Warwick & Stratford, June 8th

Before I dive into our last few days, I thought I'd record a few random odds and ends from our time here. I found this treat in the supermarket at the grocery store. It might be the most delicious drink ever. Even Nic likes it.

I found a little snail on my run, and thought him cute enough to remember.

I am totally fascinated with English gardens, in particular they attention to detail. Look at the property line indicated so clearly all the way up their tree. 

Henry, Rob's dog. He is the sweetest man. I understand why Rob loves him so much.

Nic and left early as possible on Tuesday for our day with Shakespeare. I was eager to meet my muse and Nic was eager to go earlier than the traffic. (Traffic is not joke). We did quite well though and had a full morning before our time in Stratford, so we popped into Warwick. It had long been on Nic's list to see. It has a very cool castle, which costs 35 pounds to actually enter. Nic and I passed on the full tour, because it seemed a little Disneyland to us, which you can hardly blame them for, but it seemed excessive after our tickets to tour Shakespeare's house. 

There is a wondrous entry to the castle that both Nic and I were in awe of as we walked up. It truly felt magical. The rock had been cut in huge chunks to allow for the path and time has brought the foliage to hang down overhead in a green canopy. 

I tried to capture some pictures of old Tudor houses and buildings. These buildings were the hospital for the town in the 1400s and are under repair right now. 

We needed a spot of coffee and I selected a bit of cake to celebrate Amanda's birthday from overseas. I promised her I would have something lovely - and I did!

Nic and I were impressed that this posh little coffee shop housed a salon and yoga studio. It was fun to see the creative ways people are doing business. There was a chapel in the heart of town, which was lovely and checked our box for church of the day.

Nic and I are enjoying looking at town centers and popping into little shops. I am looking for odds and ends. I keep managing to find lovely book stores. 

(Not a great picture of Nic, sorry babe. But the moment had to be captured).

After our trip to Warwick, we headed over to Stratford. We were a bit disorganized in our planning of this day trip. As a result, we were not quite sure where to park. We grabbed a spot in the local hospital and ate our lunch on the concrete. We are doing our best to be frugal when we can. Food prices in England are very cheap, so a picnic with lovely cheese, bread, and olives is perfect. We stocked up a little cooler we purchased before we left Bedford with these delicacies and a few other snacks to allow us to eat out only a little in restaurants and pubs.

Fortunately, we found our way quickly enough to old Willie and his birthplace. A few things to note: When you go, go to his birthplace first, spend the most time here. Then go to New Place (which sort of a glorified museum in the place where his new house once stood, but was destroyed). New Place is close to his birthplace. If you have time and energy, or you park more wisely, you can drive over to Anne Hathaway's home. We walked, and were rained on, but it was worth the walk and the rain. The garden is beautiful and totally worth seeing if you love Shakespeare or English gardens, or both.

My favorite moment from the day came when a lovely English woman reprimanded the staff of Shakespeare's home. She was irate at the trash and the lack of a welcoming staff in the lobby. She berated the employees saying, "This is the MOST important place in the WORLD! How could you allow it to be so run down!? Shakespeare is the most important person to have EVER LIVED." She was very impassioned and most disappointed. If you share this woman's view on Shakespeare, you might be disappointed also. Many of the people who work there clearly do NOT think Shakespeare is the most important person to have ever lived. There are nice shops and pubs and Tudor homes sprinkled throughout though. 

I learned some things about Shakespeare I must have missed over the years of reading and teaching him. Namely he was not poor. I always sort of thought he was. Turns out, I was wrong. I also thought he was not super fond of his wife. That may or may not be true. There is more to his life and evidence of his life than I had thought. 

I look at the English gardens and think how much my mother and brother would love to see all the things that grow in such abundance here. I wish I could truly capture their beauty and lush life.

I was super duper happy to see Shakespeare's birthplace and home as a child. It is hard to really place what this trip signifies. I never believed I would ever travel again. I really thought for a lot of years I would not see the world and that my life was limited to the four walls I knew. It may sound dramatic to some, but it was my truth. To see England and travel to these places is like coming alive again. I can dream again. Nic has really jumped in and helped me to see the things I want to see and help me achieve these things, and he laughs along the way. 

The pictures above are all from Shakespeare's birthplace. The ones below are from Anne Hathaway's home.

We were wet and soggy. I was also mistaken for a teacher along the way. I guess I fit the type.

I didn't include a lot of images from New Place as we were in a bit of a rush by this point. We had dinner plans with Nic's friend, Vince in Manchester, which although only 93 miles from us, was a 3 hour drive. I was also interested, but not totally in love with New Place, as an FYI. It's cool if you have time, but don't sweat it if you don't.

And then, just like that, we were in Manchester eating butternut squash risotto with Nic's childhood friend. More on that to come.