England 2005

Malmesbury, Wiltshire
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Click Map For More Detail

How to Get There
From Avebury, follow the A361 north until you intersect with the M4. Take the M4 West to Exit 17 and turn North on the A429. Follow to the town center. For first time drivers in the UK, be careful since the streets in Malmesbury are a bit windy and narrow.

Full Tour / Road Map
Arthurian Tour Itinerary PDF!

few miles north of exit 17 on the M4, at the very edge of the region known as the Cotswolds, lies the town of Malmesbury. It is the oldest borough in England, with a charter, given by Alfred the Great, dating back to around 880. It is an ancient hilltop market town whose chief attraction is its fine, old, partially-ruined abbey. In the middle ages, the abbey building, of which only a third part now remains, had a tall central spire, reaching 23 feet higher than Salisbury Cathedral's 404 ft. high spire.

The town's origins date back to the period of time after the Saxons had wrested final control over this part of the country from the Britons in the middle of the sixth century. Malmesbury's first important personage is one Aldhelm, a Saxon by birth and related to King Ine of Wessex. He took over the leadership of Malmesbury Abbey in 675, at the death of Maidulph, the abbey's founder, and grew it in size and importance. Around the year 700, Aldhelm built the first organ in England, described as a "mighty instrument with innumerable tones, blown with bellows, and enclosed in a gilded case." Aldhelm built many churches in the vicinity of Malmesbury, including the one at Bradford-on-Avon, which is well-preserved and still standing today. After his death in 709, he was canonized and became known ever after as St. Aldhelm.

Athelstan, grandson of Alfred the Great and one of the greatest Anglo-Saxon kings, was Malmesbury's most famous benefactor and royal patron. In local histories, he is accorded the honor of being the first King of All England, but that contention is open to dispute. Some say that Egbert (802-39) was the first king over a more or less unified country and others say it was Alfred (871-900). In any case, Athelstan was known as a great warrior, politician and endower of Malmesbury Abbey. He is said to have given many religious "relics" and books to the Abbey, making it a better attraction for pilgrims and scholars. Athelstan died in 940, and his tomb can be seen inside the Abbey at Malmesbury (see photo at right).

William of Malmesbury (1095-1143), the greatest historian of his time, was educated at the Abbey school. Of the medieval historians, his approach to writing history is most like that of modern scholars: concern for accuracy and detail, supported, as much as is possible, by eyewitness accounts or solid documentary evidence.

Even though the town of Malmesbury is not well known to Americans, it is a part of American history, nonetheless. Malmesbury was the ancestral home of the Hanks family, and one charming tradition has it that the Wiltshire town was the birthplace of Nancy Hanks, the mother of Abraham Lincoln. Other sources dispute this, though, locating her birth in Virginia in 1784. What other sources, you ask? None other than Nancy Hanks' son, Honest Abe, himself. And you know he cannot tell a lie.

More Photos: Abbey ruins | Abbey Interior | South Porch | Illuminated Manuscript

Next stop: Bath, Somerset
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Tower Bridge, London. Taken from within the Dungeons of London. Blue on the bridge represent the Queens favorite color. Just like the Golden Gate in SF was painted in my favorite color. Ok thats b.s.

St. Paul's Cathedral in London (top) Rachel and Drew setting up a photo of St. Paul's. Thanks for the London Tour guys I had lots of fun.
Drew in London across from St. Pauls Cathedral (top) Morecambe (Lancaster) England. View from Drews bedroom window at his parents house.
Westminster crossing with Downing Street for the Opening of Parliment on May 16th, 2005. Had a picture of the Queens carriage, but it didnt really turn out the way I wanted. Which meant no strangers heads taking over the photo. We didnt realize that Parliment was opening but we just so happened to come up from the Underground at the right moment. God Save the Queen. lol

(Top photo in pair) In the jaguar is Prime Minister Tony Blair, which I recall Drew telling me at the moment but forgot when I got the pictures back. Thanks Drew.

I'll post the Queens carriage with her majesty later. Its a crap photo, but at least I saw her.

Tetbury, which is a town close to HRH Prince Charles counrty home in Gloucestershire.

Scriptures done by Monks in the 11th century. Sorry about the glare I was attempting to avoid it. Art work done by hand as well as writings.
Inside the Church
Malmesbury Abbey but I do remember that it has been standing since the 11th century. Includes a museum upstairs with relics and manuals scribed by medievel monks. Ok the town to which this church is located is Malmesbury.

