To explore, or not to explore.....

....it was a question which didn't need much deliberation, as we decided to pack our bags last weekend and head for Warwick and Stratford Upon Avon. We headed for Warwick, just SE of Birmingham, to see Warwick Castle which Chants and Al had recommended. We packed an overnight bag just in case one day wasn't enough. It wasn't. Warwick Castle is an entire day event. The history in this country is mind blowing! It's weekends like these that make the time here worth all the effort! One can't wait for good weather...you have to seize the moment and just do it. So we did...

The castle is a brilliant medieval fortress, but what makes it all the more interesting is that its owned by the Tussuad's group and is full of wax models which really brings it to life. More than that, they have lives displays of jousting, longbow archery, falconry etc.

Unfortunately there was not jousting or falconry when we were there but the archery was good and the trebuchet was brilliant. Its the biggest trebuchet in the world! As Walter says, 'Every boy should have one of those in their back yard!' It was used in war time and the entire contraption weights 22 tones. The whole thing dismantles and has not held together with glue or nails. It all fits together like a puzzle using wooden pins to lock it in place. In the demo, they flung a 15 kg rock into the air which must have gone 150m. Apparently it can fling objects weighing up to 150kg. In war time they would use not only chunks of rocks but flaming balls of pitch, bee hives and more would all be flung into the enemies camp. Dead animals also. Apparently pigs were favoured (as they are the right size and aerodynamic). The flesh would burst open spreading disease, especially if it gets into their water supply, forcing them to eventually surrender. The bees would get in behind their armour, forcing them to disarmour themselves making them vulnerable. That's when they would strike with arrows killing hundreds!

Loading the trebuchet! The system is wound up by men running in the giant hamster wheels on the side.

The Great Hall is full of rare pieces of armour.

Down in the basements, the Blacksmith's helper keeps the coals hot!

My favourite part is seeing how they lived in those days. With the wax models, it really does bring the Castle to life. Pure opulence!

This is the river Avon, flowing down beside the castle. In the pic you can see a little room on the right of the castle...that's the power room, where the water wheel turned turbines which powered the castle.

My Prince Charming!

After a hard day of castle exploring, we pulled into a quaint little B&B and collapsed. Later we hit a Chinese restaurant in town, and then collapsed properly. (The Fyvie's know how to act!)

Sunday we did Stratford Upon Avon. It's is only 15min south of Warwick so we simply had to include another trip down history lane and see who this William Shakespeare we all were forced to study about in English class was. A chilly day didn't deter the tourists of which there were many.

Stratford is a beautiful little place, full of the most amazing architecture, wonky houses, and vibrant flower beds.

We were fortunate to see how the locks work. Quite interesting actually. There are many of these long boats on the rivers and canals in the UK. Some people live on them, some use them just over weekends and we even saw one turned into a restaurant. Tourist even rent them to tour from one place to another! Below is William Shakespeare place of birth. One can go on a paid tour through is house. You can see somebody in the middle window, posing as him. I thought it was a wax model from outside until he started to move...I had to take a second look.

This is the church in which Shakespeare was buried. He earned the hot spot right upfront of the church where he, his wife, his son in law and another family member were buried.

Amazing how much you can see in a weekend. After and lunch of fish and chips (a significant improvement on the Great Yarmouth lunch) we headed home.

We heard this week that our car back in RSA was broken into last weekend and the radio was stolen. One can only but smile. "The robbed that smiles steals something from the thief" (Othello, W. Shakespeare).

Something we strive for and hope we never lose...the spirit of adventure!