Whirlwind Tour(s)

A large share of the job of the Nottingham Program directors in the summer is scouting the field trips on which they will take their students in the year ahead. We had already done a scouting trip to London. We were assisted on this second trip by our friends, the Mohling's, who came over to England after we had traveled with them on holiday in Ireland. As a Luther College graduate, Al was deputized as an alumni scout (though as an accountant, he made sure we kept all expenses separate!). It was a great way to mix business with pleasure.

Al drove their rental car in Ireland, but in England it was Mark's turn to drive. Our first excursion was two days to the southwest. We headed first to Avebury and Stonehenge. Both are prehistoric stone circles, but Stonehenge is more famous. The big tour buses usually don't stop at Avebury, so one can still walk right up to the stones. The only caveat is to watch your step, as the sheep still graze in this pasture and don't clean up after themselves very well.


From Stonehenge it's a quick trip to Salisbury and its marvelous cathedral. The Medieval cathedral builders were wise enough (or cash-strapped enough) to leave some statue pedestals vacant for images of saints who might come later. The folks at Salisbury recently commissioned a sculptor to create images of common, everyday people to fill some of these spots as a testament to the priesthood of all believers. We decided that this one, on the west exterior, must be a Lutheran, since he is holding a cup of coffee.


We arrived in Bath in time for a quick dinner and the free evening walking tour. After spending the night there, we came back to the city center for the tour of the excavated Roman baths from which the city takes its name. The excavations and the tour are far more extensive than we recalled from our visit there ten years ago. It's a fascinating glimpse of Britain's Roman past.

In the afternoon we made the short drive to Wells to yet another grand cathedral. Wells is a small town of only about 9,000 people (roughly the size of Decorah), but in the Middle Ages it was the hub of the region and bigger than Bath or Bristol nearby. It's a reminder of how few were the number of people who dedicated their lives for several generations to produce these cathedrals.


On to Glastonbury, where the grand cathedral is a ruin. The folks there made the mistake of defying Henry VIII when he dissolved the abbeys in the 1500s, so Henry (between wives?) had the place destroyed. The ruins remain awe-inspiring.

Glastonbury is also a center for all manner of "New Age" spirituality. It was a sacred spot for pre-historic people, as well as for the ancient druids, because of the unusual Tor, a high natural hill overlooking the city. Yes, we climbed it. One can see for miles!


It is supposedly the place to which Joseph of Arimathea came in the first century to bring Christianity and the Holy Grail. It is also supposedly the site of King Arthur's round table and everything associated with that legend. The "Goddess Conference" was taking place while we were there. There are a great many shops selling various crystals, incense, organic herbs, etc., and a great many strange-looking people to match. We followed the advice of the Rick Steves tour guidebook to "see it and get out." Home to Nottingham.


But still full of energy, we got up the next morning to drive in the opposite direction to York. We had forgotten how much there is to see and do in this ancient walled city that has long been recognized as the "Capital of the North." This is another great place to see how the history of Britain, beginning with the Romans, the Angles and Saxons, the Normans, and the moderns have all built upon what had gone before. And once again, that history is centered on a great cathedral. We couldn't do it all in a day, and I think we shall have to go back.