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April 21, 2015
No Time to Write
Such a busy trip -- there's no time to write. Yesterday, we arrived at our charming inn in Stratford-Upon-Avon after a very, very long day. We were greeted by the lovely proprietors who welcomed us and our guests, my second cousins with whom we spent the day. They then served all of us tea and cakes and gave us a rundown of the inn including a huge, old fashioned key which we can use on our room. This place has every single bell and whistle that anyone could ever want including hot water bottles, lots of books in the room, tea service, towel warmers, etc. etc. etc. There motto is to treat every person as if she/he were a private guest. And, you can choose breakfast from a huge list that includes just about everything you can think of like eggs of any kind, waffles, pancakes, salmon, etc. etc. You have to order it the night before and tell them about when you will be down to eat it. A small price to pay.
We arrived here about 10:00 in the morning after catching the fast train to Coventry from Euston Station. My cousins, Pat and husband Peter, picked us up and we headed straight for Wales. We didn't go too far into Wales, just to a village near Llangollen, where Pat's brother, Roy, met us. We lunched together and changed family tales before walking the towpath along the canal and over the viaduct chatting away, watching the boaters on the canal, and getting acquainted with each other and the beautiful valley stretching out in every direction. It just whet our appetite for Wales. We said goodbye to Roy who went to his home up north while Pat and Pete delivered us to our inn as mentioned above. Before they left, we went out to a delicious British dinner where Barbara had a meat pie and I had a wonderful, succulent duck.
Today, we have been sightseeing in Stratford where it is all about Shakespeare. We took the touring bus to Anne Hathaway's home and Mary Arden's farm. Then came back into town and had lunch at the Swan pub across from the theater, bought tickets for a play tonight, meandered through the Holy Trinity Church to Shakespeare's grave, and then to his daughter, Susanna Hall's home in town, and shared a cup of tea and coffee in the gardens. Now I'm sitting on my comfortable bed writing this -- although we will be leaving soon for the theater.
It is absolutely gorgeous here. We rode the double decker touring bus in the sunshine and had to take off our jackets. The daffodils and tulips are out and we couldn't ask for a better environment. Tomorrow we'll go to a few museums and Pat and Pete are going to take us to a few places where our family originated. Life is good.
The Canal and Pleasure Boats
My Cousins - Peter, me, Pat and her brother, Roy
Our Breakfast Room
Barbara in Front of Our Inn
Posted by Marilyn at April 21, 2015 9:36 AM