Say 'Ello to Eastcote!

Where have the days gone?! One minute I was writing my first entry on this blog, then I was running my 5K in San Jose while getting pelted by paint and dodging slow-pokes, and then I was attending a wonderful farewell party that was thrown in my and my friend Melanie's honor (she's studying abroad in France this semester), and now, here I am, watching Anne of Green Gables on TV and in disbelief that I leave in only 5 more days!

Sorry for that horrid run-on sentence. I'll try to keep them more concise. Obviously, it's been too long since I've last written a news article ;)

Anyways, I am shamelessly copying my friend Nicole when I do this, but I thought it would be a fun idea to post some information about Eastcote, the small hamlet where I will be living for three months! Eastcote is located in Greater London, so outside the city proper, but still considered to be part of the surrounding area of London. It is located in the London borough of Hillingdon, and has been a settlement since the 1200's! That's about 800 years, my friends. 800 years! I can't even.  Eastcote's population was 11,278 in 2007 (most recent data I could find), so I imagine the population has gone up a bit since then.

Here are a few quick fun-facts about Eastcote!

• Even though it became an actual village in the 1200's, Eastcote still existed as a  pseudo-settlement near the River Pinn, and was part of the Manor (feudalism, folks!) of Ruislip, which was referred to in the Domesday Book of 1086. This just blows my mind, and makes me think of my old Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego computer game from way back when, and the part where you met William the Conqueror and had to recover the stolen Domesday book. Good times, good times.
• During the nineteenth century, Eastcote was a hot spot for the landed gentry, with eight different estates built there. Excuse me as I have a Jane Austen moment. I can just imagine Mr. Darcy strolling across the wide open fields, shirt billowing open, his quizzical brow furrowed as he broods about the effect a pair of fine eyes in the face of a pretty woman can have upon a man such as himself.
• Highgrove House is the only "Great House" still standing in Eastcote. In fact, Winston Churchill stayed there at one point during his honeymoon.
• During World War II, Eastcote played a secret role in the war effort. 100 RAF technicians operated 110 bombes, the machines that were used to identify and break German codes. Pretty cool!

All the above information came from the Eastcote Residents' Association website, and that completely infallible source, Wikipedia.

I hope you enjoyed this little ramble about my future English home, Eastcote!