Hello all, I am back in London. It is good to be back. I loved Stratford. It will definately be billed as one of the high points of my trip. I didn't do anything exciting. I even had some personal drama to work through, but it still was just a great place for me to stop, take a deep breath, and realize that I was in England and it's not everyday you find yourself in a lovely little English town where Shakespeare once lived.
I actually shyed (sp?) away from most of the touristy things. As strange as it is being someone who studies Shakespeare, I am not to interested in seeing where he may have hung his hat. History is a fickle beast and the cynic in me arises. I did see Anne Hathaway's cottage and Shakespeare's grave. At the cottage, I was happiest in the garden and Jamie I took a LOT of pictures for you. The flowers were so amazing.
Shakespeare's grave was inside the Holy Trinity Church. It was a beautiful and peaceful place and they were actually playing the Nocturne from Mendelsohn's Midsumer Night's Dream score. This was a piece I heard repeatedly when I worked on the show this spring, so it was a very beautiful moment.
Once the group left on Friday morning, I was on my own in Stratford. I spent most of the day researching at the Royal Shakespeare Archives. I really enjoyed the research. I also managed to make a mess of myself. My hands were black from the pencil I was using to write with and then I had to wear gloves for touching any of the pictures. Well there is this white powder inside the gloves that gets all over your hands. Within minutes of taking the gloves off, I had the powder in my hair, all over my face, all over my dark pants and black long sleeve shirt. It was ridiculous. I get dirty no matter what I am doing.
After doing research, I found the Dirty Duck or Black Swan- this is a bar that is very popular with RSC actors. Because I am clueless to star spotting, I have no idea who else was there. I had fish n chips n peas and this fabulous 250 ml glass of wine. I ate it on the patio looking at the Avon river. After that I stumbled upon Holy Trinity Church. After a big ole glass of wine, I had some fabulous idea for photo ops. One of which was taking a picture looking up at this chandelier, getting the whole thing in standing directly under it. It took me awhile to get the best angle, and I am sure I was quite a sight to see, but it should be a really cool picture. After my photo taking antics, the cashier correctly guessed that I was a student and gave me a discount on seeing Will's grave. So much for being a sophisticated, mature adult woman. For anyone who remembers my high school photography days, the shot reminded me a lot of my study on grocery carts. ;)
As I said they were playing Mendelsohn's Nocturne, so I took a small break and just enjoyed the music and being in an old church. Then I finally found the internet cafe, I say finally because the night before I had scoured the streets for it. It was so right under my nose. A few emails later, I was back to my bed and breakfast.
The bed and breakfast was not as nice as the one the night before, but it had a unique style. E, the color scheme in my room was orange and purple with this fabulous purple light fixture! I took pictures for you! It was a very cozy night in my little orange and purple room reading, writing, and listening to the rain.
Today I got up and headed back to the archives. I was much more leery of the gloves and managed to stay (relatively) clean. I had some surprises in my research today, like it sounds like one of my productions really sucked. If you really want to know details, you can ask, but I won't bore you with specifics. I wandered around and did some shopping. Part of this shopping was very safe because I found a great thrift shop. Part of my shopping will prevent me from eating out this week, but alas, I think it was worth it.
I caught the train back to London. This was exciting on many levels, the most important being I didn't have to take a cab or bus to Banbury. On the way to Stratford, we could only take the train to Banbury and then we took a cab. It was supposed to take us 40 minutes and I think we got there in 20. Two of my friends were worried we were going to crash and die. My most immediate worry was whether or not I was going to throw up. It was awful! Mom, it was even worse than the cab ride in Puerto Rico.
The train ride was lovely. I saw some of the English countryside, did a little writing, and reading. Mostly I just stared out the window and daydreamed/enjoyed being in England.
I am in London until Wednesday and then I am taking an overnight bus to Scotland. Stratford was a good warm up of being in a new city and finding my way around. Edinborough is a lot bigger and will be more difficult but I feel a lot more confident about it. I also have a better idea on how to pack. Lightly, lightly, lightly.
My thoughts are with you and I hope everyone is well. I heard from April that there was a tornado in Stoughton. I hope everyone is safe and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.