The Vicars Close

Vicars’ Close next to Wells Cathedral is a stunning medieval cobbled street. It is said to be the oldest continually occupied street in Europe. It was built in 1360s as an extension of the cathedral by Bishop Ralph of Shrewsbury. He built the Vicar’s Hall and Close to give the men of the quire secure accommodation away from the temptations of the town. The Close and Cathedral are linked by a bridge.

It still houses members of the choir today and has remained unchanged in nearly 700 years.

This door intrigued me so I tried it and it opened. It was the entrance to a small chapel. Later I found this description on line.

The quadrangle was finally completed with the building of the Chapel at the north end in the early fifteenth century. The Chapel was dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Katherine, and it is first mentioned in a charter of 1479, but shields on the Chapel door carry the arms of Bishops Bubwith and Stafford, suggesting that the chapel was begun in the episcopate of the former and finished under the latter, giving it a date of c.1424-30. A room over the Chapel served as the Vicars’ Library.

We were constantly amazed at the history and at how old things are in England compared to the United States. We were happy to find the Vicars Close and walk along the cobbles of the oldest continually occupied street in Europe!

My back is all better with a day of rest and thank you for asking! Today is Halloween and I’m already wondering if I have enough treats to go around. I have a package of goodies with 60 individual treats. We’ll keep count and let you know how many little trick or treaters we get at our door. Katie is with us this Halloween so she’ll be the treat giver and she’ll be dressed as a faerie. I’ll take a photo…

Do you get Trick or Treaters at your door?

A Walk About the Palace…

Back to the Palace with some of my favorite views before we move on to the Vicar’s Close…

Oh my aching back! I managed to mow and rack up the current leaves in the yard on Tuesday. Everything looks so nice until the next wind blows through and deposits more leaves in our yard. Our apple, pear, Chinese flame tree and our neighbor’s maple still have enough leaves to make a few messes before we move on to not needing to mow the lawn again till Spring. Do you live in a climate where you mow all year long or do you get the winter off, too?

Head on over to MGCC blog today to see my rustic roasted butterflied chicken with vegetables.

Bishop’s Palace Windows

Within the Bishop’s Palace there is a small chapel. Most of the windows in this post are from the chapel. Reconciliation is an important theme in the Chapel. The five icons behind the altar tell the Biblical story of God’s reconciling love for humanity throughout the ages. The Celtic knot under the altar also reflects this symbolism. I posted the icons with my Sunday Hymn here.

The Chapel was restored by Bishop George Henry Law in the nineteenth century. In the windows he used fragments of French medieval glass from churches in the Rouen area, which were destroyed in the revolutionary era.

We are finally getting some sunshine streaming into our windows at this old house. It really lifts the spirits! As I look out my windows today I’m seeing a steady stream of leaves falling and birds are pecking about in the lawns. What are you seeing out your windows?

Well Well Wells!

There is still a lot to share from the Cathedral city of Wells before we move on to Cornwall. On Tuesday morning September 17th we found a parking spot in the market area of Wells and headed to the Bishop’s Palace. I was excited to see the moat around the Palace. I’m pretty sure this was the first moat I’d seen in person. Before we head inside the gates to the Palace here is one last shot of the Cathedral, some city views, and the moat.

The Bishop’s Palace is famous all over the world for it’s swans who ring a bell alongside the gatehouse when they want food.

Swans at the Palace were first taught to ring a bell for food by the daughter of Bishop Hervey in the 1870s and the tradition continues to this day. Bread is tied in clumps to the rope attracting the swans to nibble at it and pull it off, when they do this the bell rings. Gradually less and less bread is tied onto the rope as they begin to understand that by pulling the rope and hearing the bell means food will soon follow.

Surrounded by a breathtaking moat you can cross a flagstone drawbridge, under the portcullis and experience a true hidden gem in the heart of the City of Wells.

Next time we will go inside over the drawbridge to see the Palace.

It’s hard to believe we are still in our foggy pattern here in Western Washington. Ugh. The sun broke through beautifully yesterday afternoon and revealed all the dust I’ve been neglecting in the gloom. So many life lessons about the light and what it reveals and what darkness tries to hide. My sister will be visiting my pop tonight and she will take a photo for me of him in the new recliner we bought and had delivered to his apartment. He’s 90 years old and has never had his own chair let alone a recliner. He called right after it was delivered to say he really liked it. He said when he sat down in it he just started laughing from his joy. I love my pop…

Eating and Sleeping in Wells, England

After we enjoyed Evensong it was time to find our Inn for the night to check in and then to find a recommended spot for dinner.

The Inn was spacious but it wasn’t my favorite.

We had two of the larger rooms in the Inn.

My overall experience was lacking something.

We did enjoy the Fountain Inn Gastro Pub that was recommended to us for dinner. You could catch a glimpse of the Cathedral from the Pub.

The atmosphere, service and food was good.

We had a good nights rest and enjoyed our breakfast at the Inn before we headed further south to Cornwall.

Before we packed up I took a few more photos of the Inn.

While I was out back taking these photos I spotted Josh way up in his room at the open window. Of course I zoomed in for a shot!

Before we headed to Cornwall we drove back to the Cathedral to walk through the Bishop’s Palace and The Vicar’s Close.

Back here in the states Katie and I will be heading to Abbotsford, Canada on Friday. The Mennonite Girls Can Cook are joining the fun at the West Coast Women’s Show spending time at Wink’s Retail Space and on the kitchen stage. I’m happy to have a traveling companion for the trip back and forth.

