We arrived one week early to the King’s Lodge so that we could adjust as a family to the culture and jet lag. We are busy registering and orienting today and tomorrow, but yesterday we were blessed to do a “tourist-y” trip. The day began with a walk into Nuneaton, about 2 to 2.5 miles, to get to the bus station. Much thanks to Alli, who drove Tara, Tanner, Keaton and Regan while I walked. We then bought a group explorer day pass with Stagecoach buses for 12 pounds. That enabled us to take a bus from Nuneaton to Coventry where we switched buses to make the jaunt to Warwick. Although the entire trip may have only been 20 miles, if that, it took 2 hours by bus, which can be quite a trek when your little ones start saying they have to go potty right after you board. (And, of course, that happened going and coming, and then, when we returned in the evening, we finished with a little over a mile walk in the dark along the A5 to get back to the King’s Lodge.)
In Warwick we ate at a lovely pub called Castles and Crownes, where I ordered cottage pie and the rest of the family ate from the “Carvery.” A Carvery is a scaled back buffet line where you can have a chef carve mean from a variety of selections. They also had a few different vegetables and Yorkshire pudding. We’ve learned that parsnips are quite lovely to eat and that many, if not most, of the patrons were having a pint of ale with their lunch. 
From there we walked more than a mile, mostly uphill, to Warwick Castle. It truly is amazing. Parts of the castle were built as long ago as 1068 by William the Conqueror. Oh, isn’t it a good thing, from the looks of that cottage pie, I had worked (walked) up quite an appetite???
The pictures below will tell the rest of the story.
Although I was trying to look fierce, seeing the picture now I’m not so sure I don’t just look constipated. The lunch was really nice, too. Alas!
The “Mound” behind the family is the part of the castle that was built in 1068 by William the Conqueror and we enjoyed some ice cream treats on the grass there.
Regan nearly always seems raring to go, even after a very long day!
