Stratford upon Avon

We landed at Gatwick Airport and in just a few minutes had cleared Immigration
and walked to the loading platform for our train ride.
The train skirted around the edges of London as we headed
through the gently rolling countryside to Stratford upon Avon.


We arrived at the small, quaint train station early in the afternoon ...
and decided to rent a car
-- even though we hadn't slept in over 30 hours --
in order to take in as much of the wonderful scenery as possible.

There was no problem in renting a small Fiat -- but then there were the instructions:
driver on the right side of the car,
shifting is to be done with the left hand,
and you must drive on the left side of the road without getting
hit, side swipped, ran over or killed.
We chuckled as we pulled out into the traffic feeling confident that we could "handle" it.


NO PICTURE AVAILABLE
OF FRAZZLED TOURISTS

After the second mailbox on the left side of the road whizzed by my side of the car
a little closer than I would have liked it... and we realized that in this town
the street names are not clearly marked.... we realized that we were in trouble!!

Ken was patient with my screaming and the fact that we couldn't find a street name anywhere --
but his patience was beginning to run thin as the other cars would
race up behind us, honk, and then zip around us to continue racing to their destination.

We came to a very smart decision: let's find the hotel, park the car, and start walking.
I turned the map upside down and started zig-zagging our way through the streets
until we found the hotel - which we passed
since we couldn't figure out how to make a FAST right turn into such a SMALL driveway.

Some miles down the road, the traffic finally thinned out and we were able to figure out how to
turn around and return to the hotel.
With one final quick left turn into the small parking lot, we were safely parked...
committed to the fact that we would not do that again!

After meeting our delightful hostess, Pat, and getting a quick tour of the adorable Melita Hotel
(in which we occupied the third floor), we quickly took off on foot to see as much of this delightful town as possible.

Stratford upon Avon is the birthplace of William Shakespeare back in 1564. His body was laid to rest in 1616
in the Holy Trinity Church which sits on the picturesque River Avon.

The biggest highlight of our time in Stratford upon Avon was watching Shakespeare's "Taming of the Shrew."
Our seats were perfect - Row G center.... best seats in the house for hearing and seeing the action...
and action there was as the humerous story unfolded in front of our eyes with Katherine (the Shrew)
and Petruchio (the dowry seeking man) sparring throughout the play as her "taming" developed.
When it was over, the audience just roared it's appreciation for a play well-done.

For the next couple of days, we explored a lot of the area by foot and by bus -- listening to the wonderful way
they speak our English and taking in as many memories as we could. We enjoyed walking along the Avon and
the many small streets near the river, touring the country farmhouse of Mary Arden, Shakespeare's mother,
seeing Shakespeare's home and the delightful Anne Hathaway's cottage (she became his wife),
feeling the English breeze blow through our hair, shopping in the small shops
along the narrow streets, relaxing in several of the local pubs for our late afternoon meals and refreshment,
and strolling late into the evening before collapsing into our comfortable bed after we were totally exhausted.

Here are some of the delightful sites.

Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

Walking Bridge over
River Avon
\
River Avon
Royal Shakespeare
Theater in the background

Holy Trinity Church

Anne Hathway's Cottage

Enjoying the top deck
of our tour bus

Ken, by the swan
artwork in front of the theater

One of the oldest buildings
in Stratford upon Avon

The lovely room
in which we enjoyed our
English Breakfast

RED phone booths everywhere!!


You might still be wondering what we did with the Fiat.

Well, after we walked leisurely back to the Melita after the play - we noticed that
there were not many cars on the streets... so we decided to "brave" the dark and return the car
to the Hertz lot at the railroad station. I must admit that "we" drove much better after
having some sleep the night before - but it was a good feeling to hop out of that car
and leave it for the next unsuspecting tourist to rent.

We had a lovely stroll from the station back to the Melita.

We hired a taxi when it was time to leave the Melita with our luggage
and head to the station to take the train into London.


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