Stratford-Upon-Avon
Last week, everyone in my semester program spent 3 days getting close to Shakespeare. We did have a short workshop I mentioned in my last post, but most of our time was spent being tourists, which included a lot of food 🙂
When we first got there, we went for lunch at Hobson’s Patisserie. The mac and cheese was calling my name, but I still indulged in a scone with clotted cream and jam. We only took the large ones, because if you take the giant scone, it is at least 10 inches high. The kind of thing you have when you’re not also having pasta.
Next, we checked into the Falcon Hotel, which was beautiful, and has a bath! I definitely took advantage of that 😉
Breakfast and supper was included with our stay, so after eating at the hotel, we went to see A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. It is one of the Shakespeare plays I have actually read, and I am working on a Helena monologue in class, so it was really exciting to see it live and off the page 🙂
At night, you have to go to the Dirty Duck, a nice pub where you can mingle with the actors you were just wowed by on stage.
On Thursday, we had a tour of Stratford, including the cottage that Anne Hathaway (Shakespeare’s wife) grew up in, and the house where Shakespeare was born. The birthplace had an actor, David, who just hung out in a room or in the yard, reciting Shakespeare monologues to us all day. I heard 3 of them, and it was quite impressive.
We had free times after the tour, so we went to Quickly’s for lunch, followed by a milkshake at Blue Cow. It was probably….or definitely too cold for a milkshake, but it was delicious nonetheless.
We spent the rest of the afternoon walking along the water and visiting Shakespeare’s grave before going to see Dr. Faustus. I didn’t know the story going in, and I am definitely in the minority for saying it wasn’t my favorite play. However, the performances were incredible, and my mind is blown at the fact that at the beginning of every show, the 2 leads come on stage and each light a match, that determines who will play which character based on whose match goes out first. Not only can they play both parts seamlessly, but they go on stage each night not knowing which part they are going to play. Absolutely amazing. Also, there is a girl whose body is art (in the wise words of Elizabeth).
On Friday, we left Stratford and headed to Warwick Castle, which was super exciting for me, because I love all of the Philippa Gregory books and although they don’t really take place there, I still know that the Sons of York grew up there with Anne and Isobel Neville, under the watchful eye of the Kingmaker. It was worth a visit for the history, but also for the beautiful views, both inside and out of the castle. You even get to mingle with the wildlife, that struts around like it owns the place 😉
We had a little time left over for lunch, so after checking out a couple of menus, Molly and I decided on the Oken Tea Room. Afternoon tea (without cakes) was about the same price as a cream tea normally costs, and it came with crisps (chips) and a salad. Not to mention the sandwich was huge and everything I had been hoping for, as were the scones. And the clotted cream. Basically, the food was delicious, and the staff was also super nice. I definitely recommend it, and all you have to do is follow the signs 🙂
