We drove to Batsford Falconry Centre, which is dedicated to educating the public about birds of prey and to breeding endangered species. (Lyn actually saw two South American birds making an effort to protect their species. I must say it seemed very perfunctory and neither party seemed to be making much of an effort to maintain a healthy relationship.) It was fascinating to see these extraordinary creatures up close. The flying display was used to explain their behaviour. I learned that falcons are poor fliers and could never catch a healthy pigeon. I learned that owls have crappy eyesight. The centre usually only flies juveniles because adults are there to breed.
Owl can see very little. Hearing is her superpower.
Falcon can see a bird 5 miles away! Just isn’t good at catching them.
After a short afternoon nap we headed for Stratford on Avon where we were to have an early dinner and watch an RSC performance of Romeo and Juliet.
All went well until the last 800 metres and then we hit the bank holiday chaos again. It took us about 45 minutes to crawl to a parking station. We were fashionably late for our dinner appointment at the rooftop restaurant at the waterside RSC theatre. It was a lovely posh dinner then we had time to explore the theatre. We took turns sitting in the insults chair and then walked along the Avon. All around us the English were at play: lying on the grass, picnicking, canoodling, messing about in hired boats, walking their dogs and roasting their pale hides. Their tendency to go shirtless in the sunshine should be discouraged for both health and aesthetic reasons.
The play was interesting for its minimalist staging and a strong cast. Romeo and Juliet were portrayed as youthfully dopey. It may seem sacrilegious but the combination of warmth and darkness sent us both to sleep on more than one occasion. Luckily we knew the story.
We leave tomorrow for Wales.
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