Who can make a sunrise? The Cadbury man can!

The weather on Sunday was behaving like Julia Gillard's accent: bad, then really bad, then almost acceptable, then brain hemorrhaging! To play it safe we decided an indoors activity was best...and what better indoors activity than Cadbury World!

The Cadbury family were/are quite astonishing not only in their business and chocolateering acumen, but also in their social support. The location of the Cadbury factory is in Bourneville. The town itself didn't exist before the factory was established. However given the squalor that the workers were forced to live in in nearby Birmingham the Cadbury family built hundreds of homes for their employees and families. Hence, Bourneville was created! The humanitarian tenets of the company are rarely spoken of but it is amazing to see what they have provided for the community over the years.

Cadbury World is a bit lame but the chocolate makes it all worth while. After watching some very dodgy re-enactments of how the first Dairy Milk bar was made you get to make your own chocolate which consists of mixing liquid chocolate with a huge selection of lollies and other sweets.

There is a tour of the packaging factory which is very interesting to see how everything is prepared and watching the giant robots packing the pallets with boxes of chocolate. At almost every stage of the tour you get another block of chocolate handed to you...unfortunately not by an Oompa Loompa, although I kept expecting to find Gene Wilder hiding behind each corner!

Overall the day was a lot of fun,  a lot of chocolate was consumed and the weather turned out to be really good in the end...shame about Julia though.

Uncle Martin and I holding up the sign

Earning my keep

As I mentioned in an earlier post Martin and Hilary are currently building a new house at the back of their property. At the same time they are renovating their current house...so they have been very busy.

Here I was thinking that my time in the UK would be easy and relaxed...no I would be put to work from the moment I walked in the front door. OK maybe not quite that soon. I did lend a hand in pulling out the old hallway ceiling and chopping up a monstrous pile of wood from their old garden beds, ready to be used in the fireplace this winter!

It was very dusty!

Warwick Castle

After visiting the town of Warwick on Wednesday I returned on Friday to conquer the castle. The place is huge and very impressive! I arrived around 11am and didn’t leave until about 4pm...a very big day. Warwick Castle was built by William the Conqueror in 1068 after he had invaded England. Since then it has been the home to the Earl of Warwick right up until 1978.

The Castle was built in various stages from a simple wooden fortification, to a motte-and-bailey castle, to a feared dungeon and then to a country house. It has a very interesting history involving some pretty gruesome wars and a lot of royal scandals including illegitimate children and cheating countesses. It is by far one of the best castles remaining in Britain and one of their most loved.

There are two main towers as part of the Castle’s upgrade between 1330 - 1360 under Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick; Guy’s Tower and Caesar’s Tower. Climbing the towers is a lot of fun...although I advise you not to get stuck behind an overweight middle-aged woman when walking up the five storeys of stairs to the top of Guy’s Tower, the highest point of the Castle). The view from the top though makes it worthwhile. The towers were used for accommodation as well as providing access to the dungeons which have held various Kings and Queens in its history.

The main building was designed as a country house and has received numerous upgrades since it first was constructed. Many Kings and Queens have stayed in the Castle over the years. Queen Anne’s bed was delivered to the castle in preparation for her visit...but she died before she arrived. The bed is still in the Queen Anne room with her insignia stitched into the silk on the headboard. There are a number of staterooms each of which more elaborate than the next. There is a clock on the wall in Queen Anne’s intended boudoir (fancy dressing room) that is believed to have belonged to Marie Antoinette. Each of the large staterooms are themed. First is the ladies’ red room, followed by the oak room and finally the men’s green room.

The bedrooms are upstairs and not as elaborate as the staterooms downstairs. However, Prince Charles’ supposed room when visiting is all whittled out of oak!

The whole Castle is very cool...and sadly very busy on the day I went...but all in all a great day!

The front gate

The raising of the portcullis
(big gate thing that goes up into the ceiling and is pointy and stuff)

View of main building from Guy's Tower

The photo that makes my trip tax deductible!!!

David Kidd?

Don't turn a night out into a Knightmare!

