first stop. blenheim palace. well, truthfully, it was a church outside nearby the palace. the very church where sir winston churchill, his family, and the dukes of marlborough lay interred. the family plot is full of controversy, secrets, and so many other rich details that only the lovely phil could have provided us with. i was surprised to learn that one of the vanderbilts actually married the ninth duke of marlborough, gave him two heirs, and divorced him for her true love, a man in america. she is still buried with the family though. nearby the gravesite of sir winston churchill's father are the tombs of three babies, all illegitimate. then we were on to the palace. i finally understand what a palace is. i didn't know, but phil filled us in on to what distinguishes a palace from a castle. apparently, a palace is a reward given by royalty for an honor. blenheim was given by queen anne to the first duke for his battle victories against the spanish. the palace itself is baroque, but every element was copied from roman architecture. the palace lacks windows, has fabric on the walls matching the furniture, and is entirely too ornately decorated for my taste. don't misunderstand, i appreciate the palace, i just would never live there. there are amazing tapestries and murals all over the house, and a most impressive library with its own organ. the most beautiful part of the palace for me were the gardens. although i only saw two of the five, i was awestruck. if i ever have the land to do so, that is how i want to construct my backyard. i can do without the sculpture, but the vegetation and fountains were breathtaking. i was also quite thrilled because i finally got my mom's gift. she can be so hard to shop for, but i really hope she likes it. after walking around, cleo and i went up to the village of woodstock to get lunch at a little teahouse. i had a fresh glass of milk, though it was lukewarm in temperature, and a cheese and tomato sandwich. the cheese, a shredded mature cheddar, was perfect against the soft bread, and i was so excited it wasn't grilled. we found our way back to the bus, and then we continued our journey.
second stop. well it was multiple stops into little towns within the cotswold district. first, we stopped at the ruins of the minster lovell hall. it was originally built in the fifteenth century and was abandoned after the lovells no longer resided there. after the abandonment, the townspeople came and tore down the house for the stone. it was here that the last lovell heir died. he was a traitor to king henry the seventh, for in the war of the roses, he supported the house of york. he locked himself in a secret vault in the cellar, telling no one of his whereabouts except for a trusty servant who brought him food. because it was one of eighty manors the family owned, he was not immediately found. when king henry's men finally reached the manor and only found the servant, they tortured him into telling them his masters whereabouts, and they accidentally killed him. with the lovell heir locked in the cellar, he eventually starved to death and was found in 1708, a skeleton with a dog's skeleton at his feet. the thing i loved most about the site though was the church. there was a small catholic church on the hill which is still practicing. it is the first catholic church we have been to during our time in england. after leaving, we continued to drive through cotswold learning about the sheep, former residents, old roman road which can still be seen, and the landscape. we stopped again for refreshments where i got the most amazing ice cream of my life. it was freshly made at the local store and was fig, honeycomb, and caramel. the scoop was small but perfect, completely hitting the spot. after this we travelled onward to a trout farm in bilbury where we also walked arlington row. i loved the fact you were able to see the trout swimming in the river, and that these were the very fish the townspeople ate. i also got to see my first molting swan! i now understand the ugly duckling completely.
though the cotswold region was out last bus journey, we still had a "third stop" of the day. a production of shakespeare's romeo and juliet. it was refreshing to see in an amphitheater, and it was intriguing to see the way it was performed. the actors spoke in the traditional old english, yet the costumes ranged from futuristic to present to clothing from the 1980s. it was definitely a sight to be seen. in addition to the costume oddities, the director also incorporated this blend of interpretive/tribal dancing. it was quite odd. however, watching the love story unfold, it made me miss josh terribly and just want to be home.
today was a day of flower pictures, so i apologize. but here are some of the amazing things this part of england holds.
the gravesite of sir winston churchill.
the beautiful palace garden from the back terrace. it is one of the many.
the garden fountain on the lower level of the terrace. six or seven of these archways existed, surrounded by statues on either side.
a rose from a garden in the cotswolds.
the view of the meadow from behind the minster lovell hall ruins. the round structure stands from the fifteenth century. it was used to keep live birds for fresh meat year round.
yet another rose. this from arlington row in bilsbury.
my beautiful swan and molting swan who revealed to me the secrets of the ugly duckling.
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