We drove over to Stratford upon Avon and found a Tourist Information office. We were able to buy Hop on Hop Off Bus tickets and caught the next bus. There's not a whole lot really exciting to see there, but it is a charming English town and we enjoyed riding around without navigating or driving. The town is the birthplace of William Shakespeare and the entire place is built upon this. His childhood home, his wife's childhood home, and several other buildings are all available to tour. We chose not to visit them, cost more than we felt it was worth, and once the bus had made a cycle, we got off. It was overcast and windy, and I was ready to get warmed up. We found out that most of the pubs didn't open for lunch until noon, and it was only 11:15, so we got back in the car and headed to our next destination, The Upton House Estate.
This was another National Trust property, the house was originally built in the 1500's, with renovations done in 1927.
After a quick lunch in their restaurant, we were ready to tour. The owners that took it over in 1927 kept it for numerous years and upon their deaths, willed it to the Trust. The owner had been a cofounder of Shell Oil and there were numerous items in the house that reflected this. He was an art collector as well as porcelains and they were everywhere.
It was a huge house, so good to see that it's been saved from decay.
Next on the list was a drive over to a small village called Hanwell to see the remains of a castle that was once owned by Rich's descendants! We found this ENORMOUS place and learned that the new owners have been working for over four years to rebuild and restore the property. The lady of the house, Jacque, was very sweet and told us that as soon as the workers left for the day at 3:00, she would be able to chat with us and show us around. We waited for almost an hour and finally gave up at 3:45 and drove home. I was so disappointed that we didn't get to see the inside...Rich was chatting with some of the workers who told us just one room's floors were over £250,000!!!! We peeked through a window and saw them. All reclaimed wood done in a parquet type of style. Just amazing. Jacque told us she'd purchased a large framed photograph of the Cope family and promised to email us a picture of it once it was unpacked. Rich emailed her when we got back and thanked her for talking with us--and we are hoping she will follow through and send us the picture!