Second Day: Sunday, June 12, 2011

Day 2....
We got some sleep on the plane and before we knew it, we were in Manchester. We made our way through customs and were on our way.


After getting the car, we headed down to Stratford. As Simon drove, I did my best to stay awake (not very successfully!). This was my first glimpse of the English countryside...and boy is it beautiful!

We arrived in Stratford (hometown of Shakespeare) to some lovely cold and wet weather. We were both exhausted from traveling but did our best to see a few of the sights. We stopped briefly in front of a flat owned by Simon's parents (currently rent out) and then headed to see the town.

We grabbed some lunch (Simon had some fish and chips...which he was very excited about) and headed into the Royal Shakespeare Company theater. We only wandered for a bit before heading to Shakespeare's boyhood home. (I blame the complete lack of photos on being cold, wet, and very tired!)

On our way out of town, we drove past Anne Hathaway's house.

We continued heading south toward Banbury, where we would be staying the night. We arrived at the Cromwell and checked in. We both showered, in an attempt to feel human again, and left to visit Simon's grandpa. We visited for a while, but after watching Simon fall asleep (multiple times) while sitting up, I suggested we go get some rest.

We got some dinner on the way back to the hotel and barely ate anything before falling asleep (before 8 pm). Simon's tip for overcoming jet lag: when you arrive at your destination, stay awake as long as you can, then sleep until local morning time. Seemed to work for us pretty well!