Jane & Margaret & YOU!
Hello, Dames Nationals!
We hope that those of you in the U.S. had a wonderful holiday weekend, and that those of you elsewhere in the world had a wonderful normal weekend. But, even if your weekend offered you less than you deserve, we have news that we hope will make at least some of your Mondays: this August, Dame Margaret is going to be leading a four day long Jane Austen pilgrimage in England’s Peak District, and starting this Wednesday, you can register to join her. From August 20 until August 23rd, 2020, you can stay with Margaret at the inn where Bakewell pudding was invented, having rigorous, introspective conversations about how characters within Pride & Prejudice stay strong in the face of social pressure but flexible enough for positive change, and walking the countryside that Lizzie and the Gardeners traverse at the moment when she first begins to understand her love for Darcy— including a visit to Chatsworth, the house that posed as Pemberley in Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation of the novel.
THIS ONE!!
If any of this sounds interesting to you, then read on: what follows is a conversation between Margaret and Vanessa Zoltan, host of the beloved podcast Harry Potter and the Sacred Text, founder of Common Ground Pilgrimages (the company who designed this trip and runs many others like it), and— perhaps most importantly— the guide who led the company’s inaugural Jane Austen Pilgrimage last summer. She and Margaret will discuss what the trip entails, why it’s called a pilgrimage, what it has in common with Two Bossy Dames, and what makes trips like these so special. Hopefully, some of you will be as excited to read this news as Margaret is to share it.
This could be us in August 2020, unless you be playin’.
Margaret: HI VANESSA! I am very excited to be having this conversation with you!
Vanessa: HI MARGARET! I am pretty giddy about it myself! Mutual admiration societies are neat!
M: Given that we are having this conversation now because, the very first time we met in person, I boldly asked if being on your wonderful new romance podcast would make me eligible to receive a “friends and family discount” on your next Jane Austen pilgrimage, I am pretty flipping excited to announce that I’m leading the tour instead.
V: And given that my immediate reply to your request to join the trip was asking if you’d want to lead it instead, I’m really excited about that, too!
We’re talking Kitty-and-Lydia-near-a-regiment level excited.
M: For people with less immediate buy-in on the idea of combining the religious approach suggested by a word like “pilgrimage” with Jane Austen, 19th century England’s greatest comedian of manners, could you explain why you call these trips pilgrimages and the participants pilgrims? What does that framing mean to you?
V: We use that framing to encourage everyone to make the absolute most of the opportunity! Being a pilgrim is a mindset. We talk about pilgrimages being a time of sabbath (time out of time, when our regular sense of days is disrupted) .
By walking in the footsteps of authors who we admire, we make the authors mortal (she walked these streets!) and we can begin to imagine ourselves in their shoes By living, for a few days, with a text at the center of our worlds, we allow new ideas to be spoken directly to our hearts.
We think that by calling our participants pilgrims we are starting by asking them to bring a slightly vulnerable version of themselves to the trip. In order to treat a text as sacred we are hoping to learn from the text, not just about it. We want our participants to ask questions of the text that pertain to their own lives. These trips are not academic, nor are they fancy walking holidays. They are a time in which we gather in order to be open to being changed.
M: And how does your practice of “sacred reading” come into the trip? What will the academic and emotional work we do as a group look like?
V: At least slightly fewer ritual sacrifices than you might suspect! Most importantly, all we mean is that we are there to learn from Pride and Prejudice; not about it. We want to ask the book questions about our own lives and have it answer back. We do sacred reading practices, silent walking, end each day by sharing a favorite quote or moment from the day. There is also the opportunity for one-on-one chaplaincy on the trip. Really, it’s just very earnest. It is a very low- irony scenario. People often come on these trips while going through a transition; and I think that’s exactly right. Come with a question; and trust the landscape, the community, and the book, to help you answer it.
M: What was your favorite part of this trip last year, Vanessa?
V: There was a night in which we had just had a delicious meal at the quaintest pub in the world, arguing about Lydia, We then walked home in the still-light-at-8PM England night. We laughed and talked and saw some gorgeous views. It was the night in which it felt like we became a real community; people walked in twos and threes on an old railroad that has become a walkway, and gossipped and looked at bats and giant mushrooms. It was a night of absolute joy.
Also; we ate scones with clotted cream every day. It wasn’t a requirement; but an option I recommend everyone taking advantage of.
