January 3, 2012
An adventure in postcards
‘Paris is absolutely spectacular even in the rain!’
This was my impression of Paris, on my very first visit. On 16th April 1986, I sent this postcard to my parents and it marks the beginning of my lifelong passion for this wonderful city. Now, after countless visits including a year living there, Paris feels like home.
The postcard opens with a reference to pre-Channel tunnel travel: ‘Finally made it to France after 15 hours’ travel and no sleep.’ I had only journeyed from London! According to the message, on my first day in Paris, I visited Notre Dame and the river Seine before travelling on to Spain.
During the summer of 1986, I travelled through France and Spain as part of my studies. While our fellow students at Queen Mary College, London were sitting in stuffy lecture halls, my two friends and I set off on a three month visit to Spain that included studies at the University of Córdoba and then a long trip round the peninsula, stopping off en route. Such was the life of the foreign language student!
As we didn’t have mobile phones or even the Internet, communication with home relied on the occasional call from a public phone box and the humble postcard. Twenty-five years later, my mother returned the postcards to me and my ‘mega-trip’ was brought back to life. The postcards chart my journey from Andalucia back through Spain, stopping at Seville, Granada, Valencia and Barcelona and include visits to other places such as Tarragona, Alicante and Castellón, all described in brief on the back of pictures of Gothic cathedrals, majestic palaces and sandy beaches.
I refer regularly to the hot weather, especially as I’m writing to my family in rain-soaked Manchester. I mention the historic places I visit: the ‘spectacular’ Alhambra palace, the remote monastery of Montserrat, the art galleries of Monet, Picasso and Miró. Sometimes, there is a ‘slight change of plan’ and I end up somewhere else but it doesn’t matter, we just hop back on the train and carry on. In Barcelona, I describe how the first people we met on the campsite were two fellow-Mancunians. There are constant references to ‘beach, sea and sun’ and no mention whatsoever of studying.
Occasionally there is a more personal message. The postcard from Paris ends, ‘I’m really sorry about yesterday, I wish I’d left on a happier note.’ The argument with my parents is long forgotten but the message remains as a glimpse into my life at that particular moment.
It must have been strange for my parents to hear very little from me for weeks at a time with the exception of the occasional postcard and I’m so glad now that they kept them safe for me. They also kept postcards from other members of the family during a period of forty years and you can read more about the collection in ‘Send Me A Postcard…’ published in this month’s issue of Family Tree magazine.
Judy Webster said,
January 3, 2012 at 11:54 pm
I really enjoyed reading this. High on my list of things to do is “Scan and blog about my postcard collection”. My Mum (bless her) kept all the postcards I sent when I was travelling (1970s to 1990s) in Australia, New Zealand, Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, USA (including Alaska), South Africa, Mauritius and Singapore. When I organise them, they will serve as a personal travel diary and a historical record of the towns and villages I visited.
Angela Buckley said,
January 4, 2012 at 4:11 pm
Thanks Judy, I’m glad you enjoyed it. Postcards are an amazing record of our adventures, although yours sound much more interesting than mine! Good luck with organising them all.