Shakespeare, the Symbol of Stratford-upon-Avon

　　By the way, where is the Avon River? We saw a river on which a few boats were slowly moving just before our arrival in this town. Is that it? While walking in the town, we came across several sightseeing boats, which we call "Yakatabune" in Japanese, at the pond-like mooring. It looked like a pond, but it was a mooring connected with the Avon River by a short narrow canal. I understood that when I happened to stand on a bridge over the canal. The second picture was shot on the bridge toward the mooring, and the third one was taken toward the river. The 4th and 5th pictures show the serene atmosphere of the river. Dinner was being prepared in a boat. Then we found a statue of Shakespeare. He was looking down from 5 meters high, surrounded by his-made characters; Falstaff, Prince Hal, Hamlet and Lady Macbeth. According to my travel guide, there apparently were several Shakespeare-related tourist spots in the town, but we missed even the principal one, the house of his birth. I hope I will visit the town again.

ところでエイボン川はどこだろう？到着前にボートが行き交っていた川があったがそれか？とにかく水辺へ歩いて行くと、池のような場所があり、何艘もの観光船、日本では屋台船と呼ぶ船が係留されていた。どうやらこの場所はエイボン川と短い運河でつながっていて水位調整が出来るようだった。横付けされているボートの中を覗くとディナーの準備中。ボートのたまり場を一周すると、シェイクスピアの銅像があった。彼の作り出したキャラクター４人に囲まれたシェイクスピアの銅像は数メートルの高さから街を見下ろしていた。この街にはシェイクスピアゆかりの場所が多くあり、観光にはあまりにも時間が足りなかった。再訪したいと思っている。