Wednesday, May 11, 2011

In an English Country Garden...

Hubby whisked me off to Stratford upon Avon for the weekend on Saturday evening after work, as my Birthday treat.
We stayed at the Shakespeare Hotel right in the town centre and were awoke the next morning by a fun run about to start outside our hotel window!
We decided not to stay in Stratford itself on Sunday, due to the crowds that the event had attracted. Instead we headed off to Warwick. We thought we'd visit the castle, but the entrance fee was quite expensive - I'm sure it would be great fun for a family with young children, but to us on our own, it seemed that it had become more of a theme park since our last visit - Merlin, the TV series, was filmed here and had left its mark...so we decided not to go in.
Just outside the entrance to the castle we noticed a small sign advertising Mill Garden.
This small garden has been featured in many national magazines and has the added draw of being sandwiched between the great castle walls and the River Avon.
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For our £1.50 entrance fee, we still enjoyed the castle experience - From the river bank we were able to sit and watch the firing of the trebuchet on the other side of the river, within the castle grounds...
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The garden itself was beautiful too and we spent a lovely hour there.
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Then it was time for a tea stop...
In rosey china!
Perfect!
Later on we visited the Lord Leycester Hospital buildings.
And the Master's Garden.
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A lovely day, then it was back to Stratford for an evening meal at the hotel...
Followed by a late night walk by the river.
Monday morning, and it was time to tour Stratford itself, properly.
First, we did the tour of Shakespeare's Birthplace.
Photos aren't allowed inside this ancient home, but they were allowed in the gardens...
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The entrance fee also allows access to Hall's Croft and Nash's House, and New Place.
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A lovely weekend.
On our way home, we stopped outside Anne Hathaway's Cottage. We've visited here before, so didn't go inside.
I've had so many vintage postcards of this view for sale in my shop in the past, its like seeing an old friend when standing outside it for real.
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Hope you had a lovely weekend too!
Niki x
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17 comments:

  1. Che bello!Mi sono incantata a guardare tutto!!!Rosetta

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  2. Dear Niki,
    Lovely posting. We were in Stratford in January and visited many of the same places. We had the same thought as you on the Castle in Warwick and didn't go in.
    I agree with you there is something of a deja vu moment when you see Anne Hathaway's cottage!
    Glad you had a good time!
    June

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  3. What a lovely way to spend a birthday weekend. My deja vu moment came with the shots of the potting shed (maybe?) of the Master's Garden. It reminds me very much of the herbarium in the Cadfael series.
    I'll be showing your photos to my husband later: he went to uni at Warwick.

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  4. What a lovely weekend you had and good weather!

    Sandie xx

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  5. Oh what wonderful photos ~ thank you so much for the virtual tour ~ so lovely to have enjoyed it from afar! I know what you mean about Anne Hathaway's cottage ~ I have a vintage print of it, which is my all-time favourite, and seeing your photo was just so special! So glad that you were able to enjoy a very special birthday weekend away! Just lovely! Love Brenda

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  6. That sounds like a perfect birthday weekend -- the pictures are lovely! I admit that the gardens made me a bit envious, though...spring comes so late here in the northern USA.

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  7. Happiest of Birthdays to you! Hope your week is fantastic! Lovely pictures...we can only experience the beauty from pics like yours, and it makes me want to visit there so bad!! Thanks so much for sharing your birthday trip with us!
    Blessings, Doni

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  8. This beautiful photographic journey to Stratford.
    Thanks.
    Angela

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  9. Oh my! What a gorgeous place, Niki! Love, love the thatched cottages and lovely gardens.
    Monica x.

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  10. Your pictures were lovely as always. Stratford has always been one of our favorite places.
    We prefer Mary Arden's house to Anne Hathaways because they just let you wander all over, and once I did a falcon flying course there.

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  11. Thank you for sharing your wonderful weekend, it some a magical plase. It is some years since I have been there myself and would so love to go again. Sue x

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  12. Hello Niki,
    So pleased to read you had such a lovely birthday weekend away. Inspirational photos ... haven't been that way for years and you have made me want to go again now (not the Castle though). xx

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  13. Anonymous9:25 am

    Happy belated birthday.
    Have you read Germaine Greer's book about Anne Hathaway? It's fascinating - all about Tudor ladies lives. She thinks male historians have done Anne down and she says the 'second best bed' Shakespeare left her was actually their marriage bed and so she thinks it was a very touching bequest and not the insult it has been claimed to have been!

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  14. Happy belated Birthday Niki,
    Lovely post of 'my' area, its not far from us, and we really SHOULD go more!!
    love Sue (Bedworth) xx

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  15. so glad you reposted, this was a lovely read and the visuals are very evocative, I haven't been to Straford since 2009 but it will be on my list of outings once this degree work is out of the way!

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  16. Happy Birthday!

    The places which you visited much better than Castle but Warwich Castle is beautiful too. I like the mill area so much. Here is some photos from my blog http://berceste.blogspot.com/2006/08/warwick-castle.html

    I would like to be in UK and visit the gardens which you visited!

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  17. Lovely photos. Thank you so much for the tour. I hope to visit England one day.

    The third picture down, the buildings and the street, remind me of the PBS show Foyles War. So much of the English countryside seems unchanged from previous years (maybe I'm wrong?). That is one of the draws for me. Life seems as if it would be a bit more laid back, less hurried.

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Thank you for finding the time to visit me...
Niki xx