This morning we got up, packed and got ready, and headed out to find some breakfast. Then we set out to look at all of the Shakespeare sights. The first place we went was his birthplace. The museum was set up nicely, with a few rooms in the museum to go through and watch short videos telling about his life and decorations and artifacts to look at. Then we went into the house. There were guides there to tell us about the rooms and life in the house back in Shakespeare's times. We saw the room where his dad made gloves (he was a glove maker, and eventually the mayor of the town). In this room, the guide was dressed as a bard and after telling us all about the gloves and items in the room, regaled us with a sonnet, number 116, all about love. Awww! We also saw the bedrooms and where he was probably born. It was neat to walk in this very old house. It was also kindof cool to think about this house as well as the style of architecture of the town and how it looked like this when my ancestors left to come to America.
 |
| Shakespeare's birthplace |
 |
| What a bed looked like in the Tudor period. The children all slept in the parents' room until they were old enough to not catch the house on fire. |
 |
| Don't bump your head, Scott! People were apparently a lot shorter back then. I walked through without having to duck. |
Next, we visited a couple of houses that belonged to his granddaughter and daughter. They were interesting, but nothing too amazing. One of the houses did have a beautiful garden, though.
 |
| Beautiful trellis work out in the garden. |
 |
| A beautiful English garden, even in early November! |
 |
| The front room of Shakespeare's daughter's house. She married a doctor so they were pretty well off. |
Then we walked to the church where he and a lot of his family are buried. He is buried inside the church behind the alter. Apparently he was important in the church.
 |
| Shakespeare's grave |
 |
| A monument to Shakespeare in the church. |
After that, we went back to our hotel, checked out, had some lunch, then drove to one last sight. This was the farm where Shakespeare's wife grew up. Again, with guides to tell stories about life on a farm back then and how the house had been built. It has a thatched roof, and we learned that one of the origins of the expression "raining cats and dogs" came from the fact that cats and dogs would run around on the roofs to keep the vermin out. When it rained, the thatch was slick and the animals came falling off. Ha!
 |
| Shakespeare's wife's family home. Notice the thatched roof. |
 |
| The main living space of the home. |
After that, we headed out of town toward Huncote, where the Honeycutts supposedly came from. Sadly, when we got there, we almost drove through it without stopping because there wasn't really anywhere to stop. There were no buildings old enough for us to visit that were in the day of my ancestor. All records were kept in a neighboring city which was where all county records were kept. So, all I got was a picture of a sign that said Huncote. I think I'm going to have to plan a trip to Great Britain again just to do family research. :)
 |
| Huncote. Don't blink or you'll miss it. |
We headed back to London where we had to go around our elbows to get to our noses to get to our hotel after dropping off the rental car. Oh, and we got off the bus too early and had to walk over a mile in the dark to get to our hotel. But when we arrived, we were exhausted and ready to rest.
This trip has been so wonderful, but I am ready to go home. I'll never forget all of the neat places and fun times we had!
No comments:
Post a Comment