Day ten had some of the worst weather of the trip, but we still made the most of it! We started the morning with a quick breakfast before meeting with the group in the lobby of the hotel. From there, we had about a thirty minute walk to the train station in pouring rain, and by the time we arrived, my feet were completely soaked! After scanning our tickets into the train station, we waited for around fifteen minutes for the train to arrive. Luckily, when it did arrive, we were able to find seats for the hour-long ride, and of course, I took advantage of the time by taking an amazing nap.
After getting off of the train, we officially arrived in Stratford-upon-Avon, the hometown of William Shakespeare. We walked to Bancroft Gardens to meet our tour guide Tim, who would be showing us around for the day. The gardens were absolutely beautiful, and were filled with statues of famous Shakespeare characters from many of his plays. While we were there, Tim shared several interesting facts about Shakespeare and his life. One fact that stood out to me was that Shakespeare was both born and died on April twenty-third. I thought that was such a strange coincidence and it was something I had not learned about Shakespeare before.
From the gardens, we continued walking through Stratford-upon-Avon towards Holy Trinity Church. Along the walk, we followed the river and saw countless swans swimming in the water. I had seen pictures of swans before, but I was honestly surprised by how huge they were in person. We also stopped at the Royal Shakespeare Company, which had a tower attached to it as part of the building. The tower provided a panoramic view of Stratford-upon-Avon, and it truly helped me appreciate how historic and beautiful it was.
Eventually, we made it to Holy Trinity Church, which is the church where William Shakespeare was baptized and where he and his wife, Anne Hathway, are buried. During the tour, we learned that historians believe another body may have been removed from the church so there would be space to bury Shakespeare there. Before leaving, I also stopped in the gift shop and found a beautiful red rosary that immediately made me think of my grandma. I bought it for her, and I am so excited to be able to give it to her when I get back home!
After the church tour, we had some free time and a long lunch break, which was very much needed at that point. We were absolutely starving, so a group of us decided to stop for brunch at a place called Mor. I ordered maple bacon and butter French toast with scrambled eggs on the side, and it was probably one of the best meals I have had on the trip so far. We spent a lot of time sitting there warming up and enjoying a break from the rain, before deciding to venture back outside.
Once we finished eating, we spent some time walking around Stratford-upon-Avon and exploring the local shops. Even though I did not end up buying anything, it was still fun to browse through all of the little stores and window shops with friends. I also got to experience the local life and saw SO many cute dogs walking around with their owners. They all had their own little raincoats and had their fur styled perfectly which was the cutest thing ever!
Finally, to finish off the day, we visited William Shakespeare’s childhood home, which was one of the most interesting parts of the entire trip. The house was much larger than I had imagined, and it clearly reflected the wealth of Shakespeare’s family. Inside, we were able to see the workshop where Shakespeare’s father made gloves, and we also saw the room that belonged to Shakespeare himself when he was around five years old. Walking inside the house felt absolutely surreal, because we were walking on the original stone floors that Shakespeare and his family walked on. Another interesting thing that we learned during the house tour was that after Shakespeare inherited the house from his father, he already owned another home, so he rented the old house out to a man who turned it into a pub.
Although the weather throughout the entire day was cold and rainy, day ten was still a super fun day. I enjoyed learning more about Shakespeare, as a theatre kid myself, and I truly appreciated the beauty of the town. Today was our final day to be in Birmingham, and tomorrow I can’t wait to tell you all about our first day in London!