Today we set out for Warwick Castle (Mike has a thing for castles) and once again, getting there was half the fun. Our country drives are definitely going to become a habit. I just love the charming Cotswold villages and rolling farmland everywhere. We passed through several villages that will require a return trip so we can wander through the high street and look in the shops. For the record, they are Stow-on-the-Wold, Moreton-in-Marsh and Burford.
Warwick is a larger but equally charming town. We wandered through the narrow streets and peeked into St. Mary's church on our walk to Warwick Castle. As we entered the castle grounds we found ourselves in an environment not unlike the Renaissance Festival.
We were enticed to take a Dungeon Tour. I passed on this at the last minute but Mike went ahead and found it a bit hokey. I did visit the Gaol to see how prisoners were treated and it was pretty chilling stuff! Throughout the castle the staff was dressed in period costumes and on the grounds you could try your hand at archery. Ownership of this castle has changed hands several times and at one point was owned by Madame Tussauds so there were wax figures of past castle residents positioned throughout the living quarters with recordings of their stories. The theme of the day seemed to be high society adultery! Apparently they were quite the swingers behind closed doors.
We climbed to the towers where you could see for miles in every direction. The fields of yellow flowers on the grape seed plants where everywhere and, while we were up there, the eagles being trained on the castle grounds below soared past us within just a few yards - pretty cool!
On our way home we drove to Stratford-upon-Avon and had just enough time to tour through William Shakespeares birthplace. This was actually a really interesting tour and gave lots of information about his life and how his family lived. Our entrance tickets are good for several other important houses in Stratford so we will be going back. History aside, Stratford-upon-Avon had some seriously tempting boutiques that will need to be explored too!
Hopefully tomorrow (Tuesday) is move-in day. I am so ready to have my own kitchen so we can cook our own meals. It will also be nice to do laundry. An interesting note is that the washing machine is generally located in the kitchen in the homes that we toured - just under the counter like the dishwasher. Most homes do not have clothes dryers so we will have to get a hanging rack. If all goes as planned, we will get settled and then head home for Megan and Amy's graduation celebrations on Wednesday!
Cheers...
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