What about Middle-Earth/Valinor most inspires you?

[lindil]

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And as a part -Where {and when or with whom} in Middle-Earth would you go if you could? {Let's leave Valinor out just to keep it a bit more challenging.}


If you spend no small part of your 'free' waking hours here and other such places- what is it that most draws and inspires you to Tolkien's Legendarium?
For me initially it was the Elves - a race that [at the age of 13] seemed to be everything that suburban 70's people were not!
I was spell-bound by their mastery in so much that they did, their since of quality [witness the food Gildor and co. give to the 3 hobbits in the shire and the silver / blue lamps from valinor, the flets of lorien [not to mention the whole city!]
their whole manner of bearing and reclusiveness [but not totally] from mortals.
With this I would add the !st age Edain {Tuor ,Beren etc.} and the Dunedain [esp. of Arnor]
they absorbed [by choice} as much of Eldarin culture as they could and strove to live righteously
and virtuously -often at great cost to themselves-although they like the Elves sometimes fail.
I also loved the deep representation of the elemental archetypes
the Fiery Noldor, the Airy Vanyar ,
the Watery Teleri, the Earthy{or to use the chimese 5 elements I would say} Metallic Dwarves and Earthy Hobbits,
and the {using Chinese 5 elements again} the Woody Green and Silvan Elves- all with there languages , personalities and choices and manner of dwelling that reflect their essence.
As to where / whom
I would love to accompany [as the least of retainers!] Galadriel and Celeborn on their 2nd and early3rd age journeys to virtually every interesting community in M.E. [mentioned in Unfinished Tales] - but being the Airy/woody type that I am I can't resist Lothlorien as a place to land and to absorb as much as possible {rope and flet making,smithying, small-boat building not to mention singing.
Close runner's up would be early and late 3rd
age Arnor/Eriador-seeing just how intimate their relations w/ high- elves was and seeing Annuminas the city of Elendil or [late 3rd age]
travelling w/ the rangers and seeing their 'hidden fastness' somewhere in Eriador [presumably within old Arthedain].

Ah well, Ihope you have as much fun and insight into yourself with this as I did.



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