莎翁故里：值得一去的旅游胜地

　　To see, or not to see? That is not the question, because Stratford-upon-Avon is a perennial must, whatever the weather.

　　And what more apt time to visit William Shakespeare’s home town than around the time of The Bard’s 450th birthday on April 23?

　　This glover’s son transcends the centuries, with his great friend and fellow playwright Ben Jonson describing him as “not of an age, but for all time”.

　　But whether you know a lot or a little about the English language’s greatest writer, you soon discover a wealth of information here, beginning with Shakespeare’s Birthplace, on Henley Street.

　　See in fascinating detail how Elizabethans lived, from his father’s workshop to the little beds they slept in. Why so small? Partly because the Elizabethans were shorter than us, but also, we’re told, because they feared if they lay flat, the Devil might think they were dead and take their souls, so they slept upright against bolsters.

　　Shakespeare’s christening would probably have been on April 26 – three days after his birth – and the font in which he was baptised is at Holy Trinity Church, a short walk from the town centre.

　　The church, dating from 1210, is also where he is buried, in a 15th-century chancel. His grave carries a warning, that cursed be he who moves his bones.

　　Equally worth a visit, particularly for children, is Mary Arden’s Farm.

　　Shakespeare’s mother’s home, a short distance away by car and celebrating its 500th anniversary this year, is a working Tudor farm, where people “live” – and even speak – as they would have done in the 16th century.

　　From the farm – where Shakespeare is thought to have stayed from the age of nine, to avoid an outbreak of plague – we went to his future wife’s home, Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, where, as a teenager, he would have courted her.

　　Again, there is much to enjoy at this beautiful thatched farmhouse in the nearby village of Shottery, with its ornate gardens.

　　Other attractions worth viewing include Nash’s House and the site of New Place – the home where Shakespeare died, but which was demolished in 1759 by Reverend Francis Gastrell after a dispute with locals.

　　The Bard’s town has a variety of hotels and guest houses and one of the most impressive is the Holiday Inn, with riverside grounds close to Clopton Bridge, over which Shakespeare would have ridden.

　　The stylish hotel, whose staff are the epitome of helpfulness, has recently had a £2million revamp, but its prices won’t leave you feeling Shylock has taken his pound of flesh.

　　Alternatively, if you are aiming for more of a romantic stay and fancy playing Romeo (or being pampered as Juliet), you could try the Church Street Townhouse, directly opposite where Shakespeare went to school.

　　It’s a charming, 12-room boutique hotel from which, indeed, parting is such sweet sorrow.

　　If you don’t believe music is the sole food of love, there are plenty of ­restaurants and watering holes.

　　High among them – in elevation and quality – is the rooftop restaurant above the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. A great time to go is after the theatre crowd have taken their seats. You can enjoy the quiet, relaxed ­atmosphere where the excellent Shawn Bennett and staff were as attentive as a lead character waiting for his cue.

　　The food is first-class and they supplied the freshest starter I’ve tasted, a wonderful goat’s cheese and pistachio roulade.

　　And, even if the view may make you giddy, the menu prices won’t.

　　On a fine spring day, you can emulate The Merchant of Venice and take to the River Avon by gondola. Avon Boating provides the world’s oldest working gondola, a calming experience as you glide along the gentle waters.

　　Also on the waterfront is actors’ pub the Dirty Duck, where Sir John Gielgud and Richard Burton, among others, donated signed photos for the wall. If you fancy rubbing shoulders with stars of current productions – Henry IV Pt I and II – it’s the place to go after curtain down, around 10.30pm.

　　All in all, celebrate the Bard’s 450th and unwind, exactly As You like It.

　　《镜报》2014年4月16号报道，看，还是不看?这不是个问题，因为埃文河畔斯特拉特福无论天气如何，一年四季都是旅游必须一去的胜地。

　　还有什么时候比4月23号莎士比亚450岁诞辰这段期间参观他的故乡更合适的时间?

　　这位手套商的儿子超越了世纪，就像他的好朋友、戏剧家本·琼森说的，他“不是一个时代，而是永恒” 。

　　不过，不管你对这位英语语言巨匠了解多少，从莎士比亚的出生地亨利街开始，你很快就会发现大量有关信息。

　　从他父亲的作坊到他们睡的小床，你会详细了解伊丽莎白时代的人生活的生动细节。为什么床这么小?一部分原因是伊丽莎白时代的人比我们要矮小，不过，我们听说，还因为他们害怕如果躺平了，恶魔会认为他们死了，带走他们的灵魂，所以他们靠着枕垫直着睡觉。

　　莎士比亚可能是在出生3天后，即1564年4月26号在圣三一教堂接受洗礼，那儿离镇中心不远。

　　圣三一教堂可以追溯到1210年，莎士比亚就安葬于教堂内15世纪的圣坛上。他的墓碑上写有一行警告，谁移动他的尸骨，谁就将受到诅咒。

　　同样值得参观的，尤其是对小孩来说，还有玛丽·阿登的农场。

　　驾车不久即可到达莎翁母亲的故乡——玛丽·阿登的农场。今年农场迎来500周年庆，这一都铎时代的农场至今仍在运行，这里的人们依旧按照16世纪的生活方式“生活”、说话。

　　据说为了躲避瘟疫，莎士比亚9岁时开始住在这个农场。我们从农场出发前往莎士比亚妻子故居——安妮·海瑟薇祖屋，年少的莎士比亚可能就是在这里追求的她。

　　附近休特瑞村花团锦簇，村里美丽的茅草屋也很值得欣赏。

　　其它值得游览的景点包括纳什故居和新居，这是莎士比亚去世时住的房子，但是牧师弗兰西斯·加斯特里尔与当地人发生争执，于1759年拆毁了这所房子。

　　诗圣的故乡有很多酒店和宾馆，最有名的是假日酒店，临江靠近古石桥，莎士比亚或许也在桥上走过。

　　这家风格时尚现代的酒店里的员工十分友好、乐于助人，酒店近期投入了两百万英镑进行整修，不过价格不会让你觉得“被夏洛克割了一磅肉”。

　　或者，如果你想要一次浪漫之旅，想要扮演罗密欧(或者做众星捧月的朱丽叶)，你可以去教堂街酒店，正位于莎士比亚求学学校的对面。

　　这家酒店精致时尚，有12间房，在这里分别，真的是一种甜蜜的忧伤。

　　如果你认为音乐不是爱的唯一食粮，这里还有很多餐馆和酒吧。

　　从高度和格调上，这些餐馆中最出类拔萃的是皇家莎士比亚剧院上的屋顶餐厅。去那里最好的时间是等观众都坐好之后。你可以享受这里安静放松的气氛，剧场里演技一流的肖恩·班尼特和其他演员都聚精会神地等着他们的出场提示，准备一展演技。

　　这里的食物都是一流的，他们供应的开胃菜是我吃过最新鲜的，山羊奶酪和开心果肉卷都很美味。

　　而且，即使景色会让你眼花缭乱，菜单上的价格还是很合理的。

　　在明媚的春日，你可以效仿《威尼斯商人》里的场景，坐贡多拉小船去埃文河。埃文船行提供世界上最古老的贡多拉，在平缓的河水上划行让人心旷神怡。

　　在码头还有一家演员酒吧——脏鸭子酒吧，约翰·吉尔古德先生、理查德·伯顿和其他演员将签名照送给了酒吧，贴在墙上。如果你想看到最新版《亨利四世》第一、二部里的明星的话，夜幕降临后，10:30左右，可以到这里来。

　　总而言之，到这里庆祝诗圣450周年诞辰，顺便放松一下心情，真是“皆大欢喜”。