More Exploration of Canterbury
Today was my final day in Canterbury! I had a few things I wanted to see, but didn't really pressure myself about it.
The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge opened at 10:00 and was my first stop, so I slept in. It's always interesting to me that these places don't open until 9:00 or 10:00 or even later sometimes.
This was a nice little free museum in the middle of the High Street. I didn't take me to long to go through it. I really liked an exhibition called "The Face of Homelessness." This is something I've noticed in Canterbury and nowhere else that I have been in the UK (not even London)--homeless people. I hardly ever give money to homeless people, but I do wonder about their stories, so the exhibit definitely put a human touch on it.
Next I went in search of Greyfriar Gardens and Chapel which was nearby. It was easily found and I walked around--very pretty. I thought the chapel would be open to the public, but it wasn't. Such is life.
This is actually something I had taken a photo of the other day, but didn't realize what it was at the time.
Four finger sandwiches (salmon and cream cheese, cucumber and cream cheese, ham, and egg salad), two scones with cream and jam, your choice of cake (I went with chocolate because duh), and a pot of tea of your choice from a menu that was 4 pages long (I went with something called Rose Condour). Everything was excellent.
I do have to make a note of the bottom picture with the scones. I chose a random table to sit at; I was hoping for a window seat, but it was occupied. When I got settled, I noticed the sugar container on the table. When the woman brought my food, she supplied with me a matching plate. This is the same exact pattern of china that was my Grandma Scheffert's. The full set currently resides in my home, in the dining room hutch. After my grandma died, my mom searched high and low (on eBay) to complete the set. After I sent a picture of it to Philip for him to confirm it was the same pattern, I couldn't help but cry in public. (I mean, just a few tears...nothing crazy here.) What are the odds of me going to that tea shop and sitting at that table?! Even writing about this makes my tear up. It's like I was meant to go and sit there today.
I chatted it up with a lady in the tea room for about 15 minutes. Her husband is from Philly, she is from New Zealand, and they have lived in England for 25 years. How do these people have such interesting lives?
After being at the tearoom for about 1.5 hours (that is so much food to eat and a pot of tea is three cups!), I needed to walk it off a bit. I went all the way back up High Street to Westgate Towers.
This was the entrance to the city for a long time (sorry for lack of detail here--I'm tired) and was a prison up until the 1800s. Prisoners all lived in one room directly over the roadway and were allowed to go to the top of the tower to exercise.
Views from the top of the tower!
Perhaps most importantly is that there was an adorable, soft, and super friendly cat at the top of the tower!
Who was he? What was she there for (other than to bring me joy)? How did he get there? What was her name? More mysteries.
After the tower was more walking, this time along the river to an area I hadn't been yet.
I watched some boys play soccer and was impressed by their skill! I loved seeing how the game organically came together with all these strangers. They've got to start playing at a young age. I couldn't help but smile when someone scored.
By this time it was getting sort of close to time for Evensong, but not quite. I needed to kill some time, so decided to go into a wine bar. I ordered a flight of white wines to try and they were tasty.
Here's my view whilst drinking wine. This area is called the Buttermarket. The entrance to the cathedral is at the very right of this photo.
There it is. I can't remember if I've posted that photo yet or not.
It was about 5:00 now, so headed towards the entrance of the cathedral. I wasn't sure if I could go in, so asked the porter and she said it was fine to head in if I was there for Evensong, so in I went.
Evensong is the evening service at the cathedral that is sung by the choir. Entering the cathedral quarters in the evening was pretty pleasant, a totally different vibe than in the morning and afternoon.
I was fearful this was going to be a repeat of the service at Durham Cathedral where it was me and eight other people with four priests. While that was an amazingly funny and uncomfortable experience, I didn't want that to happen again preferably. One of the priests (?) motioned at me to take a seat in the choir area as I walked in, but I kindly asked if I could sit elsewhere. He acted like he was thinking about it for a moment and then said with a smirk, "Oh go on, then." It was cute. I walked up towards the altar, which was nearer to the exit. I have anxiety about being far from an exit or not knowing how to get out of somewhere, so I felt much more comfortable being able to choose my seat.
I was pretty early, so I got to observe the cathedral for quite a while. I love thinking about how old the carvings are, that someone is actually buried in a certain spot, that a real person (an artist) painted a sculpture, and that hundreds of people have pilgrimaged to the cathedral over the years. The front of the service bulletin said that the cathedral has been a place of worship for over 1400 years. No biggie. It does make one feel humble, which is a feeling I enjoy.
The service was nice, about 40 minutes. The choir wasn't "the" cathedral choir (the famous one), but choir members from several local churches. They did a great job and the organ just makes it feel majestic! I tried to count how many people were there and it was near 100, so a good turnout! Canterbury is a popular place.
After the service I walked to placed called the Naughty Egg for dinner and brought the food to the park in which I currently sit typing this, stealing wifi from the White Hart which is right behind me! From the Naughty Egg I got a wrap with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, egg, rocket (which is kind of like arugula, apparently?), and I think that's it. It was fantastic. I really can't say enough about the food here.
I feel like I have more to share, but it's time for me to head home and get ready to go to Dover tomorrow! Canterbury has been good to me!