Wells Cathedral ~ Somerset

The sun was setting with a lovely glow on the Cathedral as we left Evensong and stepped outside.

Wells lies sheltered beneath the southern slopes of the Mendip Hills, and combines a wealth of historic interest and beautiful architecture. Wells qualifies as England’s smallest, and Somerset’s only city.

Probably the finest national example of early English architecture, Wells Cathedral was largely built between the 12th and 14th centuries. The Cathedral is famed for its magnificent West Front, featuring over 300 statues and carvings; the inverted scissor arches of the nave, and one of the oldest working mechanical clocks.

We left the cathedral on this road to find our inn for the night. We didn’t leave Wells until later on Tuesday September 17th after we visited the Bishop’s Palace and the Vicar’s Close. I still have many posts from our time in England.

Oh boy, here in the Seattle area we are still in a foggy pattern. We were waiting for the sun to break through and dry up the lawn but that was not to happen yet so I had to mow the foggy dewy lawn today to match up with the yard waste removal tomorrow. It actually felt good to get some exercise after sitting all weekend. I’ve got a dental appointment and a fun trip to Canada planned this week with our daughter Katie. What’s on your to do list this week?

Inside Wells Cathedral

We were hoping we’d make it to Wells Cathedral in time for their Choral Evensong at 5:15 on Monday September 16th. We were so happy that we did and enjoyed a very meaningful hour…

Evensong: (Boy Choristers and Vicars Choral)

Preces and Responses: Smith

Psalms: 82, 83, 84, 85

Canticles: Byrd Fauxbourdon Service

Anthem: Byrd Justorum animae

Wells had lots to offer photo wise so there will be a few posts from this Cathedral City. Next week I’ll continue with photos of the outside views of the cathedral, the Bishop’s Palace, Vicar’s Close, and the Inn where we stayed.

“Wells is the smallest city in England with about 12,000 inhabitants. It can call itself a city because of the famous 13th century Cathedral. It remains remarkably unspoilt and has many other historic buildings including the moated Bishop’s Palace, Vicars’ Close, St Cuthbert’s Church and a good local museum. The Wells Market Place, with lively markets twice a week, the narrow streets and an eclectic mix of building styles all reflect on the continuing development of the town throughout the ages.”

We are enjoying a very leisurely Friday and plan the same for Saturday here in the Pacific Northwest. Hope all is well in your domain…

Friday’s Fences…

I’m participating in a new meme for me this week called Friday’s Fences from Life According to Jan and Jer.

This fence is from The Beryl, a boutique hotel in Wells, England. We stayed at this Inn this past September.

I’ll have to sneak in visits to see other fences today because soon I’ll have 4 girls (ladies) around my breakfast table, 2 nieces, our daughter and DIL. All my nieces and nephews live in California, Texas and Colorado so it’s a special treat when we capture a couple and bring them up to Washington state. Time will tell what the “girls” decide to spend time doing today until my sister Lana arrives later this afternoon. Hope you have a fun Friday planned.

Stow on the Wold

Just the name of this market town makes you want to check it out. Looking back on our trip I’m already hoping to return and spend some more leisurely time here and there. The Cotswolds is one of the places I’d like to explore with time to just wander about. There was one thing I was determined to see during our very short time in Stow.

We needed to find The Parish Church of St. Edward.

The Parish Church of St. Edward was built between the 11th and the 15th century. The tower was the last part of the church to be completed in 1447. It is 88′ high and houses the heaviest peal of eight bells in Gloucestershire; it is also very prominent for miles around. The painting of the Crucifixion in the south aisle was painted by Gaspar de Craeyer (1582 – 1669), a contemporary of Rubens and Van Dyck. Many features of this outstanding Cotswold Church may be attributed to the town’s prosperity as a centre of the Wool Trade.

But all this cool history isn’t what motivated me to walk around this church…

I was looking for a special door I wanted to see. This is a cool door but it wasn’t the one I was looking for.

This is the door I was determined to see in person. Those are real trees that flank this door to the church. Pretty cool, yes?

We had to have the “we were here” photo taken! Another slightly different view. Can you tell I was excited about this door?

If I visit Stow again I think I would take tea at Lucy’s …

From the Cotswolds we headed Southwest to stay a night in the Cathedral City of Wells. Hope you aren’t getting tired of our England journeys. I’ve got lots more to share and we haven’t even gotten to Cornwall yet…

We have a fun weekend planned with lots of girlie things we hope to enjoy. October is half over. What are your plans for this weekend? Today (Wednesday) I’m just watching the leaves fall and I ordered a pizza to be delivered for dinner. There were a lot of leaves to watch after all…

A Taste of Downton Abbey in Bampton…

Since we wouldn’t be able to stop at Highclere Castle during our recent trip to England we stopped at Bampton in Oxfordshire where some filming was done.

The village of Bampton was used for filming outdoor scenes, most notably St. Mary’s Church and the library, which serves as the entrance to the cottage hospital.

This weekend we are going to be having a girls time with daughters, nieces, sisters which includes a Downton Abbey marathon. I’m looking forward to comparing some of the church photos and village photos with what we saw in this quaint village.

I’m looking back today to come up with some photos for Vee’s notecard party. The fall colors are getting more prominent around these parts. How are they shaping up where you are?

The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b.

To honor and encourage

Category Archives: England