A Midsummer Night's Dream

Yesterday was a day of field trips and illness. Tuesday night I had a bit of a sore throat, and Wednesday morning I woke up sounding like a man and definitely groggy from some kind of sickness. I probably started feeling badly because of sleep deprivation although I seem to be sleeping plenty. Traveling tends to produce that effect. Nonetheless, I managed to make it through the day (albeit with some coughing), and I seem to feel better and better.

The British love mayonnaise. I, however, detest mayo and gag at the thought of it. The British put mayo on most things and on all salads/sandwiches I have encountered. You can imagine my horror. Yesterday, one part of my lunch was a cheese salad, which I imagined to be different types of cheeses. It was, actually, grated cheese with mayo on some lettuce. I skipped it, but did eat the onion and cheese chips which, although I thought I would hate them, turned out to be delicious! The other thing the British always do it make dessert for us. I love this about them. I love their dessert. My favorite so far was the sorbet that was the flavor of tea.

We set out at 1 PM for Stratford and, along the way, stopped off at Baddesley-Clinton where the Ferrars family (the real people whose name Austin possibly used in Sense and Sensibility). It was different from West Wycombe in every possible way, reminding one of a typical British home rather than displaying an ornate Italian style. The family housed Catholic priests when it was against the law to do so, and we saw how that room and the chapel were hidden from prying eyes. A moat surrounded the home complete with ducks, and next to the home is a garden. I saw some of the most extraordinary and unique flowers there, and then discovered that it connected to a little herb garden as well. Over a small wall was a whole pasture of sheep, which happen to roam in meadows all over the place here. The animals such as cows and sheep are all very fat and happy here, which I love.

Onward we rode to Stratford where we were given several hours to explore the town and eat dinner. Stratford was a lot like a theme park. It was small but packed, and everything had to do with Shakespeare, at least along the main roads. I first went through Shakespeare's birthplace and museum where I saw original copies of some of his plays, models of the original Globe Theater (which burned down and has since been rebuilt), and read about his family, history, players, etc. It was interesting to see the different ways in which various artists had drawn him -- each one different and yet similar on many counts -- and to learn that, even alive, he was renown. His home had many bedrooms and workrooms, even though the average size of a home at that time would have been one room on the bottom level and one on the top. The most valuable possession they had was a bed -- maybe what we would think of as a full sized mattress -- that represented wealth and was only used by guests. They displayed it in the main living room as a status symbol. Shakespeare's father made gloves and worked wool, and the cost of some nicer gloves would have been about a fourth of a schoolteacher's salary for a year. However, Shakespeare did not apprentice under him and, had he done so, he wouldn't have been able to marry until his seven year apprenticeship was over at age 21. He married Anne Hathaway, whose home we also saw, several years earlier than that.

After seeing his home, we ran into a "Witchcraft and Wizardry" Shop and stopped in. It wasn't directly linked to Harry Potter, but had the same theme, which Madison (one of the girls I nanny who's also on this trip) enjoyed. Dinner was pasta and a crepe at a cute place off of the main road. We would have searched for something out of the way with a more local fare, but we didn't have time. It was time to head off for the theater!

Arriving at the Courtyard, it reminded me on the outside of a barn or cottage and on the inside of a typical American theater such as the Paramount. However, we found our seats and discovered that it was made like a theater in the round. The audience didn't actually sit in a complete circle, but almost, and there were several levels just as it would have been when Shakespeare lived. The play was spectacular and hilarious, and Dr. Barchas who has seen many renditions of A Midsummer Night's Dream, said it was her favorite one yet. She even said it topped the one she saw with Emma Thompson in it! My favorite character was Bottom, who did a hilarious performance, but I really enjoyed the entire thing. It was a bit long, and we didn't get back until midnight, but it was well worth it.

Today was my last class day until Monday, and we finished with Sense and Sensibility. Now, on to a personal favorite: Pride and Prejudice.