What to see between Derby and Nottingham and why take the low cost flights of the Irish company Ryanair for a holiday in the Midlands? Our answer for a low cost and alternative holiday in the post here.
Ryanair has established for at least a couple of years the route that goes from the main airports to East Midlands (UK), but when you find it super obvious one wonders what one is going to do in the heart of central England. An idea is offered directly by the Airport Communication Office: already on the landing strip you can read the list of cities that can be reached in a travel time ranging from 30 to 60 minutes by public transport. Ever been to Nottingham, Derby, Birmingham, Long Eaton, Leicester? What are you waiting for?
I find this to be the real engine of England, the one that is least talked about but where the truest everyday life is lived. I mean that London is something else, a world of its own, a megalopolis as fascinating as it is distant from the lives of the 45 million British people who live elsewhere. Here, in the Midlands, you learn about the countryside and we move from small villages, perhaps hilly, consisting of a few dozen houses and their inhabitants linked to rural life, to medium-sized cities where you can find everything but that everything is still on a human scale.
You can get off at a bus stop, buy fresh milk on the farm and at the next stop already be at the department stores on the outskirts of Derby or Nottingham. With the same line, and the same ticket, you can reach the city center and discover the pedestrian centers, the organization of metropolitan transport, the range of services, the accuracy of the information points.
I admit that the heart of every small-medium English city seems to be cloned and simply repositioned differently on the map, but that's exactly what makes me breathe the air: always knowing what you can find in Market Square (every self-respecting English city has one), the certainty of being able to lie down in the park behind the cathedral (it's everywhere, trust me) and be surrounded by lots of other people (if only it doesn't rain), the reassuring succession of drug stores, banks, coffee shops , post office, take away shop and, consequently, always feeling with a piece of the city in your pocket. If you like the feeling of knowing a place and feel at home after a short while, then you can't miss the Midlands.
And then there are the distinctive features that further validate each town. On my last trip, for example, I discovered that a Derby There is the second tallest bell tower in all of England and, in 2014, it is open every Saturday for a guided tour with a spectacular view from above and a second half in the tunnels that wind under the center.
In addition, walking along the Derwent River leads you to the cultural visit from QR code information that, among other things, lead to the first Silk Factory in England founded in the XNUMXth century, after learning the Northwestern techniques, now a UNESCO heritage site and museum.
Finally, behind the station is the Roundhouse, the round house, in an industrial style recovered and open for events and banquets. Definitely, one of a kind. And what to say about Nottingham? It would seem to be nothing without the immortal legend of Robin Hood and, in return, of the terrible Sheriff and instead only one statue is dedicated to the first, while the whole myth serves as a tourist link to propose a naturalistic tour in the famous Sherwood forest and in other city parks. For the more traditionalists there is also the opportunity to visit a perfectly preserved medieval castle.
The Midlands speak for themselves with spontaneity and naturalness, and if the low cost flight is guaranteed, it is really worth a visit.