Live footage of me day-dreaming about scones.
M: One of the things you told me about the trip that immediately got me excited is that Jane Austen is sort of a Figure of Myth in Bakewell, the town where we’ll be staying. Can you tell me more about that?
V: It’s pretty controversial and it seems as though everyone in town has a different opinion on whether or not Miss Austen ever really spent time in Bakewell. Last summer, we met the former mayor of Bakewell, Trevor, who likes to make clear that there is no hard evidence that the authoress, Miss Austen, was ever definitely in Bakewell. But there is an Innkeeper who claims that the logs show that Austen stayed at his hotel. What we know for sure is that Austen spent time in the area; so the architecture the build of the town is a type she would be familiar with. The Gardiners definitely take Lizzie through Bakewell. Also, Pemberley is supposed to be situated near the much less well decorated Chatsworth; which is a short walk away from Bakewell. But the local politics and disagreements reminded me of Stars Hollow.
M: Because there’s nothing I love more than compliments, what made you think I’d be a good fit for leading this trip?
V: You are the apotheosis of hospitality and such a nerd. The first five minutes of us meeting we were gushing about Mrs. Gaskell as if she was a mutual friend that we both loved. You make books seem relevant and urgent and alive. Also— you are just such a hostess! You’re vulnerable enough to make someone feel invited, part of the club and safe; and yet professional and thoughtful enough to make people feel safe. Being on a pilgrimage is about being open to new experiences and being changed, while also appreciating what it’s like to be sturdy on your feet. You are a model pilgrim and so annoyingly articulate that I’m just excited for the pilgrims to get to see that these brilliant sentences just pour out of your mouth, unedited. Was that enough compliments? I can keep going. Also, people should come to see your fashion in person. I bet you’ll even make mud-soaked hiking clothes cute. It’ll be insufferable.
M: That was exactly the right number of compliments, Vanessa, thank you!! One part of your description of last year’s trip that made me think particularly of our Two Bossy Dames readership was the community this trip fostered among the participants. Could you elaborate on that a bit?
V: We know that people are already doing pilgrimages like these on their own. But we offer a community of like-minded people to go on a trip together. People have already been bridesmaids in each others weddings. They have GoodReads groups, What’s App groups, weekly Google Hang Out calls. They are traveling together and buying presents for each other’s babies. It’s been a thing of real beauty to watch these groups become close friends.
M: Is there anything we’re doing differently this year that you’re particularly jealous to miss?
V: YES! I read the description and questions you wrote and UGH. I want to go with Margaret as my teacher. Also; you’ll be staying the whole time in Bakewell. It is home to the Bakewell tart and is as charming as a sound stage of a miniseries about murders in the English countryside. I also think England in August is going to be sunny and bright and delightful.
M: How much physical activity should people attending feel ready for? I am asking for a friend who’s leading a hiking-heavy trip but is like… a delicate l’il flower who probably needs to practice up to really be ready. No one you know, obviously.
Live footage of Margaret definitely not lying about anything.
V: No training is needed. We go very slowly. BUT: we do a lot of walking. Definitely break in whatever shoes you’re wearing before you arrive. Not only that; but the walking happens, ala Lizzie; rain or shine. My understanding is that flowers, even delicate ones, like rain. Right? We send a thorough packing list to help people prepare.
There is one day in particular that is a long, vigorous hike (but it contains this view):
Even the most delicate of flowers must agree that a view like this is worth vigorously hiking for.
M: I think those are the big questions I wanted our readers to have answered. For $3,000 (single occupancy room) or $2,400 (shared room), all meals, travel, lodging, and teaching from when you arrive in Derbyshire on the 20th until we depart on the 23rd will be covered. For more details, including the payment schedule, you should check the Common Ground Pilgrimages website. Registration goes live THIS WEDNESDAY and stays open until the trip is full. If you want to be certain to get a spot, sign up for the Common Ground newsletter, and you will be given a a chance to register 1/2 an hour early.
Being able to lead this trip is a dream come true. The only thing that could make it better is having some of our Dames Nationals there, too, so I hope some of you will be able to join us. Thank you, Vanessa, for giving me this wonderful opportunity!
V: Thank you for being someone I could trust with one of our babies! I cannot wait to hear about the fun you all have this summer.
Also, don’t forget! All subscriptions to Two Bossy Dames are 20% off through the end of the day on Friday! All it takes is pressing this one simple button: