The River Severn Near Bridgnorth

This scene is along the A442 as we traveled toward the south of England. The yellow flowers in the foreground look like gorse, which was abundant in North Wales.

We had traveled the familiar route to Betws-y-Coed and then continued on the A5 to Shrewsbury. The wooded mountains east of Betwe-y-Coed were very beautiful - the most impressive country through which we passed. From Shrewsbury we traveled A458 to Bridgnorth, A442 to Kidderminster, A448 to Bromsgrove and A448, A435 and A422 to Stratford-on-Avon, the birthplace of Shakespeare. May 26, 1967

Anne Hathaway's Cottage, Stratford-on-Avon

Arriving in Stratford-on-Avon, the birthplace of Shakespeare, we went to Anne Hathaway's Cottage and then drove downtown. There were a number of very attractive tudor-style buildings and a very well developed center around Shakespeare's birthplace.

There was a sidewalk market in the city square and it and the rest of the downtown area were fantastically crowded, and its not even the tourist season yet!

We drove back to the car park near Anne Hathaway's Cottage and ate lunch. There were several ducks and a number of sparrows there begging crumbs. One cute sparrow had her two fledglings with her -they apparentlay were only recently "airborne". She had them staked out in two separate willow trees - on very limber twigs. When the mother managed to grab a crumb from the slow and clumsy ducks, she would carry it to one of the young ones, and while both bobbed up and down on the willow twig she would deftly poke the crumb down the eager chick's mouth.

We went through Anne Hathaway's Cottage, and although it was not so impressive as the show put on by the sparrows, it was quite interesting. It had many old furnishings, including wooden "trenchers" for eating and straw mattresses. I learned a few things from the guide's spiel. The house, tudor style, was built about 1450. The frame of timbers was put up first and the spaces filled with mud and sticks, which hardened like adobe. In Shakespeare's time they usually ate with knife and fingers, no fork, from hollowed out wooden plates called "trenchers". When the first course was over, they turned the plate over, flat side up, for the next course which was usually cheese.

May 26, 1967

Scenes Around Stratford-on-Avon

Arriving in Stratford-on-Avon, the birthplace of Shakespeare, we went to Anne Hathaway's Cottage and then drove downtown. There were a number of very attractive tudor-style buildings and a very well developed center around Shakespeare's birthplace

At upper left is the National Provincial Bank of Stratfore, one of the most convincing examples of old Tudor style building. At upper right is one of the buildings around the Shakespeare Center and Shakespeare's Birthplace. At lower left is another thatched roof house in Stratford. At lower right is just outside Stratford as we were leaving. May 26, 1967

Rowers on the Thames River

Our pathway toward Canterbury led us across the Thames River at a considerable distance upstream from London where it was a small peaceful river. We enjoyed watching the team rowers and the sailboats on the river. May 26, 1967