Wherefore art thou now? Stratford

This really is starting to sound like a travel (b)log, but we're home now, and as I type Jon is in the next room trying to fix the vacuum while Calvin is cavorting in the yard with the rest of the neighborhood hooligans, so I'd say we've finally returned to normal. The laundry is even done.

A few years ago we journeyed through Stratford (Canada, because one does not simply journey through Stratford, England from Michigan) and stopped to see The Pirates of Penzance on the way. It was delightful. The entire experience was delightful, except that the one day was too short. So last year we did it again, seeing Midsummer Nights Dream, and Alice Through the Looking Glass, and adding an extra night. The second trip was even more delightful—we discovered Jenn and Larry's Ice Cream shop, after all, but ran into trouble finding anything more substantial to eat (reservations are a must, everything is overpriced, nothing is foodie style...it's a sore subject).

Then this year we practically perfected the trip. We have our favorite place to stay nailed down, and we visited Jenn and Larry's every day (which doesn't go unnoticed by the owners of a small time shop), and we mostly figured out how to handle meals. For us that meant forgetting about the persnickety restaurants on the main drag and bringing pizza home to the hotel so we could play in the pool. The only thing wanting this year was the weather, but after the camping trip we just had, who's complaining? It was warm enough to swim for at least twenty minutes before blue-lip syndrome set in, not so hot that walking along the river in dress clothes elicited a sweat, and just rainy enough to make things interesting in the evenings. We never even needed our umbrella, but I will say that our Dark Sky App has really come in handy these past couple of weeks.

This year we saw The Adventures of Pericles, Prince of Tyre and The Sound of Music. The first was as spartan as the second was extravagant, and thankfully we saw them in that order, because I imagine doing it the other way around would have been a serious let down. We also were given a very special, two-hour private tour of the Festival Theater, a rare treat that was probably the highlight of the whole trip. Well, that and the ice cream.

Housekeeping had a really good time arranging Calvin's menagerie while we were out...