Wednesday, April 20, 2016

What to see and do in Shrewsbury: Darwin, Romans, ruins, wine and biscuits

I looked up Shrewsbury because it was in the news as a result of the Cartoon Festival in April 2016. The festival has been going for 13 years but although I am a caricaturist I have only just had the joy of discovering it. But if you've missed the festival, or want to book for next year but wonder what else is nearby, here are my findings. I must have driven through Shrewsbury on my way to or from Wales or the north west but time to take a second look.

Shropshire Architecture and Scenery
The area is Shropshire and the tourist websites show attractive black and white Victorian timber frame buildings (which are a feature of Chester). The sites proudly speak of its awards for flowers. So Shrewsbury must look pretty in spring and summer.

Beautiful Buildings and landmarks
The city has several hundred listed buildings. Plus the expected religious buildings, a castle and a main museum. Other attractions include a statue of Charles Darwin, for those looking for a quick snap.

Roman Wroxeter Ruins
If you like your monuments large and with many more photo opportunities, an impressive large Roman gateway is part of a complex at Wroxeter, said to be the current largest Roman site in Britain. (I am not counting the Hadrian's wall which stretches for miles along the border between England and Scotland, ending with the visitor site at Vindolanda).

An even more extensive site has just been found on farmland in Wiltshire (see my other post). But  that exciting site has not yet been developed like this Roman ruins site which has a reproduction of what the Roman buildings would have looked like when it was intact.

Wroxeter Roman Vineyard
Wroxeter Roman Vineyard, a separate attraction, is reviewed on TripAdvisor. If you pick the right time of day and year you can visit the shop and restaurant and book a vineyard tour and wine tasting.

Shrewsbury Biscuits
If you stop to have tea, look for the Shrewsbury cake or biscuit.The biscuits are apparently very popular in New Zealand and India. A Youtube video shows a bakery in Pune (also known as Poona , connected with Gandhi and the Sassoons - south of Bombay - connected by a new road. The owner extols the original scented biscuits made with best buttering Shrewsbury, and shows how his family owned bakery uses a stamp to make the biscuits.

More Information From:
http://www.shropshire-guide.co.uk/places/united-kingdom/shropshire/shrewsbury/english-heritage/wroxeter-roman-city/
http://www.shropshire-guide.co.uk/places/attractions-activities/english-heritage/
https://shrewsburycartoonfestival.wordpress.com
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrewsbury_cake
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kp0gK2cetyQ (Shrewsbury biscuits made in Pune)

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.



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