The realisation hit me all of a sudden after a long conversation with a friend from the states about how international I thought I was. I have been living in the UK for two years now and I have not really been anywhere but Manchester, where I lived, London for a lame touristy weekend and Sheffield to visit my cousin. I was in shock of how wasted the past two years were without serious travelling. I decided to makeup for lost times and signed up for some of the trips offered by the International Society group. After all, my ridiculously expensive international tuition pays for the membership. The IS group had really good arranged weekends and days away to many popular attractions around the UK.
My first trip with them was a day trip to Warwick Castle. I asked some of my Manchester contacts if they wanted to come, but they had other prior plans. The lack of company never stopped me before and this time was no different and what do you know. I made friends with the girl who sat next to me on the bus and she introduced me to her other friends. In an hour, the trip turned from “by myself” to “with company”.
The Warwick Medieval Castle was buzzing when we arrived. We were greeted by men and women all dressed up in old customs to make us feel like we stepped back in time. The actors and actresses were located in different spots and each told a story. The castle was so beautiful and there were many things to do and see from the towers, the gardens, the wax people and the dungeon. The history of the castle could be traced to 914. It grew bigger and stronger from that date, but like most castles, it was attacked, burnt and restored. In the past ten years, six million pounds were spent to fully restore the castle. The castle’s full history line is listed on their website. It was such a good day out and worth the bus hours.
Enjoy these few snaps from that trip.
Note: The trip was two years ago, but the castle is still as amazing and fun.
Note: It is a lot of walking and steps.