One week ago tonight (plus 5 hours), John and I were in the Royal Shakespeare Theater in Stratford-upon-Avon watching a Shakespeare play performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company. (That should probably be Royal Shakespeare Theatre…) It was a last-minute decision. Mom and Dad spent the day in the cottage and around the village. John and I took the car to see the ruins of Hailes Abbey (beautiful), and when we realized it was a little too late (nearing 5pm) to see anything else, we decided to head to Stratford-upon-Avon. We knew we’d get there too late to get into any of the touristy stuff, but we could still go see stuff. And have tea. I love having afternoon tea. We got there right at 5pm (when the attractions were closing), so aside from a quick glance into a gift shop, we only got to see the outside of the birthplace of Shakespeare and that stuff. We had our tea (a light cream tea – we planned to find dinner somewhere before we headed back to Chipping Campden and Mom and Dad), and we took a walk down Henley Street (with all its closed shops) and eventually found the Avon. We dawdled there for a while and then noticed the Royal Shakespeare Theatre as we walked by. The doors were open, we saw books on shelves, and all of a sudden we found ourselves in the gift shop. Amazing how that works. We browsed for 20 minutes or so and were on our way out when I suggested we check the box office. What’s on tonight? Who cares? If there are seats available and they’re somewhat reasonably priced, we should stay, right? Of course right. So we asked. Hey, it’s King John. How much are the tickets? Only £16 each? Hey, it starts at 7:30. What time is it now? Oh, 7:06? And we have to move the car? We can get the car moved in time if we run. So we ran. Well, we walked really fast. Turns out we didn’t have to move the car (just put more money in), so we rushed back, bought our tickets, and sat down just in time for the play to start.
It was really good. Really good. And interestingly staged, if that’s the word. Shakespearean language, contemporary costumes and setting. And music. The wedding scene made my whole week. (“I Say A Little Prayer For You” segued into “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” with the choreography from the end of Dirty Dancing. SO. MUCH. FUN.)
One of many pictures of Hailes Abbey. Also, proof of the beautiful weather we had most of the week.
Hamlet says hello. Or, you know, "Alas, poor Yorick."
I didn't have the foresight to get a picture of the whole building...
...but I did get a shot of the books that lured us in.
Wombat Central
Well, I’m finally caught up. I even watch Roxy eat peanut butter, and I’ve decided we need more dog videos on here! 🙂
Do tell about this cottage–is is like booking a hotel room? How many did it sleep? Sounds like big fun. I love that you wanted to dash about London singing bits from movies. Sounds like fun! 🙂
Zannah
Booking a cottage like that is like renting a vacation home in Florida (or anywhere). We went to various websites (like vrbo.com or homeaway.com), searched for rentals where we wanted to go, and then started emailing the owner (or managing agency, depending).
The cottage had two bedrooms and slept four. Perfect for the four of us. I should have taken pictures of it.
Wombat Central
Sounds much more cozy than a hotel. I should peruse those sights to see what they’re like. Thanks for the info!
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