Warwick Castle and Stratford-upon-Avon


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March 31st 2009
Published: March 31st 2009
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Warwick CastleWarwick CastleWarwick Castle

Not a very good shot I know but somehow it's the only I got of the whole castle.
One of my friends and I signed up for a guided tour to Warwick Castle and Stratford-upon-Avon, the home of William Shakespeare which is about 2 hours north of where I live by bus. It turned out to be a pretty good deal. Warwick Castle was really cool and the surrounding countryside was beautiful. I was very click-happy with my camera that day! So I picked just a few of what I took to put up here.
Warwick Castle is run by the same company that runs Madame Tussauds, which is a very famous wax sculpture museum, so Warwick has several exhibits now that feature rooms replicated to the late 1800's or to medieval times complete with very detailed wax sculptures of historical figures. We only saw one of these exhibits because as we entered the second one, which was the medieval one and began with a rather dim and scary passageway, a very loud recorded voice started speaking to us. It was part of the exhibit but my companion, Shannon, is not too fond of wax, and so just about peed her pants when the sculptures appeared to be speaking to us. After that we decided to go explore the rose garden instead.

Stratford-upon-Avon was what I expected it to be - cute, small, cheesy, and full of tourists. I enjoyed seeing the building that William Shakespeare inhabited, which to be honest, it's amazing that they are still standing being nearly 500 years old. Unfortunately the theatre of the Royal Shakespeare Company was under construction and covered in scaffolding. Their season starts in about a month so I say they'd better hurry up. There were lots of shops and restaurants named cheeky things like The Food of Love Cafe and As You Like It Pastries. There was a large statue of Falstaff in the town centre and there were cute little two-person rowboats named after Shakespeare's characters for rent on the Avon, a small tributary of the Thames. It was very pretty and I'm glad I saw it but after the novelty wears off, it's really just a little tourist trap.


Additional photos below
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The RampartsThe Ramparts
The Ramparts

So the stairs up to the ramparts were scary. I should think when the castle was attacked half of the soldiers killed themselves while attempting to climb those stairs to defend the castle.
The MoundThe Mound
The Mound

This artfully landscaped hill was the original site of Warwick Castle built by William the Conquerer, of which one small wall still remains.
View of Guy's Tower from InsideView of Guy's Tower from Inside
View of Guy's Tower from Inside

We went to the top of the tower. There were over 500 stairs in one long winding spiral stone staircase.
Entrance to the dungeonEntrance to the dungeon
Entrance to the dungeon

The dungeon was a tiny circular room where prisoners were often kept for years at a time. It gave me the creeps.
Weapons as ArtWeapons as Art
Weapons as Art

Weapons on display in the Great Hall
Ready for the JoustReady for the Joust
Ready for the Joust

A replica of a knight in his jousting armor.
The 1890'sThe 1890's
The 1890's

This was one of the rooms designed as a replica of the late 1800's complete with wax people.
Sword in the StoneSword in the Stone
Sword in the Stone

I guess I'm not the next King of England. Oh well.


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