I planned the whole thing with plenty of detail (Brandon would call this 'Kybat' style vacationing) and we stuck to the plan the whole time. As my father would tell you, you should never leave home without the 7 P's (Prior Proper Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance)! HA! {And yes Dad, if you are reading this we made a big circle in our driving route, just the way it should be} Well, the only thing that didn't go according to plan was the time frames I had marked out for Alyas' naps. We knew traveling with a 2 year old would be tough...how do you get them to nap when you can't easily stop in the middle of the afternoon? Well, I was hoping he would remember how to fall asleep in a car seat, so we always planned our departures from each place at nap time to travel to the next destination. Needless to say that didn't work and we heard a lot of crying and yelling of "I stuck!!" and "O.K. All done!" from the back of the car. We got through it though and had plenty of smiles despite our fatigue.
Our first stop was Windsor Castle, owned by the royal family for the last 900 years! You can only see pictures of the outside, however, because photography is restricted in places like this. We were able to view the beautiful State rooms, Queen Mary's Doll House, and St. George's Chapel.
We managed to actually distract a British guard as well. As you can see in the picture his eyes are turned to the side and looking down at Alyas!
Our next stop on our first day was Stonehenge. You can easily see it from the highway, and it is only guarded by a pasture of sheep, some chicken wire type fencing, and barbed wire. I thought, "this place has been here for thousands of years and this is the best way anyone could come up with to protect the area?"
As it turns out the entrance was across the road via an underground tunnel and fee we paid to actually step on the grounds of the area was worth it.
We walked around the grounds twice...to give us time to try and hear some of what was being said on our audio guide tour devices and to let Alyas run off some more energy before getting into the car. It was funny to see how he could care less about anything famous or ancient. Here he is tumbling in the grass and having not the slightest concern for the infamous rock display in the background.
After Stonehenge we took off to our first bed and breakfast. We were able to truly appreciate genuine English countryside on our way. Here you see the beautiful yellow fields of rapseed that I loved! I guess they use the seed to make oil that is commonly used in cosmetics and such.
Oh, and along with our countryside views we got a great taste of English driving at its best. As if driving on the left hand side of the road wasn't a challenge enough...we had roads like this to maneuver! The picture doesn't make it as clear as I'd hoped but the road just barely is wide enough to fit our small Ford Focus between the hedges. When another car comes you literally have to drive into the hedge because there is no extra space on the sides of the road. Now think of combining these roads, with steep rolling hills, some rain, and roads that have absolutely no marking on them as to their name and you have the perfect recipe for neck ache and a horrible back seat driver (myself) who was constantly saying "slow down" and slamming my foot to the floor to hit my own imaginary break!
After a good nights rest, a huge breakfast to start off our day!
Day two was spent walking around the city of Bath. It was awesome and we found the 'Georgian' architecture as neat and captivating as our tour books described. Here is the Pulteney Bridge built between the years of 1769-74.
The Roman Baths are probably the most famous site of the city. Built in the 1st century as a bathing area for the Romans, who were ruling the area at the time. There is a whole museum connected to the baths filled with other ancient artifacts. Our audio guides once again had so much information to offer but we spent the majority of our time giving our own commentary to Alyas saying things like, "Wow, look at the green water" and "Isn't that a big rock" and "That statue is really, really old!"
We also enjoyed a relaxing boat tour down the river Avon in bath. There wasn't a terrible amount of things to see but it gave Brandon a break from hauling Alyas on his back and my feet a time to rest.
After Bath we traveled north to Statford-upon-Avon to this little B&B. The town is known for being the birthplace of Shakespeare and it's preservation of 'half-timbered' old homes.
In front of a memorial to Shakespeare and others of great renown.
In front of Shakespeare's home. We didn't pay to go inside and opted instead for....
.... a more kid-friendly playground.
Wait...did I just elude the the idea that we stopped at the playground for the sake of Alyas?On the road again, missing yet another nap time. We explored ways to keep Alyas entertained.
Our final and favorite destination was Blenheim Palace. It was breath taking. It is the birthplace of William Churchill and is surrounded by acres of wide open spaces, a tranquil lake, and gorgeous gardens. We really hope we can return again before we leave because there was so much we didn't get to see. Again, no photos inside the state rooms were allowed but click on the link above and you can view some of its splendor.
Brandon practicing his preaching.
And finally we needed a little comic relief, which was granted to us by a large group of touring Asians. As we were walking across a large open green area letting Alyas run, this man came right up to him with a big smile and started taking his picture. We were about 30 feet away and he didn't pay any attention to us at all. Alyas found the attention amusing and we laughed and took our own pictures as the group crowded around him trying to get their own personal snap shots. We couldn't figure it out. I thought it must have been similar to us when we visit countries like Africa and like to take pictures of little African children. These people must have been thinking, "Cool, look that that cute, white kid! Hurry, get his picture!"
Again, with no regard to his parents, Alyas is swept off his feet for another photo!
Lastly, I thought I'd put in a few of our other favorite pictures. Although a screaming toddler can be a bit stressful we tried to find humor in his inability to handle his emotions at all times. We knew it was tough, and we knew we were pushing him...we gave him grace when he cried and cracked up at the images I captured of his cute, crying countenance.
The end.
2 comments:
Awesome Walls, I am so glad you got to go on your family vacation, pictures are great.
Sounds great! I find it odd and hilarious that random strangers were holding your child and taking his picture. To be kept in their photo albums for ages!
Post a Comment