A Quick Tale of Three Cities October 12, 2017
"To be anonymous and traveling in an interesting place is intoxicating."
Paul Theroux in The Kingdom by the Sea: A Journey Around Great Britain
With our walking on the Cotswold Way finished, we turned our attention to a more urban experience by visiting Bath, the official end of the Way, as well as the cities of Winchester and London.
Bath is a beautiful city, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and a gathering place for the well-heeled during the Victorian era.
Spa and temple. Bath takes its name from the Roman baths, built in the first century - and they are still viable, though not being used now. But one could! They don't leak, despite having been created nearly 2000 years ago. What other man-made project has that longevity? And the hot springs that fed them during the time of the Romans still spill steamy water out of the earth! The Romans had built not only the baths, but also temples at this location. It was a place of leisure and worship. Interesting combination. We had a fascinating tour.
Bath Abbey was founded in the 8th century as a Benedictine monastery. Its windows were blown out during the Nazi blitz but have been restored. Despite the grandeur, it is very much a working Anglican parish church. In fact, there was an all-day meeting going on during our one full day in Bath. Tourists couldn't enter until late afternoon, just in time for the evensong worship service at 5:30 pm. Bruce and I appreciated being able to attend. Such a graceful service with hauntingly beautiful choral music provided by the girls' and men's choirs.
Grand townhouse architecture is another of Bath's features. These stunning homes were built in the early 1800's using the local golden stone. They are light and clean and everywhere! Very impressive in scale.
Winchester. The next city on our tour was Winchester. I had visited last year and had been quite enamored. I wanted Bruce to see it, and, as it wasn't far from Bath, we were able to easily include it in our itinerary.
What I loved about Winchester is its proud but quiet antiquity, alongside a vibrant current culture of students and everyday life. That could probably be said of many British cities, but this one seemed special to me. It was the ancient Anglo-Saxon capital of Britain, reigned over by the beloved King Alfred during the late 800's. The Romans had settled here, too, even earlier, laying out roads and setting up water systems. The oldest continuously running private boarding school for high school age boys in England is Winchester College, founded in 1394. We had a tour and learned that some of the buildings are original, including one of the dining halls!
We stayed in the same B&B where I had stayed last year, the lovely, casual old St. John's Croft, dating to the early 1700's and hosted by Dotty. The house is decorated in "shabby chic" and is spacious and light-filled. We were so comfortable there.
"Winchester Cathedral, you're bringing me down..."
Not really, but it's hard to get the words to the popular 1960's song out of your head. A tour of the Cathedral will probably do it. The tour guides are volunteers who are passionate and incredibly knowledgeable about the long and varied history of the church, one of the largest in Europe. And there are so many stories to tell. Like the time that the massive stained glass windows were destroyed by Cromwell's men in the 1600's. The townspeople gathered up the bits of glass and saved them. The window was later re-assembled in a random fashion which gives it a modern look. One can see a bit of a face here or a cloak there.
Jane Austen is buried in the Cathedral, and her corner draws lots of visitors. I always feel rather disrespectful by walking on the tombstones which make up the flooring in many ancient churches.
We attended evensong in this cathedral, too, and had the pleasure of being seated right in the choir loft, just behind the choir members. It was a special occasion when young boys, ages 5 & 6, are invited to spend the day singing with the boys' choir to see if they might want to join - and if the choir wants them to join :). We could watch these kids during the service. As Bruce noted, they are not all going to make it. There were a few mischievous wigglers in the group!
The water meadows are an area of town that provide a lovely walking venue. We strolled on the path on Sunday, when lots of folks were out with dogs & kids. One rambunctious pair of springer spaniels jumped joyously in and out of the water. It was good to be walking again, this time without a real destination or a backpack.
London
The real highlight of our London excursion were two visits with our dear friends, Mary & John, one just after we arrived in England and the second just before we left. They are a witty, generous, intelligent couple - and our mentors in their amazing curiosity and love of travel, despite being 85 & 90 years old!
Of course, you can't go to London without seeing a show. We chose Kinky Boots and loved it. What a fun, uplifting message on several levels!
Besides those, there were museums, massive and free, and lots of international food.
The whole experience - the countryside walking and the cities - was intoxicating. What a great way for me to begin a new decade!
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