Beginning my tour of England and Scotland
Trip Start
May 06, 1999
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Trip End
Jun 18, 1999
Coventry, United Kingdom
Thursday, August 3, 2006
Oxford
Loved those perfectly manicured green lawns, the classic architecture and cobblestone streets, so hard to imagine what it would be like going to University here after having gone to one where our classes were held in demountables. The Hertford bridge looked as though it belonged in Venice or Florence and the sandwich of the day appeared to be tuna, sweetcorn and mayo or chicken, sweetcorn and mayo.
Stratford-Upon-Avon and Warwick Castle
The birthplace of Shakespeare was a really pretty town, straight out of storybook with it's leaning buildings in contrasting black and white, thatched roofs and antique shops. Apparently Shakespears is buried under 16 feet of concrete to stop people digging up his bones and his house was knocked down by a priest who was sick of tourists. Lunch was something tasty from a little bakery/cafe and we had time to do a little shopping before hopping back on the coach to go to Warwick Castle. Lots of rolling green hills, fields of canola, sheep and stone hedges could be seen on the drive to Warwick Castle and the town around the castle is quite pretty as well. The Castle is vast and impressive with towers and gardens. Ellie (a lady I met on the tour) climbed the several hundred narrow steps to the top of the tower where the view of the countryside and gardens was magnificent. The dungeon was, as you'd expect, the complete opposite with a small hole in the floor where prisoners were placed and then forgotten about. The interior of the living quarters were reasonably extravagant and the hallways painted a deep shade of pink, outside in the gardens peacocks pranced on the beautiful green lawns that stretched to the river.
Coventry
We were told the 70% of Coventry was destroyed by bombs in WWII, what is left of the old Cathedral stands beside the new Cathedral which people from all nations including Germany helped to rebuild. Here there is a monument dedicated to International Reconciliation and while we stood in the old ruins the bells tolled in preparation for evensong, it was a magical moment.
