“Parting is such sweet sorrow”

And so, as of June 13th, 2025, Squirt and I’s time in London came to a close. I have a thousand words I’d like to write here about it, but at some point I’d start crying and Squirt would start crying cause I was crying and then I would… that is to say… it would be a whole thing. So I will just say this: I miss it already. Now, anyone reading this blog can see I’m posting this more than a week after the 13th, so it would make more sense for me to be “missing it already” than if I was writing this right after leaving. And to that I would say… well I don’t really have a rebuttal, but you’re messing up my chronology so please just let me get on with it. Jokes and chronology aside, it was such a great time. I got to see 23 shows, go to so many awesome places, and make friendships that will last far beyond our return to the States. I am eternally grateful. However, anyone who has looked at our handy-dandy itinerary linked just beside these blogs would know that the date at the top of this rambling paragraph didn’t mark our departure from England. It marked a shift in our trip to a much more secluded location. The last stretch of our journey, our epilogue, took us to the birthplace of a one of theatre’s greatest playwrights and practitioners. As of June 13th, 2025, our time in London was over, but our time in Shakespeare’s birthplace, Stratford-Upon-Avon, had only just begun.

If I thought Bath or any other piece of our time in England was a true change of pace from the hustle and bustle of London, then Stratford-Upon-Avon must have been another planet. The lack of smog in the air and tube systems on every corner was change enough. We arrived to the Stratford on the afternoon of the commonly mentioned date of June 13th. And the charm of this (compared to London) little town was not lost on me a bit. The first sign of this was our change in digs.

Our departure from London also marked a departure from the Royal National Hotel. Now, the Royal National was great and convenient, but it also was a hotel with lots of people. In Stratford, we upgraded to the more cozy rooms, better breakfast, and lack of constant police sirens of two adjacent bed and breakfasts owned by a mother and daughter. The charm is honestly represented quite well through the pictures above. For breakfast we could have a true and fresh Full English (beans and all) or a delicious, hot, and fresh croissant. I would go back for the croissants alone. Apart from them though, our new residence was lovely in every way. Just like the town around it.

As I’ve stated before, Stratford hardly could have been more of a switch-up from London. For starters, it was just so quiet. You get used to the constant sound while in a big city like London for long enough. Even while in the beautiful parks and historic areas of London, if you just looked out a window or through the trees, the towering buildings and screeching traffic was just a ways away. Here, it was just little-old Stratford for as far as the eye could see. This is one of the things that I think truly allowed me to feel like I was walking in the footsteps of The Bard himself.

In Stratford, we got to see the birthplace, home(s), and church (place of baptism and burial) of William Shakespeare. Stepping into these places really was like a portal to the past. In a few spots, we were walking on the exact floorboards that Shakespeare did in his lifetime. Despite all the obvious signs of the sort of time we were in, the phones and lack of plague – the fact our 3 hour bus trip wasn’t a 2 day trip on a horse drawn carriage – it all didn’t affect just how special this all felt.

Although I’ve tried in this post and every other post here to say just how special this whole trip has felt, I still feel as though I come up short. I write this blog from the comfort of my own home, Plane rides and all behind me. And I just feel so grateful to have been on this trip. Thankful to my friends who went on this trip on me and to friends and family at home who checked in on me. Thankful to Shawn and Susan for teaching me so much about that wonderful country. And lastly, I’m thankful for my good friend Squirt for being along with me every step of the way. My mother said I’d lose him in the first week, but I never did. And now I bring home about a thousand more pictures from the trip and one more friend. So thank you, all, what a time it was. Parting is such sweet sorrow.

Henry VII and His Many, Many, Many… Rooms!

Our second day trip outside of London-proper took us about an hour out to another beacon of English history. And an extra boon to it just so happened to be that it held the history of one of my favorite pieces of English history, the life (and wives) of Henry VIII. If you know anything about Henry (or happened to have read the blog title), then you’d know I’m talking about his most-loved residence: Hampton Court Palace.

Our tour of these awesome grounds was similar to our trip to the Roman Baths. We were all free to explore at our own pace aided by some handy-dandy audio guides. With those we started our journeys out mostly in a similar area before splitting off. The first of these areas were the kitchens.

Henry
VIII’s
Kitchens

Right off the bat, I envy the guy. A whole extensive building just for making your food feels like the definition of royalty. However, these rooms were used for a lot more than just making Henry VIII’s food. These kitchens fed all of his staff their meals as well as prepping refined meals for Henry, whichever wife he had at the time, and his and/or her guests. The staff largely ate their meals in the serving area in the kitchens. However, Henry and the rest of the more esteemed residents would take their meals in the Great Hall or rooms of Henry VIII’s Apartments.

The first area of the apartments was, as I mentioned, the great hall. I failed to get a solid picture of the full room, so I hope one of Squirt on the little barrier will do. One of the most impressive aspects is seen in the pictures through the original tapestries that are still preserved to this day. However, my favorite part can be seen in the scattered in the distance of the picture are the elk heads all over the walls. These, and some small heads carved and painted into the walls and roof are called the “Eavesdroppers.” These were meant to signify to guests there that they were always be watched, so discussions of treachery and such would not go unheard.

One of the fascinating things about the apartments as a whole is the range of architecture throughout. The gilded ceilings and painted glass of the Great Watching Chamber almost feel like they don’t belong in the same room while just down the hall it is attached to the distinctly 1700s design of Christopher Wren with the Queen’s staircase ceiling. The variety speaks to how this palace has been used and added onto over many centuries.

Similarly to the architecture, the many paintings of the apartments caught my attention throughout my tour. I honestly have hardly anything to say about them outside of some words of appreciation at the fact that all of these pieces of art covering so many different figures and times were able to be preserved and displayed in this one place. Just remarkable.

Video of Council Chamber.

My favorite area and the main room that truly allowed me to feel like I was a part of the world and time of Henry VIII was the Council Chamber. This was done through the audio-visual presentation where you could sit at the council table and feel like you are taking part in the debates of the time. I sat in the seat of Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk, a powerful noble and “mortal enemy of Thomas Cromwell” was “uncle of both Queen Anne Boleyn and Queen Catherine Howard” (both as per the label). The discussion I sat in for, heard in the video above, would have taken place in 1540 as it discussed the annulment of Henry VIII’s marriage with Anne of Cleves and Cromwell being gifted earldom of Essex both of which happened in 1540. It was super fun to actually sit in the seat as the voices of these nobles played and their hand movements were projected onto the table in front. Me and a few strangers who also sat down started acting out the discussion, mouthing the dialogue and mimicking the hand motions of our respective nobles. This was honestly a highlight of my time at the palace. If it lacked all the treachery and possible loss-of-head, I would totally go back in time and be a noble in Henry VIII’s council. I mean, just think of the drama!

That’s me!

To close out my ramblings on this trip, here are some pictures of the stunning Georgian Story of the palace. Honestly the final multi-walled painting above shows enough of the beauty that this section had to show. I will be honest however that I spent so much time over all the Henry VIII-related areas that I ended up not having near enough time to truly appreciate this area. Nonetheless, I was shocked by how such a distinct period of history could be portrayed so closely to that of a different century entirely. As a closer to this day trip, it was truly a worthwhile sight altogether. However, now I must close fully with my required Squirt Asteroid-Destroyer related section.

As is fully necessary, I had to save a little time for a photo shoot with Squirt. Not all the shots are winners, but I think this was one of our more successful overall shoots. I can’t say much for myself, but Squirt is certainly quite the photogenic fella. And now he has some great pics to use on his dating profile. Lucky quacker.

  • One of my favorite shots of Squirt from the whole trip
  • (im losing)