Shropshire Daydreaming . . .
© Diane Goldberg under the original topic name
An extraordinarily pretty little town
Shrewsbury sits in the curve of the River Severn which winds around three sides of the town. At the narrowest point between the two branches of the river the castles rises romantically. As you get off the train, check out platform three for the ghost of a town council member, deceased in 1887 and haunting the station since. He's been sighted near the Castle Street ramp entrance where you can walk out and see the castle right next to the train station. The castle was erected in 1083.
Should you require real ale for fortification following a ghostly sighting five minutes from the station, you'll find the Castle Vaults offering a unique combination of burn-your-mouth Mexican food and real ale. Real Ale purists will want to walk fifteen minutes from the station to the Dolphin. Still illuminated by its original Victorian gas lighting, the Dolphin displays a warning sign: "We don't serve lager, not even in bottles."
With more intact Tudor architecture than any other town, Shrewsbury is a postcard setting for slow strolls and pubcrawls. A fifteen-minutes walk takes you through five hundred years of history, in addition to some remarkably persevered Tudor buildings the town is rich in examples of Georgian, Queen Anne, and Victorian buildings.
With an air of mystery. . . .
Shrewsbury is Brother Cadfeal country and fans of Ellias Peter's medieval monk turned sleuth will love the Shrewsbury Quest, an attraction/experience where they can participate in solving a mystery.
The "real" Shewsbury Abbey, built during the reign of Edward the Third, still stands albeit in ruins. The Norman pillars in the nave date back to the 11th century.
From the castle you can see views of Shropshire that suggest an 18th century pastoral idyll . . . a short walk away and you can sit outside the school that Charles Darwin attended.
The most important secret about Shrewsbury is that the upstairs bathroom in A Tudor House has a slanted floor - important to know if you've spent the evening in one of the area pubs. A Tudor House at 2 Fish Street (telephone 01743 360179) is a charming bed and breakfast run by the helpful Mr. and Mrs. Harris who have many loyal guests return year after year. Next door is Shropshire's smallest pub - The Three Fishes.