The formal state room
(a wedding was being held the next day hence the chairs)

Queen Anne's room and bed

Looking down on the main hall
(Before fireplaces existed a bonfire was lit in the middle of the floor)

Prince Charles' room when he visited
(Not the current Prince Charles)

Clock believed to have belonged to Marie Antoinette

Wednesday's Wet Warwick

In the afternoon on Wednesday I dropped into the town of Warwick which is on the same train line and only a couple of stops up from Stratford. Warwick is well known for the Warwick Castle, one of the oldest and most interesting castles in Britain.

I had my ticket booked to see the castle...but there wasn't enough time...and the weather was miserable. So instead I wondered around the small town of Warwick visiting a number of their other attractions.

First was St John's house, a 17th century mansion which is now a museum showcasing the lives of Warwickshire people over the last 300 years. Also inside the house is the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers Museum which explains the story of the Royal Warwickshire Regiment since 1674. An interesting place...but not very exciting.

Next up was Smith Street which has many medieval buildings dotted along the road. These buildings survived Warwick's Great Fire in 1694 which managed to flatten most of the town. At the end of Smith St is a big clock tower which is now part of an all girls school.

The tourist information centre is located in an old Georgian building which used to house the local council. Also in the building is the Warwickshire Yeomanry Museum (I couldn't find the entrance though!) Around the corner is the Collegiate Church of St Mary which houses the Earls of Warwickshire tombs. The church and each of it's chapels are incredible. The catacombs beneath the church are a little spooky as well! I didn't climb the massive tower...too windy and rainy.

In keeping with consistency I went to the Warwickshire Magistrates Court...another very old building...and may have taken a slightly illegal photo of one of the court rooms (don't tell the British Government) although the court rooms weren't that impressive.

Further into the town centre was Market Hall which was built in 1670 and now houses the County Museum. Of particular interest in the museum was a tapestry map of the midlands of the United Kingdom. Some of the photos are below. The tapestry was huge and very intricate.

The Lord Leycester Hospital wasn't open for visitors at the time I visited but it is still impressive to look at outside as it was built during the 14th and 15th century. It is now a rest home for retired servicemen and houses the Queen's Own Hussars Museum.

That's about all there is in Warwick...apart from the castle. It's a smallish town that rides on the fact that they have a GIANT castle. The castle would have to wait for another day though...

St John's House

Order of the Bath

Medieval clock tower
(Now part of private girls school)

Bell tower to St Mary's

Inside St Mary's
Stained glass window at the back is a very long way away!

The crypts underneath the church

The Greville Vault (1770 -  )
(Greville family were Earls of Warwick from 1759 - 1978)

Beauchamp Chapel - part of St Mary's
(Contains tombs of old Earls of Warwick)

Sheldon Tapestry Map

Avon calling!

Tuesday saw me at Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. This not so little town is very picturesque and quite a busy destination. It was well worth catching the 3 different trains it took to get there!

I had just missed the start of the walking tour so I managed to swipe one of the official guide books from the Tourist Information office. I wandered around the place looking at some of the old buildings that have been standing there since the early 1500s. Obviously I went to see some of the properties held by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust. Walking through the rooms of the house were WS was born was very exciting! His house is almost the town centre and completely furnished with period appropriate items. out in the courtyard behind the house are reenactments of some of his more well known scenes from various plays. The house is quite large as the family was relatively wealthy - his father being the mayor of Stratford for a period of time.

I also managed to visit Hall's Croft which was the home to WS's daughter and her husband. Some of the original furniture remains and it looks incredible...they were quite wealthy given that the husband was a doctor.

Also on the "tour" was New Place which was the name of the house where WS spent the last 15 years of his life with his family. The house itself was demolished in 1759 but an archaeological dig on the site shows the original foundations and some of the cellars which were added in later renovations. The site is next to another home called Nash's House which belonged to WS's grand-daughter  and her husband. The original house must have been huge as the dig site is spread out over quite a large area with a massive garden at the back.

Also along the way was the Swan Theatre which is part of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, all of which is under renovation and closed to the public.

There was so much to see in Stratford-upon-Avon I went back on Wednesday as well!

