On the fourth day of the trip, we get down to some real literature! We head to Paddington station for an early train ride to Shakespeare's childhood home-Stratford-on-Avon. Stratford is a gorgeous little town, full of quaint charm and little shops. The streets are lined with old Elizabethan houses, some of which seem certain to fall if you so much as look at them. Our first stop was the town center, and the Shakespeare monument.
Oliver...
The statue is surrounded by our other statues, Hamlet, Flastaff, Prince Hal, and Lady Macbeth, representing Philosophy, Comedy, History, and Tragedy respectively. The whole thing is wrapped in a garden of flowers that are mention in Shakespeare's plays.
Then we hopped on our bus tour and headed over to Shakespeare's birthplace!
Shakespeare's father was a glovemaker.
This was part of a children's scavenger hunt that goes through all five historical houses.
Outside, we were treated to songs and scenes from some classic Elizabethan players. I also bought a nine-foot poster for my classroom showing all of Shakespeare's plays.
The street outside Shakespeare's birthplace is full of quaint little shops.
Very British.
This jester represents the many fools in Shakespeare
Even more British.
I mean, you have to get a least a couple of phone booth photos.
Then back on the bus, and over to Shakespeare's grave. Birth to death: nice bit of symmetry there. I'm glad they've kept his remains in Stratford. There have been proposals to move him to Westminster Abbey, under his memorial next to Chaucer, but I think Shakespeare deserves a bit more distinction than being lumped next to all the the other notables in Westminster. This way, Shakespeare gets an entire town to himself.
This is the church where Shakespeare was baptized, buried, and his daughter married. It has been a place of worship since the 1200's (maybe eariler?) and is still an active church today. It's really amazing.
The man himself.
"Good friend, for Jesus sake, forbear/to dig the dust enclosed here/Blessed be the man who spares these stones/And cursed be he who moves my bones."
Maybe that's why they've never moved him to Westminster. The origin of the inscription is uncertain, but could very well be left by the Bard himself to be placed on his tomb.
Flanked by his family.
Original records of his baptism and burial from the church archives.
The bust above the grave.
After that, we toured Hall's Croft, home of Shakespeare's daughter and her husband, John Hall. (No pictures allowed.) It was a really cool example of a wealthy Elizabethan House. There is currently a project underway to rebuild "New Home," Shakespeare's Stratford mansion he built once he made his millions and moved back from London.
Hall's Croft
Next we went to Arden Farm, where Shakepeare's mother Mary Arden grew up. It is a working Tudor farm, and utterly fantastic. Blows the pants off Conner Prairie, mostly because everything is authentic and in use, not just for show. We were lucky enough to arrive in time for the bird-of-prey demonstration.
Then we headed back to the main town, for a little wandering, shopping, and dinner at the Old Thatch Tavern, which is exactly what it sounds like. One of about three buildings in Stratford with the original thatch roof.
The Shakespeare Monument, donated by America
Then we took the train back to London and Paddington station
Kori is sad she cannot find a bear, and we miss our Teddy.
The ever-generous Michelle has set up a blog-hop for those of us poor souls who did not make it into #NewAgent. Sigh. Always the bridesmaid. And that one time literally, which was embarrassing. But anyway, here we go! My query and first 250 words. Critique away! Carve me a new one, hopefully a better one. QUERY: Dear ____________, I saw __________________, and I hoped you might consider THE MARVELOUS ADVENTURES OF GWENDOLYN GRAY, an Upper MG Fantasy. Twelve-year-old misfit Gwendolyn Gray has an overactive imagination. It causes her no end of trouble in The City, where creativity is simply not allowed. Trouble turns to catastrophe when her ideas won’t stay inside of her head and: forests spring up in the middle of the road, furry orange creatures run amok in her bedroom, and she certainly didn't mean to make that girl in class grow a pair of rabbit ears. When the popular kids chase her all the way to the edge of The City, Gwendolyn runs afoul of the Faceless Gentle...
For our last day and a half, we had some more literature inspired spots to hit! First off, The London Zoo, home of Winnie the Bear, inspiration for Winnie the Pooh. A.A.Milne took his soon Christopher Robin here all the time. Born in Captivity Winnie! Otterly Adorable After the zoo, we booked it over to Westminster Abbey for our tour. The cathedral is amazing. I'll give some pics, but they aren't mine, since no photography is allowed. How does this connect to literature, you ask? Well, lets take a look at some of the graves and monuments in the Abbey. Some are buried here, some just commemorated. Though you can't see it well, this is Chaucer's grave. This is the centerpiece of what is now called Poet's corner, full of graves and monuments to famous creative individuals. Also, some other notables... One of the most notable...
Things are heating up here at stately Williamson manor. The new author head-shots are in, courtesy of And y at Andrew Hoffman - Scheer Hoffman Creative. A huge thanks to him for all his hard work on these, I could not BE more pleased with them. And a new author bio to go with it! B. A. Williamson is a proud Gryffindor and the overly caffeinated writer of The Marvelous Adventures of Gwendolyn Gray . When not doing battle with the demons in the typewriter, he can be found wandering Indianapolis with his family, singing in a tuxedo, or taming middle-schoolers. He is a recipient of the Eli Lilly Teacher Creativity Fellowship. Please direct all complaints and your darkest secrets to @BAWrites on social media, or visit gwendolyngray.com.
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