A few months ago a friend and I were discussing ‘Bucket Lists’ and it turned out that we had a few similar items on our lists.

Although not technically on mine, one of the things she had was to go and watch Shakespeare at Stratford Upon Avon and asked if I fancied going along for a bit of a jolly.

Well as you know, I am always up for an adventure and we started looking at what plays were being performed.

Eventually we decided to have a look at ‘A Comedy of Errors’ which was playing in the outside theatre, which WAS on my list so it was absolutely perfect.

A Comedy of Errors

Of course we didn’t want to go when there was a chance of poor weather, so we opted for a date in August. Choosing a midweek date when it hopefully wouldn’t be too busy, I asked if she wanted to make a little break of it and stay overnight.

We started looking at hotels and I found a pretty decent deal on Booking.com which gave us an overnight at the Crowne Plaza hotel, with spa facility and breakfast included.

The Hotel looked pretty good…

All we needed to do now was wait a couple of months until the date finally arrived.

So there we were, on an exceedingly sunny day in August, travelling towards Stratford for a jolly old adventure.

A Selfie to Set Off On

We arrived at the Crowne Plaza and boy, was it a lovely looking hotel. Stunning interior design met us at the door and it was exceedingly inviting. Being perennially early, we couldn’t book into our room quite yet so decided to go to the bar and have a drink.

Beautiful Crowne Plaza

Opting to sit out in the garden area, we were thrilled again by the designs. Chairs made from faces, a large fairy light bedecked tee-pee, large sails for shade AND it was right on the river too.

We both ordered. A Mojito for her and a mocktail for me.

Mocktail Time

And we waited.

And waited.

And waited.

The maitre’d came up after 30 minutes and asked if we would like any more drinks or food. We explained that we were still waiting for our first drink to arrive!

He was pretty mortified and got on the case pretty quickly.

When the drinks arrived, we decided to order food and hope that the delivery wouldn’t take quite as long. Thankfully it arrived in about 15 minutes and was absolutely delicious!

Absolutely Delicious

We finished eating and went to check in. The room seemed to be miles away from the lift, but thankfully I had my rolling walker with me so it wasn’t quite as bad.

Opening the door, we were thrilled with the room itself. Lots of space, crisp and clean and whilst the view wasn’t  brilliant, we didn’t intend spending that much time in there.

Lovely Decor

However, we did need to unpack so we put the kettle on and had a cup of tea whilst hanging up our clothes. I have to admit, there may have been a bit of a nana nap in there somewhere too!

Eventually it was time to leave for the show. We weren’t too sure where the theatre was, but knew it wasn’t too far. Heading across the car park we found ourselves heading in what we thought was the right direction. A very helpful gentleman stopped and asked if we needed help.

Hamlet

Advising us that it was literally five minutes walk, directly opposite, we took his advance and headed that way. Now, I have visited Stratford before and knew what the RSC looked like and I could actually see it from where we were standing.

We took a slow walk, stopping for pictures of architecture, scenery and of course, the odd photograph.

Rainbow Lady

Arriving at the RSC we were ushered through to the Lydia and Manfred Gorvy Garden Theatre. Being shown to some seats at the front of the theatre, we settled down to watch the play.

What a Seat!

Several actors came out onto the stage and started doing the ‘1-2, check’ things with their microphones. Then more joined in, chanting and singing until it almost became a cacophony of noise.

I have to admit at that point I was thinking….. ‘Oh boy, what the hell have I let myself in for, here?’

Play time

However five minutes into the play and I was totally sucked in.

The play was exceptional; funny, serious, modern yet old. The cast were multi-talented and made the whole production exciting and fresh.  I literally loved every second of it.

What a Fantastic Sight

Walking back to the hotel we were both so enthused about what we had seen. Talking about all the various  bits we liked the most and what we made of the whole performance.

Both of us agreed that it was absolutely outstanding!

Simply Beautiful

Getting back to the hotel we decided to have a nightcap before bed. Another tasty mocktail sitting by the river was the perfect end to the first day.

The Hotel Bar

Waking up early, we had plans for the day which included bimbling around town and seeing the sights. First of all though, we had breakfast to head to.

Included in the hotel cost, we intended to make the most of the breakfast so we had something to sustain us for our sightseeing.

On the Way to Breakfast

The hotel had an amazing array of items on offer; full English, continental, cereals, pastries, yoghurts and compotes.

Opting for the full works, It was lovely to sit over a meal, chatting away about the plans for the day. The main thing we wanted to see was Shakespeare’s birthplace and possibly Anne Hathaway’s house.

Original Tudor Design

Heading back to the room we got ready for the day ahead and packed our cases, ready to check out. The process was slick and simple and once the car was packed we walked into the main town to have a look around and see what Stratford had to offer.

Selfie Time

As you can expect, Stratford is an absolutely gorgeous little place; medieval buildings, flowers bursting everywhere, and the River Avon running through it.

Shakespeare’s Birthplace

Spotting the ‘Big Red Bus’ company, we made a decision that after we had finished walking through the town, we would get on the bus and take a tour. Having used these in many European Countries, I know that they are reasonably priced and full of facts and interesting information.

The Jester

Walking around the town, we had to stop for selfies and photos of Shakespeare’s House which was just fantastic to see. We headed up to the top of main pedestrian area as that was where the bus did one of its pickups.

On the Buses

We popped onboard, paid for our tickets and I slowly made my way upstairs to sit in the open topped area to take advantage of all the views and take some pictures.

What a Lampost!

The whole tour takes about an hour and the day was sunny and bright. Take lots of photographs, it was fascinating listening to the audio and learning about the Town and its history.

Anne Hathaway’s House

We went around for the whole hour but didn’t ‘hop on and off’. We were more than happy to just listen and learn about Stratford. The ticket was valid until the next day so we could have got back on at any point.

The Wheels on the Bus…..

However we decided to get off, have another walk around before stopping for a coffee.

The Ghost of Shakespeare

We eventually headed back down towards the riverside. The weather was stunning and we decided the final treat of the day was ice-cream and a boat ride on the River Avon.

Here Comes The Boat

As there were a lot of swans and geese on the river, we bought a pack of feed to throw to them whilst enjoying the ice cream. They were hilarious, all flocking around and having a jolly old time vying for the pellets of food.

Food Time

We hopped on the three o’clock boat and sat right at the front to get a good view. The river was busy with pleasure craft, punts, canoes and even Olympic style rowing sculls.

On the Gorgeous Avon

It was so lovely just watching the world go past whilst we enjoyed the sun and took lots of photographs.

Sail Away

Eventually our time was up and we took a slow walk back to the hotel where the car was parked for the drive home. Popping our bags and souvenirs into the boot, we said goodbye to beautiful Stratford, with the promise that we would be back to watch another play soon.

A Dream Home

The perfect end to a wonderful adventure.

Till next time,

SPSG xxx