Over to England Part I

We flew out of Glasgow on Saturday the 23rd and met up with Brach and Kendra at Heathrow.  They were happy to arrive and get their feet on solid ground.  We met up with them at the Car Rental station which worked out very well.  We had booked a room at the Moxy Hotel within a short drive from the airport.  This hotel was very modern and different but it was nice to have a place to rest our heads.  The receptionist suggested we have dinner at The Pheasant Pub.  We did not know how big the portions were going to be and if we had we would have not ordered so much.  We ordered two appetizers, Baked Camembert and onion rings and then our main courses were brought out and they were HUGE!  We ate way too much that night.

The next day was Sunday so we got up early for the hotel breakfast buffet and headed off to church.  We attended the High Wycombe (pronounced wickham) ward and had a very nice experience there.

After church we drove over to Blenheim Palace and got to visit the palace and gardens.  This is the palace of the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough.  It has been around for many generations!

Before getting started on our tour we stretched out on the lawn close to where we parked for a picnic lunch.  We had gotten bread, meat and cheese, chips and cookies the night before at a grocery right next to the Moxy.  It was great!  Filling and easy!

Toward the end of the palace tour we entered the library and grand ballroom.  There were many people there setting up for a wedding reception that was happening that evening.  This is the place setting.

There were FOUR goblets per place setting!  It sounds like one was for water and the others were for the alcohol....red and white wines and champagne.  There were eighty place setting on one long table.  What was amazing were all of the flowers on the table.  It was incredible.  If I would guess how much the flowers alone were I would say somewhere between 30 and 40 thousand!  There were a lot of flowers and it was the most lavish thing I had ever seen!  Out front there was a horse and carriage to carry the bride and groom and also a vintage rolls royce.  I don't know who that was meant for!  

Oh, how I wish I could have seen the wedding party!

Then we got to walk around the gardens. They were magnificent. 

That evening we drove over to Stratford upon Avon to stay for the night at the Crowne Plaza.  It was a nice hotel situated right on the Avon River.  

The next morning Rick and I got up early to go for a boat ride on the river.  We rented a little electric boat for an hour and road up the river for some beautiful views.  It was quite chilly but totally worth it.  The river had swans, and ducks and lots of birds chirping in the trees.  It was a lovely time.

Next we drove the short distance to Warwick Castle.  Warwick is a fun interactive castle.  While we were able to walk through the castle and see how the family lived we also were able to go to a live bowman show where we learned a lot about the bow and arrow warfare of the medieval times.  It was very fascinating and mad me think of how it really would have been for the people who fought in wars.  

I think it would have been a terrible time to live with neighbours warring against each other trying to overtake the land.  

Also we got to see the falconry show which was a lot of fun.  A lot of birds of prey were showcased and one of the falcons flew right by us and IN BETWEEN Brach and Kendra!  Pretty cool!

After getting back from Warwick Castle, Brach and Kendra wanted to take a boat ride on the Avon River so while they did that we waited for them while feeding the swans our leftover bread from our picnic lunch on Sunday.

We had dinner at the Rose and Crown Pub.  It had really good food but unfortunately it didn't sit well with me and I was sick most of the night.💀