Stratford

 Yes, it's true we just returned from England a couple of short weeks ago but it was PH's birthday this past weekend and he wanted to go to Stratford on Avon in Canada. PH discovered from us it's about a 4 hour drive so very easy. We were there once before but can't remember how many decades it's been. Really. We can't remember if the kids had been born yet so that makes it at least 4 decades. 

When we were in England (very recently!) we went to Stratford upon Avon for a couple of days and even though it was rainy and cold we had a wonderful time and saw a play none of us (PH, me, Brian) ever heard of - Cymbeline.

So maybe that's why PH wanted to go back to Canada's Stratford.  Or maybe he just didn't feel like unpacking his suitcase. But it was his birthday and so we went. 

Unlike the weather we had in England, this weekend the weather was picture perfect. We couldn't have ordered prettier days.  Like Stratford upon Avon, there are swans on this river Avon.

And boats.  Canoes, kayaks, this Stratford doesn't have canal boats but we did happen on this pontoon tour and since we had the time and the weather we took the river tour. 

One thing PH and I do very well together is travel.  We are both willing to pivot, willing to fly by the seat of our pants without reservations.  Sometimes we don't even make hotel reservations, we just go with the flow.  We talk to everyone we happen to be standing next to, we find out where the locals eat, what we should see, where we should go. This time, of course we had a hotel and we had play tickets but there was a lot of down time and we just let things happen and as it turned out, that was to our advantage at every turn.

Our tickets were for Spamalot and King Lear.  If we had not gotten tickets to King Lear, if we were walk-ins we would have chosen not to see it.  Spamalot was superb. King Lear not so much.  Absolutely no one we talked to beforehand had one good thing to say about King Lear...wooden actors who don't know how to "do" Shakespeare, technical difficulties, lighting, you name it, it was wrong.  But we had tickets and thought, "what do we know? Maybe we won't notice."  We noticed. Ugh.  At intermission I even asked PH, "do you want to stick it out or leave?"   It wasn't so bad it spoiled our wonderful time in Stratford, though.

We stumbled on an art fair as we walked the park in the morning.  We chatted with the artists and I even bought something! 

                                                                                  We ate well.  

Again, we stumbled upon a restaurant our first night there as we walked around town getting our bearings.  We walked in, chatted with the owner, got a tip on a marketplace to go in the morning and we said we would return the next day for dinner. He was SO helpful about so many things around town and we did return the next evening for PH's birthday dinner.  When we walked he met us at the door with hugs.

This is the first piece of Wagyu beef I've ever seen in person.  Look at the price (and it was on special!)  PH said, "who would pay $90. for a steak?"  I said, " Look again.  That's $89.99 PER POUND and those steaks weigh more than a pound." But it's beautiful, isn't it?  

We had a great time, we kept saying it over and over. And then I saw this blanket. No, I didn't buy it.