable networks, and of course the ever reliable PBS. There was always a fair amount of “Britcoms” over the years, from Father Ted, the “Bucket” woman and Coupling, but there were other shows I became endeared to, most notably Life on Mars (always loved time travel shows), Top Gear (I’m a car enthusiast as well and have owned a 1968 Mustang for the last twelve years), Later with Jools Holland (where I heard some of the great music coming out of Britain), and finally the WWII era drama “Foyle’s War”. I knew always knew a lot from that period of time through my father, who was in his teens during the war – and he conveyed his love of big band music and radio to me.

In September, 2009, I was again thinking about, as I always do at that time of year, about my next trip to the UK. Low and behold I get an email from Ticketmaster.uk (yes, I get spammed on from both sides of the pond) announcing a rugby exhibition match between the Barbarians and the New Zealand All Blacks on the 5th of December. Oh joy, another reason to visit! I emailed this info to Stephen, and so my next journey was set in motion. And I knew this time around I would have to plan a longer trip, and given the timing with the Thanksgiving holiday here in the states, a ten day holiday was planned.

And so on the 25th of November I once again boarded the American Airlines red eye just after 9 PM – the very same flight I almost always take to London. My plans called for no plans for the first two days. I arrived on Thursday morning to a rainy Heathrow, and hopped on the Picadilly line to Hammersmith, where I let a flat for the length of my stay – no hotels this time as I was going to live like a local. And quite a cozy flat it was, on the top floor of row house, just under the ceiling – quite small but perfectly adequate and very quiet. So after dropping my guitar and bag, it was off to the local market. So when many of my countrymen on their first day in London could be found wandering in Westminster, or the West End, or somewhere near the Thames, I would simply be the aisles of Sainsbury’s in the King’s Mall. One of my pleasures when I travel is going to the local supermarkets, and since this time I had a flat with a kitchen (sort of) I could actually buy groceries. Ah, the simple pleasures!

And so Tuesday came, with rain still in the forecast. Midhurst, and the entire UK had just gone through its most torrential rain in memory. I pick up up my rental car that morning at 8, and off I would go to my destination about an hour south of London. As I drove out on the M4, the clouds broke, and I would not see any rain until my return that evening.

The next leg of my journey called for four days in Eastbourne with Derek and his family. I had traveled to the southern coast twice before, but only for day trips – once to Brighton and once to Dover. I looking forward to spending time with Derek, as well as taking in the clean air over the Channel.

I would arrive back in London about midday, only to turn around and again take the District line to Richmond, where I would once again meet up with Stephen to attend the match in Twickenham between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Barbarians of Great Britain. We would get to the stadium by foot and shuttle bus. The day would be chilly and wet – we hoped when we arrived that our seats would be sheltered, and sure enough they were. Also turns out we were sitting in enemy territory, as the entire row behind us was filled with Kiwis.

The following morning I flew back to New York. It was time to look ahead to my It was time to look ahead to my world back in New York. Vacations are always best when they recharge you and have you excited about getting back to your life. And my life back in New York would be busy upon my return. I would be jumping right into the Christmas season, have a busy month at work, and oh yes, produce my aforementioned Christmas fundraiser, where I would once again be bringing together by fellow musicians together for a concert. Good thing I had fuel in my tank.