I would have liked to go walking on the "blue remembered hills" of A. E. Housman's Shropshire, but the closest I came was the county's capital city of Shrewsbury, which was quite lovely as cities go. It features large numbers of Tudor half-timbered houses, as well as a pub called The Ship whose fare is recommended by no less a personage than Sir Francis Drake. The museums were also quite interesting, as the town was an important centre for pagan tribes, Roman soldiers, medieval clergy, and Tudor merchants.
The highly impressive Shrewsbury Public Library, which kindly offers free internet access.
A particularly impressive Tudor building. Among the originals are scattered some modern recreations, and some of the originals are home to such venerable institutions as Boots and McDonald's.
Shrewsbury Castle, remodelled from its Norman original in the 13th century.
This Tarkovskian inscription speaks for itself.
The spire of St. Mary's Church from which Cadman took his ill-starred flight, or rather a Victorian reconstruction, as the original collapsed in suspicious (according to some minds) proximity to the town's decision to raise a statue to its scion Charles Darwin.
Bear Steps Hall, built in the 14th century.
The Abbot's House dates to 1450.
Shrewsbury Abbey, the last remnant of a large monastery originally built on the site in the 11th century, and the setting for the Cadfael mystery series. Unfortunately the Shrewsbury Quest, an interactive exhibit inspired by the books, has closed down. The abbey's oddly truncated shape is due to the loss of its transepts to the ravages of Henry VIII. The sides were bricked in and the nave allowed to stand for continued use as the local parish church.
The side of the abbey, where wall fragments of the original transept are still visible.
The pulpit from the monastery refectory, now in the middle of a parking lot. Amazingly it is still located in its original spot, despite the destruction of the building that used to house it.
The river Severn, which surrounds the city on three sides.
