Warwick Castle

Hello! We're back from our long weekend of adventures! On Saturday, we got up before the sun to catch a train to Warwick (pronounced War-ick for some strange reason). Their train system here is pretty sweet. We bought BritRail passes before we left the US so this was our first opportunity to use them. Before we got on the train, we had to validate the passes. The guy at the ticket counter was so nice. (Somehow, every person we meet recognizes the fact that we are twins and then thinks we are the cutest thing). We had a delightful conversation with him for a few minutes and then waited outside in the FREEZING COLD before our train arrived.

It took us around two hours to get to London. London is scary. We got a little confused about where we were supposed to go, but it straightened itself out. We had to catch two tube trains to make it to our train to Warwick. I feel like a seasoned traveler now.


It was all going good until a new conductor got on the train. He then proceeded to announce that mpmhmpmamfm mmdmfkamam and WARWICK mphpmhpmpafmamfa had to get off at the next stop due to construction. We looked closely at our travel plans but couldn't see what he was talking about and how it applied to us. For some stupid reason, we got off the train in a barren plot of earth known as Leamington Spa.

Why they even have a train station in Leamington Spa is beyond me. THERE IS NOTHING THERE! Fortunately for us, there was another train coming, so we only had to wait about twenty minutes. Let's just say that Leamington Spa looks best in a rear-view mirror.

Two stops later (about eight minutes) we were in Warwick. Instead of taking a bus to Warwick Castle like the tourist information sign recommended, we decided to walk. That wasn't such a bad idea except that I can't read a British map. There were a few good signs along the way and almost no street signs but we finally managed to find the castle (we had to backtrack and re-backtrack).

It was really cool. The first thing we did was climb the 530 steps up to the ramparts. The view was amazing!
This is a view into the interior of the castle. The castle also had some cool gardens with peacocks walking around. We walked around for another bit and then saw a trebuchet launch. It took about fifteen minutes for them to load the thing.

We caught a train to Birmingham and walked around the city for about an hour in the cold, freezing rain, looking for our hotel. We were not happy campers. I've decided that I don't really like Birmingham. Our hotel was pretty nice, though. We ate our dinner of peanut butter sandwiches while watching a few episodes of Lark Rise to Candleford via youtube (our hotel gave us a mac to use).

The Papal visit the next day deserves its own post, so for now

Cheers!
--Mary