Over the last 20 years or so, Americans have oft engaged me in the following conversation :
American : "Where are you from in England?"
Me : "Surrey."
American (thinking I said "sorry") : "Where are you from in England?"
In this country, the term "surrey" is best known as a mode of transport, as in the song The Surrey with the Fringe on Top from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Oklahoma!
Surrey is, in fact, an English county (the equivalent of states in the U.S.). It borders London, and the town where I was born, Carshalton, is now part of the London Borough of Sutton. The county boasts a population of just over a million, and the county town (the equivalent of a State Capital) is the university town of Guildford.
Surrey is one of the most densely populated counties in England, although much of the county - particularly in the south - is very rural. There are also many traces of mediaeval life, with a number of wonderful churches and manor houses.
Some facts about Surrey...
Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Peter Gabriel were all born in Surrey.
Brookwood Cemetery was once the largest cemetery in the world. It is still the largest in the United Kingdom.
H.G.Wells was living in Woking when he wrote The War of the Worlds, and much of the story is set in Surrey.
The quintessentially English game of cricket was first played at the Royal Grammar School in Guildford.
Brooklands (between Weybridge and Woking) was the world's first purpose-built motorsport race circuit.
Surrey is home to more company headquarters' (including Toshiba, Samsung, Pfizer, and Toyota) than any other British county.
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