Wednesday morning I visited Anne Hathaway's Cottage which is about a mile out from Stratford...a long walk especially in the drizzling rain! The cottage is an old farmhouse on a huge piece of land with orchards and sculpture gardens at the rear. Inside has original furniture from WS's days of courting Anne Hathaway. I managed to take a few "illegal" photos inside the house, one of which is of me sitting on a bench in front of the fire which no doubt Will and Anne sat upon at some stage. The gardens are also immaculate!

There were many more sights to be seen at Stratford-upon-Avon...too many to write here. Enjoy some of the pictures (the rest will be on Facebook soon!)

Shakespeare's home

Re-enactments of some better known scenes

Hall's Croft

Foundations of Shakespeare's final home (continues further down the back of the property)

Swan Theatre

Royal Shakespeare Theatre from across the River Avon
Popular boating area

Anne Hathaway's Cottage

 Me on the Hathaway Family Bench seat
(apparently no photos in the house...oops)

Scene: Birmingham | Take: 2

After the almost complete failure of my last trip to B'ham I thought I should give it another try. This time was much better.

On Monday I headed back to Birmingham to do the touristy things I had been planning for Friday.

Like any good law student my first destination was the Court House. The building is made from terracotta bricks and looks incredible. Inside is polished sandstone and marble with wood panelling and very ornate lighting fixtures. Unfortunately you aren't allowed to take photos inside Court Houses no matter where you are in the world. After wandering around the building for a while I slipped into the public gallery of one of the courts about to start hearing a matter. The Court Clerk wasn't impressed with the fact that I was wearing shorts and warned me that some judges may ask me to leave! I actually hadn't thought of what I was wearing at all when entering the Court House...oops! Obviously Queensland courts and judges are far more relaxed than UK ones. The Magistrate didn't even notice in the end as I watched him sentence a guy to 14 weeks imprisonment for being an all round drop-kick!

This is just the entrance!

After the Mags Court came a couple of cathedrals with some incredible stained glass windows and sandstone blocks the size of my little 121 bubble! I then found my way over to the Council Hall which is the equivalent to Brisbane's City Hall. However, the Birmingham Council Hall is far more impressive and about three times the size!

Currently there is a German food and wine festival happening in the courtyard outside the Council Hall...it smelt good!

After the Council Hall came the Art Gallery (again) which is at the back of the Hall. In the same town square is the Town Hall which boasts a pipe organ similar to Brisbane's. I'm still not sure if I was supposed to be in there...but I had the "I'm just an Aussie tourist" excuse ready to pull out!

Entrance to the Art Gallery

From there I headed over to the National Sea Life Centre, The Symphonic Hall, Repertory Theatre, Hall of Memory and a few other hidden treasures. Most of these buildings are grouped together around another set of canals and mooring areas.

Lunch (pronounced pas-tee not pay-stee as I soon found out!)

The buildings were amazing...oozing history out of the giant blocks that made them. The architecture inside them is incredible also. Before heading home I headed back to the shops (they were on the way to the station) hoping to have a look in the markets...but of course the only day they are closed is the day I was there! Perhaps another trip to beautiful Birmingham is needed then!

All locked up!

On Sunday evening we decided to go out for dinner to a pub just a short drive away called the Blue Lias. (This wasn't a stereotypical English pub - the area I'm staying in is a little bit posh!) The unique thing about the Blue Lias is that it lies right on one of the busier rural canal systems in the UK.

When I think of canals I imagine Sanctuary Cove, Hope Island and Nanna & Poppa Scott's holiday home at Southport. British canals are completely different. Firstly, unlike Sanctuary Cove (and the holiday home at Southport) there are no 40ft multi-million dollar yachts moored outside the sprawling mansions up against the water. Instead the canals are littered with long boats which can be up to 70 or 80 feet long and barely 2m wide. Secondly, unlike the Gold Coast, British canals are often no wider than a couple of metres (hence the term "Long" or "Narrow Boats".

Crazy concept but very cool to watch...especially when going through the locks.

A flight of locks.

Two narrow boats in the lock

The pub!