Free Time in London

Day 16:

I started this morning with a tour of Parliament.  I learned all about the British House of Lords and House of Commons and how the government is formatted.  We got to see the Queen's route to her throne and heard that she is not allowed in the House of Commons room.  Instead, she sends her servant as her representative.  Also, while the Queen is at Parliament, a member of Parliament volunteers to go stay at Buckingham Palace as almost a hostage until she gets back home--just in case. 

Oliver Cromwell statue outside Parliament

View of Big Ben from inside Parliament's Courtyard

I learned about all of the monarchs and saw statues of each of them.  The statue of Queen Victoria is accompanied by a representation of "justice", but justice's scales are missing.  We learned that when a vote is finally called, the representatives have exactly 8 minutes to return to Parliament from wherever they are to vote in person.  A bell announces that time is starting, and this bell rings not only in Parliament, but also in surrounding pubs and restaurants.  Representatives vote by walking down a hallway that denotes either "yes" or "no" and their name is crossed off of a list as they pass through.

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After leaving Parliament, we got award-winning ice cream (who can pass up award-winning ice cream?!) and headed to Trafalgar Square to check out the Get Reading festival being held there.  As librarians, we felt it was our duty to support any reading initiative we could!  (Plus, Hugh Grant and Anthony Horowitz were supposed to be there!!!!!)  We walked around to the different vendors and checked out some of the storytelling from the National Art Gallery, which ended up being more like an art history lesson for kids.  We saw the Nook book signing area and realized that Anthony Horowitz wouldn't be there until way later, so we would probably miss him.  We watched dancers and readers on stage and on a big screen performing and saw kids getting their faces painted and eating ice cream.  

Even the Cat in the Hat showed up!

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Each of us had afternoon plans, so we left the square to set off on our other adventures.  I headed back home to meet another few people to head back out on a Shakespeare archeological walk in Shoreditch.  Of course, we choose the hottest day of the year in London to do all of this outdoor activity!!  After a bit of a mishap with the bus, we made it to the meeting point just in the nick of time to catch the tour group just as they were leaving.  Our tour guide took us to the two archaeological sites where The Theatre and the Curtain Theatre are being excavated.  Both are important to London history and of particular interest to Shakespeare scholars.  Along the way, he talked about where actors and writers lived and worked.  The walk was interesting, informative, and enjoyable (despite the heat!).  Many of the places are now only represented by plaques on the wall since many modern buildings have been built since the 17th century on top of the sites of old theatres, pubs, houses, and roads.  The hand-out was helpful because it had maps from different time periods along with pictures of archaeological digs and of the people the guide was discussing.

Plaque commemorating The Theatre

Pub near what was probably the entrance of The Curtain Theatre

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The rest of today will be spent packing up to head to Edinburgh and the Isle of Skye for next week.  I'm looking forward to spending some time in Scotland before we head back to London for the last week.  I have thoroughly enjoyed London so far, but I think I'm ready for some non-city time, too.   By the way, it reached 32*C here today...which is close to 90*F (not normal London weather, at all!!!!). 

"Do you not know that I am a woman? When I think, I must speak!" (As You Like It 3.2.240)

Day12:

As an English major and a language arts teacher, William Shakespeare is one of my favorite people.  That means Stratford-Upon-Avon is definitely a bucket-list kind of place for me.  I have been looking forward to going to Stratford for years, perhaps even decades!  The first thing I saw as we drove into town were Tudor-style houses.  As we reach the car park and disembark from the bus, I found myself getting excited to just walk the same streets as William and his family did so long ago.  As we reach the start of High Street, I notice a statue of a jester with quotes from a few of his plays inscribed around the base.

"On noble fool! A worthy fool!" ~As You Like It

We decided to wander down High Street and browse in some of the shops along the way.  We weren't really looking for anything in particular, just trying to see what was available.  I love that everything is so picturesque.

Eventually, we made it to the public library, and headed inside to see their children and young adult section.  After perusing their collection and picking up a few flyers about programming, we stopped to talk to a librarian at an information desk.  She told us that they didn't have a specific person responsible for the children/young adult section and that the library worked closely with the community to run programs.  I enjoyed talking with her and hearing more about the way public libraries work in the UK.  The four of us bought canvas bags, and she was really excited that we wanted to purchase them!  (They're really cute!)

Once we left the library, I picked up a lemon-poppyseed muffin (delicious!) in a local restaurant, and we carried on with our wanderings.  At the end of High Street, we decided to head toward Trinity Church, which is where William Shakespeare attended church and is buried.  The walk there along the river was lovely and relaxing.  There was a park where people were hanging out listening to music, the theatre we were going to see the play in later, the shops, the river with boats to rent, and a mini-golf course on the other side of the river.

The boats were named for Shakespeare's female characters.  There was no "Kate."

View of the Avon

When we reached the cemetery at Trinity Church, I noticed how peaceful and beautiful it was with the sunlight floating through the trees.  Again, I made my father proud by taking pictures of tombstones!  Here are some pictures from the cemetery and the exterior of the church:

 

 

This church is where William Shakespeare and his family attended.  He and his family are also buried here under the altar floor.  Shakespeare's grave has a curse inscribed on it that says, "Good friend for Jesus' sake forbear, to dig the dust enclosed here. Blessed be the man who spares these stones and cursed be the he who moves my bones."    Here are pictures of the interior of the church including Shakespeare's grave.

 

 

Shakespeare's grave with the curse.

 We left Trinity Church and headed back toward the main part of town to get an early dinner.  We decided to sit in the park and nap, read, or blog after eating our burgers and milkshakes.  Overall, the day was beyond relaxing and idyllic, which was exactly what I needed after a hectic Paris weekend!  When it was time for the play, I was ready to see a fantastic production of As You Like It, and the Royal Shakespeare Company certainly did not disappoint!

The production was not a traditional one, but that is what made it unique and wonderful!  The actors playing Rosalind and Orlando were brilliant and believable together. The costuming with the contrasting dark clothing for when in the duke's court and colorful for when in the Forest of Arden and set design using the rotating stage and the pit of gravel were clever and added to my overall experience.  I thoroughly enjoyed the production, and I was raving about it afterward.  The best thing I can say about the play is that I heard non-Shakespeare fans talking about how much fun it was and how much they had enjoyed it.  At the end of a long, but idyllic day, we headed back to the buses and began our journey back to London.