Wells Cathedral

Tim and Maddie had this week off from school, and Ethan had Monday off from work, so we thought that last weekend would be a good time to take a short trip "down south" to the Somerset region of England.

On Saturday, we drove down to the town of Cheddar... yes, Cheddar, as in the cheese! (By the way, I mentioned to Ethan the possibility of staying in the town of Cheddar, and without the least bit of hesitation, he said, "We're going!" What can I say?... the boy loves his cheese.)

Anyway, we chose to stay in the town of Cheddar because it was in driving distance to a few places that we wanted to see; namely Bath and Stonehenge. Also, my good friend Kelly recommended a particular house to rent that she stayed in once (and from experience, personal recommendations from Kelly are golden!).

On the way to our rental house, we made our first tourist stop at the city of Wells. Wells is known as the smallest city in England, and it was made popular due to it's incredible cathedral. As a general rule, all of the cathedrals throughout England are located in major cities; but Wells is pretty small in comparison.

As we walked through the town on the way to the cathedral, we came across the market square where the market stalls were starting to close up. Just beyond the square was a wall and shops where there were two exits: one for the Bishops Palace, and the other for the Cathedral.The Bishop's Palace was, of course, the residence for the Bishops of Wells, and was first built in the 1200s. In the mid-1800s, it was restored, and the upper-story was added to it. The palace even has a moat going around it with resident ducks, which my kids loved of course. We then walked to the Cathedral, and our jaws hit the floor. It was just stunning! This picture is of the West Front which was constructed around 1230AD. There are a number of figures carved on this front which include Biblical scenes, kings, bishops, and apostles, with Christ at the top.Inside the Cathedral was just as beautiful. (By the way, I hope these pictures are all right... I wasn't allowed to use my flash.) This pictures is of the Nave, and this is the ceiling.These "Scissor Arches" look so modern, don't they? But actually, they were added to the Cathedral in the mid-1300s as a medieval solution to sinking tower foundations.

The far end of the Cathedral was closed off for a service that was going on, but we were able to see the clock. The Wells Clock is the second oldest working clock in England, dating back to the 1380s. It still has its original medieval face which depicts a pre-Copernican universe with the Earth at the center and the sun & moon revolving around it! This clock is also unique because it has a 24-hour dial, and it represents the motion of the sun and the moon, the phases of the moon, and the time since the last new moon. If that weren't enough, every quarter hour, there are jousting knights that come out in coo-coo fashion, and this guy, called the Quarter Jack, strikes the bell on the hour. It was quite a sight, to say the least!
After our time in Wells, we headed to our rental house in Cheddar. Rental homes are a great way to travel, I have to say. For the cost of a reasonable hotel stay, we had a whole house to ourselves, including three bedrooms, and a kitchen. We brought food with us and prepared all of our breakfasts and dinners at home. It was a great way to save some money, but also such a plus to have space to spread out.

Next time, I will blog about our day in Cheddar (and yes, we got to taste some Cheddar Cheddar!).