Warwick, Hogwarts, and Shakespere?

Let me just start with, "Wow--what a day!" 

We're on tour again, so it's up at 6am (remember, we're not used to that!), downstairs for breakfast, and a bus pickup at the hotel.  Today we're visiting Oxford, Stratford upon Avon, and Warwick Castle.  So, it's the usual confusion and mess at the bus station, but in no time, we're off and driving to Oxford, about a hundred miles north of London.

Oxford is known for it's university (and colleges).  It is also known for having the dining hall that was used in at least the first Harry Potter movie.  They led us around past many of the colleges.  They all looked very Ivy League-ish, but 500 years old.  Lot's and lots of famous people, both British and American, have graduated from there.

We hop back into the bus, and it's on to Stratford upon Avon (the birthplace of William Shakespere).  But we no sooner get out of town and the tour guide gets on the intercom and announces that the bus has lost power and we will be coasting to a stop.  After sitting for about five minutes, the driver tried again and the bus started up, so off we went.  We seemed to be able to continue on at a slow speed and so we tried to make it to our next town.  En route, the driver and the tour guide were busy on their cell phones.  The plan was to have a new bus or a mechanic there while we were on tour.

Stratford Upon Avon was a very touristy place.  There was a long pedestrian only street , lined with shops and, of course, the original home where Shakespere was born.  No photographs allowed inside, but it was all OK, but let's eat!  When we arrived back at the bus, the driver was happy to announce that they figured out the problem and fixed it!  Happy Day!

So, it's off to Warwick Castle--only a few miles away.  It seems that it was in the hands of a wealthy family until one of the most recent heirs spent the family fortune.  In a last-ditch effort to pay his bills (after he sold a Van Gogh and another famous piece of art) he sold the family castle in 1978.  The buyer was the "Madame Tussaud" Group and soon turned the castle into a sort of Disneyland park.  It was crowded with families being entertained by all sorts of period entertainers.  It was also full of wax characters in period costume.  We were announced as we entered the Great Hall--"Lady Brown and her Lover!".  It was all interesting and fun.

Well, it's been a fun day, but IT'S TIME TO GO HOME!  We have at least a 2 1/2 hour drive back to London. We all climb in the bus and head for home.  We are not too long before we start seeing road signs that announce an accident ahead on the highway.  And sure enough, a little way down the road we run into the end of a very long line of stopped vehicles on the roadway.  We sat there for two and a half hours without so much as an inch of progress.  We found out that there was a fatality and the police were investigating.  There were no side roads or frontage roads or even shoulders.  There was nothing we could do except wait.  Well, pretty soon, people were wanting off the bus and they were running off to the side of the road into the bushes! 

We didn't arrive back home until 10pm!  We were tired and exhausted and hungry and tired!  We went into the first restraunt we saw (past McDonnalds) and ate.  Hopped on the Tube and went one stop to our hotel and crashed! Print this post