For what felt like the first nice day since we arrived, my parents and I celebrated by going on an adventure to Hempstead, a city where one of our cousins had moved with his family a few months ago. The town of Hempstead is very quaint and has a handful of small side streets that are about the size of the alleys in Boston. Instead of parking spots and trashcans, there are cafes, stores and art galleries. The houses are all very classic looking with well-manicured gardens, and in the sunlight they were beautiful.
Even though the sun was out, there was still a chill in the air, which went away once we got to Camden Market, a large outdoor market with stall after stall of t-shirts that one could find in the shuk or Ben Yehuda Street in Israel. We did, however, while walking towards the restaurant for lunch, happen upon another market called the Stable Market. Stalls with clothes that looked like they belonged in a gothic store, t-shirts similar to ones in Camden Market, stalls with necklaces and photo after photo took over the rebuilt stables.
Walking around the Stable Market was a very cool break in what we had been seeing so far in our trip. It was a nice break from the buildings and more formal side of England. It was a little bit of a sensory overload for my parents but walking around and looking at all the different types of jewelry, artwork and the people was a lot of fun for me. We took a much-needed break when we met our cousin and his nine year-old twin girls for lunch. I got roped into playing two games of “Go Fish” with his daughters. I then proceeded to lose horribly to them the first game.
Moments like coming upon the markets and sitting down with a cousin we rarely see is what I found has made this trip extra special – getting the chance to happen upon places and discover things we were not looking for has been one of my favorite patterns so far while in England. Seeing old friends and family has been another huge bonus.
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