The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge opened at 10:00 and was my first stop, so I slept in. It's always interesting to me that these places don't open until 9:00 or 10:00 or even later sometimes.
This was a nice little free museum in the middle of the High Street. I didn't take me to long to go through it. I really liked an exhibition called "The Face of Homelessness." This is something I've noticed in Canterbury and nowhere else that I have been in the UK (not even London)--homeless people. I hardly ever give money to homeless people, but I do wonder about their stories, so the exhibit definitely put a human touch on it.
Next I went in search of Greyfriar Gardens and Chapel which was nearby. It was easily found and I walked around--very pretty. I thought the chapel would be open to the public, but it wasn't. Such is life.
This is actually something I had taken a photo of the other day, but didn't realize what it was at the time.
Another pretty view nearby to the gardens.
I inadvertently walked a lot today (almost exactly 5 miles), just exploring and seeing what I could find.
On the complete opposite side of town was where I wanted to get afternoon tea, so more walking is what I did. I had the tea at The Moat Tea Rooms, which is located inside a 500 year old building, but she doesn't look a day over 450.
I do have to make a note of the bottom picture with the scones. I chose a random table to sit at; I was hoping for a window seat, but it was occupied. When I got settled, I noticed the sugar container on the table. When the woman brought my food, she supplied with me a matching plate. This is the same exact pattern of china that was my Grandma Scheffert's. The full set currently resides in my home, in the dining room hutch. After my grandma died, my mom searched high and low (on eBay) to complete the set. After I sent a picture of it to Philip for him to confirm it was the same pattern, I couldn't help but cry in public. (I mean, just a few tears...nothing crazy here.) What are the odds of me going to that tea shop and sitting at that table?! Even writing about this makes my tear up. It's like I was meant to go and sit there today.
I chatted it up with a lady in the tea room for about 15 minutes. Her husband is from Philly, she is from New Zealand, and they have lived in England for 25 years. How do these people have such interesting lives?
After being at the tearoom for about 1.5 hours (that is so much food to eat and a pot of tea is three cups!), I needed to walk it off a bit. I went all the way back up High Street to Westgate Towers.
This was the entrance to the city for a long time (sorry for lack of detail here--I'm tired) and was a prison up until the 1800s. Prisoners all lived in one room directly over the roadway and were allowed to go to the top of the tower to exercise.
Views from the top of the tower!
Perhaps most importantly is that there was an adorable, soft, and super friendly cat at the top of the tower!
Who was he? What was she there for (other than to bring me joy)? How did he get there? What was her name? More mysteries.
After the tower was more walking, this time along the river to an area I hadn't been yet.
I watched some boys play soccer and was impressed by their skill! I loved seeing how the game organically came together with all these strangers. They've got to start playing at a young age. I couldn't help but smile when someone scored.
By this time it was getting sort of close to time for Evensong, but not quite. I needed to kill some time, so decided to go into a wine bar. I ordered a flight of white wines to try and they were tasty.
Here's my view whilst drinking wine. This area is called the Buttermarket. The entrance to the cathedral is at the very right of this photo.
There it is. I can't remember if I've posted that photo yet or not.
It was about 5:00 now, so headed towards the entrance of the cathedral. I wasn't sure if I could go in, so asked the porter and she said it was fine to head in if I was there for Evensong, so in I went.
Evensong is the evening service at the cathedral that is sung by the choir. Entering the cathedral quarters in the evening was pretty pleasant, a totally different vibe than in the morning and afternoon.
I was fearful this was going to be a repeat of the service at Durham Cathedral where it was me and eight other people with four priests. While that was an amazingly funny and uncomfortable experience, I didn't want that to happen again preferably. One of the priests (?) motioned at me to take a seat in the choir area as I walked in, but I kindly asked if I could sit elsewhere. He acted like he was thinking about it for a moment and then said with a smirk, "Oh go on, then." It was cute. I walked up towards the altar, which was nearer to the exit. I have anxiety about being far from an exit or not knowing how to get out of somewhere, so I felt much more comfortable being able to choose my seat.
I was pretty early, so I got to observe the cathedral for quite a while. I love thinking about how old the carvings are, that someone is actually buried in a certain spot, that a real person (an artist) painted a sculpture, and that hundreds of people have pilgrimaged to the cathedral over the years. The front of the service bulletin said that the cathedral has been a place of worship for over 1400 years. No biggie. It does make one feel humble, which is a feeling I enjoy.
The service was nice, about 40 minutes. The choir wasn't "the" cathedral choir (the famous one), but choir members from several local churches. They did a great job and the organ just makes it feel majestic! I tried to count how many people were there and it was near 100, so a good turnout! Canterbury is a popular place.
After the service I walked to placed called the Naughty Egg for dinner and brought the food to the park in which I currently sit typing this, stealing wifi from the White Hart which is right behind me! From the Naughty Egg I got a wrap with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, egg, rocket (which is kind of like arugula, apparently?), and I think that's it. It was fantastic. I really can't say enough about the food here.
I feel like I have more to share, but it's time for me to head home and get ready to go to Dover tomorrow! Canterbury has been good to me!