With so much going on in the capital, it's easy to forget that there's lots to see outside of London. During my series of visitors, I recruited a few as fellow travelers for pilgrimages to nearby attractions. One very appropriate city was Canterbury, the destination of the story-tellers stuck in Southwark, now a London suburb, in Chaucer's tales.
On the train ride there, we saw many buildings with weird white caps (left), which turned out to be oast houses, where hops once were dried for the region's famous Kentish ale. After passing through many pastoral miles, we eventually passed under the West Gate Tower (right), whose builder was killed in a revolt by peasants from the surrounding countryside.
In medieval times, many pilgrims streamed through the arch on their way to the Canterbury Cathedral (top left). Still today, the UNESCO World Heritage site attracts thousands of tourists who pay respect to the church's Romanesque and Gothic architecture (top right). Part of the cathedral grounds back up against the city walls, originally built by Romans but rebuilt during the Middle Ages, near Quenin Gate (bottom).
On the other side of the walls lies an oft-overlooked part of the UNESCO site: St. Augustine's Abbey, a Benedictine monastery founded in the 6th century, hundreds of years before the cathedral was built (left). Amid the abbey ruins are the graves of the saint himself, along with a few Anglo-Saxon kings and archbishops of Canterbury (right).
TJ and I honored history, but we had to pay homage to hops as well. The tourist-information desk directed us to the Foundry Brew Pub tucked off the main street in the town (left). We tried a range of beers on sample from Canterbury Brewers, the in-house microbrewery (right).
Although named after the Victorian cast-metal maker the building once contained, the brewpub itself opened fewer than five years ago. So later in the day, we took roost at The Parrot, the oldest pub in Canterbury (left), just down the street from The Dolphin, the oldest pub in Canterbury named after a marine animal, as a cheeky sign proudly stated. Within the Parrot, the 14th-century beams of St. Radigund's Hall, a monk gathering place built on Roman foundations in 1370, are exposed above the bar (right).
For dinner, we chose The Thomas Becket (left), named after the saint who was slain in the cathedral and whose shrine still draws pilgrims to the town. We toasted Mr. Becket with the pie of the day for TJ and a Sunday roast platter for myself (right).
On our way out of town, we passed The Old Weavers, now a restaurant but formerly a 15th-century fabric house, whose candlelit windows overlook the Great Stour River (left). The main pedestrianized thoroughfare of the city was brightened by more modern electrified lights (right).
Another weekend, we headed to another city with paths lit up for the public: St. Albans (left). The glimmering white peaks in the background belong to The Boot, a neighborhood establishment where we couldn't budge anyone from a table, so we could eat dinner there. Behind the sparkly blue tree is one of the city's claims to fame: the Clock Tower, a belfry built in the early 15th century as a sign of rebellion against the local abbot (right).
The abbot is long gone, but the Benedictine abbey, part of St. Albans Cathedral, remains (top). The older section of the church contains a watchtower (bottom left) to look after the shrine of St. Alban (bottom right). The saint is considered the first British martyr, for being executed after he refused to worship Roman gods.
The St. Albans Abbey Gate, just downhill from the cathedral, was the main entrance to the monastery (top). The gate once contained presses that printed Latin primers for the abbey school; to this day, the structure is a foundation of education, as part of St. Albans School. Further down the hill from the gate, we found Ye Olde Fighting Cocks, reputably the oldest pub in England (bottom left). We had to walk outside instead of inside through tunnels from the cathedral to the beer cellar of the pub, which was built in the 11th century (bottom right).
The hallowed halls of religion and education became even more closely intertwined during our day to trip to Cambridge. The many religious institutions in the area attracted clergyman to the city in the 12th century, and by the beginning of the the 13th century, scholars fleeing a town-gown conflict in Oxford joined them. The students organized courses of study that eventually led to the creation of the University of Cambridge. Today, the university is a confederation of 31 autonomous colleges with their own procedures, regulations, and buildings, including chapels.
Each college has a unique specialty or reputation as well. King's College has what is considered the most spectacular chapel and is known for its music program (top left). Trinity College is perhaps more well-known for its library and lawn along The Backs (top right). St. John's College is home to the Bridge of Sighs, crossed by its many science and rugby devotees (bottom).
One of the most popular recreation activities in the college town, at least for tourists, is punting, which has nothing to do with football. It's similar to a gondola ride along the River Cam, from which the city gets its name. One bridge above the river belongs to Clare College, which pitches itself as more friendly and less pretentious than the other colleges (top). We stayed on dry ground and propelled ourselves through the narrow alleys between the colleges (bottom left). You have to look up, lest you miss the many plaques honoring the university's famous students, including Alan Turing, of Bletchley Park fame (bottom right).
Although the college buildings draw the crowds, the 12th-century architecture of the Round Church, one of only four remaining medieval round churches in England, is compelling, too (left). But of course, in a college town, you have to hit at least one bar, so we went to Cambridge Brewhouse, home of Cambridge Brewing Company. I had a Dark Wheat porter, and TJ had a Misty River pale ale to go along with our pig cheeks and Scotch eggs, brain food if ever there was some (right).
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