We visit Canterbury as a day excursion, it’s the ecclesiastical capitol of England and is renowned for its Cathedral, The city’s watling street was the great roman road linking London with the port of Dover, and it has a medieval atmosphere about it.
The walls surrounding Canterbury are a great way of having a circular tour of the city. The River Stour runs through the city, when you get to the Weavers District, named after the Huguenot weavers who settled here, there are some picturesque, Tudor houses that overlook the river.
The Cathedral dominates the city, but the original one was destroyed by fire in 1067, it was reconstructed in 7 years by Lanfranc the first Norman Archbishop, it was consecrated in 1130, after the choir had been replaced by one longer than the nave, but, in 1174 it was again destroyed by fire, the crypt and the nave were spared. The cathedral became the most important centre for pilgrimage in northern Europe and the opportunity to rebuild it bigger and better was seized upon. The nave and the cloisters were rebuilt in early gothic style in the 14c, whilst the Bell Harry Tower, was completed in the 15c.
In 1170, Thomas Becket, was murdered in the cathedral by four of Henry 11’s knights, who had taken literally his desire to be rid of the “turbulent priest”, Thomas was canonised two years later.
A visit to the Cathedral is a must whilst here, and is well worth the entrance fee.
The walls surrounding Canterbury are a great way of having a circular tour of the city. The River Stour runs through the city, when you get to the Weavers District, named after the Huguenot weavers who settled here, there are some picturesque, Tudor houses that overlook the river.
The Cathedral dominates the city, but the original one was destroyed by fire in 1067, it was reconstructed in 7 years by Lanfranc the first Norman Archbishop, it was consecrated in 1130, after the choir had been replaced by one longer than the nave, but, in 1174 it was again destroyed by fire, the crypt and the nave were spared. The cathedral became the most important centre for pilgrimage in northern Europe and the opportunity to rebuild it bigger and better was seized upon. The nave and the cloisters were rebuilt in early gothic style in the 14c, whilst the Bell Harry Tower, was completed in the 15c.
In 1170, Thomas Becket, was murdered in the cathedral by four of Henry 11’s knights, who had taken literally his desire to be rid of the “turbulent priest”, Thomas was canonised two years later.
A visit to the Cathedral is a must whilst here, and is well worth the entrance fee.
Folkestone
Situated on the Kent coast, we stayed in the Burstin Hotel; it’s right on the Harbour and overlooks the small fishing boats. During our stay at the hotel, we visited Canterbury and Broadstairs as well as having a day excursion to Bruges in Belgium.
Folkestone has a nice city centre that’s not too large and Thursday is Market day, where there are bargains to be had and when the locals stock up on their fresh produce from the local farms and also where some stalls have something for the visitor, whether from Britain or Abroad.
Other places to visit during a stay in Folkestone are, Dover, Hastings, New Romney, Sandwich and Hythe, these make up the five ports, collectively known as the Cinque Ports, other towns close by are Margate and Deal.
Dover
Dover’s just 21 miles from the European continent and a place where I and many holiday makers have passed through on our way to the ferry port.
I do however escort tours to Dover with its main attraction, Dover Castle, which has defended the coastline of England since 1168. You can tour the secret wartime tunnels that during the Second World War were used as a headquarters.
Discovered in 1970, the Roman Painted House is a fairly new attraction which has some wall paintings, and other remains, including some mosaics.
The White Cliffs of Dover are best seen by boat, a few miles offshore or why not visit the White Cliffs Experience.
Whether you visit Dover for the day or week-end, it has more to offer than just a ferry port.
It really
is “A PEOPLE THING”