Sat Sept 1

Today we visited two very interesting local towns - Wells and Glastonbury. Wells is named after St Andrew's wells that bubble up near the Bishop's Palace and flow through the town. Surrounded by a moat, the palace has been inhabited by the Bishops of Bath and Wells for over 800 years. Swans in the moat know to pull on a bell string when they want food - quite something to see! The landscaped gardens are just stunning. The Wells Cathedral is definitely worth seeing - begun in the 1100's and contains tombs dated from the 990s. A city of much medieval character. But no 16th c. bishop tombs.







Then on to Glastonbury - most famous for its annual rock festival in June which attracts tens of thousands for a 3 day event. The town has many mystical associations...lots of shops selling crystals, tarot cards, incense everywhere, scruffy hippies, sad goths ... and then there's the whole King Arthur thing - he's supposedly buried within the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey. We climbed to the top of the Glastonbury Tor. Seen for miles around, the Tor is a very high hill with the remains of a 14th century church atop it. Amazing views of the Somerset countryside. Beneath the tower is where Joseph of Arimathea buried the Holy Grail.





We then headed over to the Glastonbury Abbey ruins...built in the 8th century, burned down in the 12th, rebuilt and then left in ruins after the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the 16th century. It's a beautiful place to wander about. Tomorrow we move onto Devon. We loved our time here in Bath - such a beautiful city.







Our only disappointment was Pete Best. Imagine not being "the" Pete Best, but a karaoke singer instead, who did a Neil Diamond set followed by a Tom Jones. Not so bad with a pint in the end.