Brontëland!

 

On an absolutely freezing day last November I achieved a dream I had cherished for many years: visiting the Brontë Parsonage in Haworth (also in Yorkshire).  Behind me in the photo above is the home where Charlotte, Emily and Anne lived and wrote the works which I hold so dear.  As far as authorial pilgramages go the Brontë Museum is one of a kind, because it features more personal belongings of the authors than any other literary site I've visited.  Among my favourites were the dress Charlotte wore before embarking on her honeymoon, the sofa upon which Emily supposedly died and locks of hair from several family members.  Walking through their village and touring their home was an incredibly spiritual experience.  It's a memory that means a great deal to me, one that I'll never forget.  

 The church in Haworth

It has been reconstructed since 

Patrick Brontë  (their father) was a clergyman here

Inside the church

The pulpit is beautiful

Burial site of the entire family

(apart from Anne who died in Scarborough)

A friend and I decided this would be

the place to get married

Memorial for their mother

I love how the whole villag centers around the Brontës

There's even a Brontë Balti restaurant

The graveyard next to the parsonage

The cold and dreary day added to the Gothic atmosphere

people so often associate with these writers

But the sun did make a brief appearance

(In the background you'll see the pub

where their brother Branwell
specialized in public inebriation)

 Group shot

I'm so glad I was able to share this wonderful day with kindred spirits who love and appreciate the Brontës as much as I do.  

P.S.  It's been said that I purchased a great deal of merchandise at the museum gift shop, but I can neither confirm nor deny this.