Canterbury & Rochester
Date: 17 December 2007 05:18:10
Two historic and beautiful towns. The quickest way to get to Canterbury from Portsmouth was via London, so I enjoyed some lovely views of the English countryside and saw some very picturesque towns and villages -- and one with a very interesting name! On the way from London to Canterbury, the man opposite me struck up a conversation and we had a nice chat for some of the way to Canterbury.
I arrived in the early evening and Canterbury took my breath away with its wonderful city walls. After walking along them and finding my B&B, I met the charming and very friendly Tractor Girl for dinner -- and her choice of Marlowe's Restaurant was a good one. Great food -- and great serving sizes. And it was wonderful to have such a great meal with such great company in Tractor Girl. Pubs featured before and after, and I even got to talk to the lovely Never Conforming on the phone. A very pleasant evening.
The next morning, after a hearty breakfast, I walked along the city walls, wandered the streets, and saw some historic sites such as the ruins of Canterbury Castle and St Augustine's Abbey. It was then off to Canterbury Cathedral.
The £6.50 entry fee did shock me a bit, but all was forgotten, and forgiven, once I was inside. A beautiful, and vast, place of worship. As can be seen from the photo, there was a school choir practice happening: the organ was booming out Old 100th -- quite an experience to hear it while you walk around. From the columns to the statues to the crypt to the glorious stained glass it is a beautiful cathedral. I found praying at the shrine of Archbishop Thomas Becket, murdered in the Cathedral in 1170, particularly moving.
After the Cathedral I headed to the Westgate Tower for some great views of the city, as well as its interesting military museum. From Westgate Tower, I went to Greyfriar's Chapel and Franciscan Gardens and to what once was St Thomas' Hospital -- the beautiful hospital chapel [look at the roof!] is well worth a look. Some people associated with St Thomas' church live in what was the hospital -- you see them come and go while you walk around.
Tractor Girl had suggested the hospital and also that I try and see Rochester on my way back to London -- both great suggestions, so thank you Tractor Girl. I wandered around Rochester from the station, taking note of the many beautiful old buildings, often with quite decorative artwork on them. The highlights for me however were the castle [I told you I would visit every one I saw!] and the cathedral.
The castle grounds had some interesting information sheets as well as being a pleasant place to walk and to view the town and cathedral. I loved the inside of the castle; the audio-guide was very informative and it was wonderful to wander around it so freely, going through narrow passageways and getting a good idea of its size from inside.
Rochester Cathedral was lovely, but I did never get used to the presence of gift-shops actually in the cathedrals and churches -- it struck me as odd. That said, I did buy a wonderful Christmas CD which I am playing constantly in the car, so I cannot complain too much! I also attended an Evensong service there before heading back to London. Evensong remains one of my favourite services, and I felt blessed to attend a number of them on my travels.