After spending so much time with the adorable and naïve Catherine for my modern short story retelling, North for the New Year, that appears in the upcoming Then Comes Winter holiday anthology, I did little exercises to help me get to know her better. One of them was giving sweet Cathy a tour of my home ground and matching it up with scenes and activities in Northanger Abbey’s Bath.
Now I can just hear the snorts, jeers, and chuckles now. Detroit in the United States? Bath in England? Parallels? Do tell!
Alright, I will.
I would not deprive Catherine for a chance of an elegant tea and pastry shop so one of our stops would be The Whitney famous for its upscale dining and lovely nineteenth century style.
https://www.thewhitney.com/about
Catherine likes her castles so off we would go to Olde World Canterbury Village. It’s not a true castle, but probably wouldn’t disappoint any more than that ill-fated trip with the Thorpes produced.
https://canterburyvillage.com/
And speaking of the Thorpes…
Wouldn’t John drool with envy after discovering I took Catherine to the North American International Auto Show one of Detroit’s premiere annual events? She could ‘wow’ him with a new sporty ride.
https://naias.com/about/overview/
And something tells me our Catherine still hasn’t left off her more active pursuits entirely after growing up in such a family so off we go to the Joe for some ice hockey action.
https://redwings.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=69111
Before she left, I would make sure she experienced the RenCen aka GM Renaissance Center that dominates the Detroit skyline. It’s no substitute for a walk up the hill to look down on Bath, but then again, Detroit doesn’t have hills, does it?
https://gmrencen.com/
Admit it! You’re impressed.
Alright, so if you had darling Cathy Morland visiting you for a few days. What local sites would you take her on to match her own Bath adventures?
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kirk
In the Boston area can there be any other #1 for our Catherine but Salem??? Especially in October! Pretty much all of the North Shore of Boston is spooky/haunted by the past.
Sophia Rose
That does sound thrilling. I was disappointed to miss Salem on my one and only time in Boston. Catherine would love it.
Steph from fangswandsandfairydust.com
I would take her Portland, Maine: the 1750 Tate House Museum, and then to the Longefellow House, the Munjoy Hill Observatory where Portlanders could see when their ships came in.
After that I would take her to Tempo Dulu and knock her socks off with an Indonesian inspired cocktail,
Sophia Rose
Wait! Can I come, too, Steph? 🙂
And I’m off to check out the Tempo Dulu.
Denise
The former armory on our Main St looks like a castle–it’s now owned by the town and used for events. After, we could drive to Baltimore and see the Hotel Brexton where the Duchess of Windsor lived as a child before taking a tour of the neighborhoods surrounding Inner Harbor: Federal Hill, Fells Point, Canton, Little Italy, etc… If she’s hungry, the latter would be the best for a meal or dessert. So many other places we could visit, so little time…
Sophia Rose
Well I don’t know about Catherine, but I’d have a good time on such a tour. I’ve heard Baltimore’s Inner Harbor is where its at. 🙂
Abigail
Living in the Bay Area, I would take her up to the Marin Headlands to learn a thing or two about sublimity in the landscape; then to Saratoga Hot Springs to sample the waters (ugh), with a delightful gossip about *Pride and Prejudice and Zombies* over tea at the DarTEAling Lounge on 3rd Street afterward.
This is definitely the way to approach contemporary Austenesque fiction—by asking the question, what would the characters do (and what would Jane Austen say) when confronted with a modern-day setting?
Sophia Rose
Yes, the writing group nearby came up with it so I didn’t think of it on my own. The exercise was a good one for the exact purpose you mentioned.
And it was fun of course.
Yay! A tour of the Bay Area would definitely be a delight for the spirits of such a girl as Catherine. Though the hot springs…maybe not so much. haha!