August 2007 Archives

More touring around Liverpool. It was off to Paul's old school, now the Liverpool Institute for the Performing Arts, where there was a Beatles auction.

John Lennon's sister, Julia Baird, was one of our guides for a coach tour of Liverpool.

August 23: We took a 6 hour coach ride to Liverpool, with a stop outside George's home, Friar Park, in Henley-on-Thames. The house could not be seen, but the ornate gate house was impressive enough.

Wednesday, August 22nd: After oversleeping (again) I met up with the rest of our tour group on the coach for our grand tour of London Beatles sites. What an amazing day! More photos can be seen at my Beatles Trip web gallery.

It's less convenient to write now, as my hotel in Liverpool only has internet access in the main lounge. But I will post again soon. In the meantime, a selection of my photos can be seen at http://gallery.mac.com/dfell#100001.

The rest of the gang is here at the hotel now; I've only met 3 or 4 of them. Beatletouring begins tomorrow. But tonight, I caught some theatre!

My worries are over. The fine staff at the US Embassy in London have supplied me with a temorary passport, and I can now travel freely. Wheeeee!

This was a fun day. After breakfast, I took British Rail to Stratford-upon-Avon, where I visited the home where Shakespeare was born and grew up; walking on the very same floors the bard did.

I also saw the home of his granddaughter (the end of the direct Shakespeare line), the foundation of the home where Shakespeare died, the home of his friend Doctor Nash, and the church in which he is buried.

British rail seems very efficient; even though they had to cancel the train a few miles before Stratford-upon-Avon, because a lorry (in American English: "truck") hit a bridge. They had to put us on a coach (bus) for the rest of the trip.

Stratford-upon-Avon is about 100 miles from London. In Shakespeare's day, it took about 4 days to cover the journey. Now, it's 2 hours and 15 minutes; as long as a lorry doesn't hit a bridge. Its a beautiful town. Tomorrow I hope to post pictures. But for now, I must sleep. Have a date with the American Embassy in the morning, and the Beatles tour group should be here by about 3.

It's 12:59, and BBC4 is playing God Save The Queen.

Ok, I see its been 14 months since my last post. I really will try to do better. But here I am, on the trip of a lifetime, and I'm in the wrong city.