Day 20 - Stratford-upon-Avon

We didn't have a specific site visit today when we went to Stratford-upon-Avon which is a nice little town, better known as the birthplace of William Shakespeare. But we did have tickets to see As you Like It at night, so after a three hour bus ride, I spent the day window shopping. Of course I did stop in at the public library:

Inside though, you'd never know you were in such an old building - it is a thoroughly modern library, with self-check kiosks to both take out and return books, and was very bright and airy. 

And the performance was just absolutely amazing - I have not seen a live Shakespeare performance for a very long time, and this one just blew me away. I was a little skeptical going in, as it was a modern adaptation, with the actors in current, hipster/hippie clothing. But it was just so good, there really is no way to describe it, other than the fact that it totally made up for waiting all day just for the play!

I don't think I posted these pictures, so I'll add them here since it is such a short blog post. The yellow building in the middle is the Kings College Stamford Street Apartments, where my flat is located:

And the courtyard it opens up to, which sadly my room faces an alley and not the lovely courtyard:

I am officially half way through my trip - it at the same time feels like I've been here forever and also that it is flying by. I keep reminding myself that the Wales trip was the same trip, as it feels like it was forever ago. Looking at the syllabus, the next 20 days look like they are going to fly by - Sunday we leave for Edinburgh, and I'll then be in Scotland for a week, and then when we come back there is only one week left in London and then back home. A few people are looking into changing flights so they can stay longer, which sounds lovely in theory but I'm pretty sure I will be ready for some home-cooked meals, even if I'm not ready to go home!