Chris and I started blogging years ago; it’s our online diary, as well as a reflection of our interests and hobbies.
Like many diarists before, I realise how much I enjoy looking back on events, places we have visited and things we have done. Sometimes when we are exploring or visiting a new place I enjoy framing the post in my mind, collecting interesting information and encouraging Chris to take some of his stunning photos.
I like to think that the modern blog is very much like the diaries and tours of previous centuries. I have loved Tours for a long time, since my early twenties when I started collecting Gilpin's Tours. My first Tour, in fact, was Gilpin's Observations of the Mountains and Lakes of Westmorland and Cumberland. At the time the price was eye-wateringly expensive, especially for a student. However, I was lucky to have a part time job in an excellent bookshop, so my staff discount helped a lot!
This book inspired my collection of 18th and 19th Century Tours and Guides. Chris and I have continued seeking out tours and topography and we now have a very large collection, which covers all the places visited by the intrepid early UK tourists - the Lakes, Wales, Scotland, Yorkshire and many other destinations.
Recently we enjoyed a talk by Michael Greaney at the University of Cumbria and he touched on the nature of the Tour. He suggested that possibly the early traveller enjoyed the prospect of reflecting on the travels more than the journeys themselves. I found this a really interesting idea. It made me think of today’s social media and how people take endless photographs, sometimes without truly appreciating the experience. The interest is far more about seeing their travels recorded digitally.
At the same time that I fell in love with topography and tours, I also developed my passion for the Picturesque. Picturesque travellers and artists used a Claude Glass to frame a view, making the savage and rugged, more harmonious and tame. They were literally looking backwards at the view which they would then record in their Guide or Tour.
But the question remains for me: do I enjoy an event more because I am thinking about writing about it afterwards? I think maybe I do. I certainly love having an account of the interesting things we have done. So, maybe there is something of the Picturesque tourist in me!