Town of Malmesbury. The pavillion was used to tie up horses in the center of town while folks shopped the markets or had a pint at the local pub. Very quaint, charming and typically British.

So I was cheap. I didn't want to pay 5 quid for walking the same path but only a foot closer.

StoneHenge

Visited area with Katie, Drew and Rachel

My trip to England started from Heathrow airport to the Sheraton hotel to pick up the car. Arrived early in the morning around 10:00am and had a few hours to kill for the ferry crossing the English Channel to France. We started our trip in England and got the car there because we were heading back to England after France and me once again after Cairo.

I for the first time drove out of London heading South East towards Dover. What an odd feeling driving in the "passenger seat" and on the left side of the road. Took me about a half hour to get a feel for it. I think the freeway really allowed for me to adjust. I'm actually surprised I was able to find my way from Heathrow to the English Channel. We spent the afternoon in Dover and had lunch somewhere between London and Dover at a pub. I think I had bangers and mash. Mmmm my favorite next to the fish n' chips. From Dover, a lovely little English town you can see France across the Channel. Dover also has a memorial for war veterans from WWI and WWII. Lots of old fighter planes both American and English.

From Dover we headed to the crossing via the Tunnel Train. Very cool you head for the tracks/ docks where you line your cars up and are directed on these huge double stacked flat bed trains. You moved on like cattle. Yeh my first time to drive a car onto a train. The ride is about 45 minutes which goes by rather quickly. Kind of similar to a Bart ride under the San Francisco Bay Bridge, but when you surface you surface in Calais, France.

Back in the mid 1500's Calais was actually English territory but Henry the VIII managed to lose it during a battle with France. Although there is still some English influence (countries tied intensenly by genetics and land for centuries). Calais is nothing special , some interesting architechure but too many Irish Bars. Kind of takes away from the French feel. Our first night we stayed in Calais as we arrived around 7:00 p.m. My first French meal was at an American style B.B.Q house. Nothing French like was open. So it was a B.B.Q resteraunt that was decent or Americanized fast food. No Le Big Mac for me or should I say Le Royal from Pulp Fiction.
Next morning we headed to PARIS. Warning if you ever go to Paris never ever ever ever rent a car and attempt to drive in Paris. You will definetly hate the person your with by the time you even find your hotel. It took us 2 hours from the outer parimeter to the most insane excursion through intense traffic , fast driving and confusing streets that split on a round about every 100 ft. Round about there are in sections of 4 to 10 intersections. Streets change names on the straight aways. Its insane. But through my tour I passed Moulan Rouge, Eifel Tower and the most insane of round abouts the Arch de Triumph. Which you basically have to just go for it and hope you survive. I didnt even realize I was in that round about until I was half way in with cars coming at me from all directions. I glance out the window and say "Arc de Triumph" then attempt to pry my way without a scratch on my rental car that was not supposed to leave the UK , without insurance and any damages would go directly to my ATM card. lol. Oh the things I do to save a little money.

That night we made it to our hotel which wasnt too bad if you like a bathroom the size of water heater closet. That night we just ended up strolling around near by neighborhood. And guess what? The only resteraunt open was Chinese. Second French meal, chinese. So far not very French.

Following day in France we headed to the Louve, a bato-bus tour on the Seine and stopping at the Eiffel Tower. Long day but lots of fun. One thing I noticed was that I couldnt find a tourist shop other than in the Museum or one little stand that had artist. Never got a chance to go back and purchase a sketch. Wish I had, but by the time we got out of the Louve they artist closed down, so we headed for a small cafe to have a cafe au lait and a crossant.

Third day in Paris we headed out of the City, or attempted for the countryside to see Fountain Bleau and Versaille. Prior to leaving we went to a Au Pain and Fromage shop for some bread and cheese. France has the best bread and cheese. We lived off it all day. We made it within three hours to Fountain Bleau although the route was through more small towns then anything. I went by signs because we couldnt find the exit on the parimeter. So after an hour going in circles I went with my instinct and somewhat of a memory of location from Paris from a map and soon as I found signs I continued on from there. We managed to tour the Chateau. What a home, if I were a kid growing up there I would have found tons of hiding places. Probably could go weeks without seeing an adult. lol. The grounds were beautiful, well groomed.

After Fountain Bleau we head to Versaille, actually managed to find that with ease. Leaving F.Bleau we were able to find the right freeway going somewhat back towards Paris. We made it to the grounds of Versaille but missed entering the Chateau / Palace by 15 minutes. We could have paid for the last 15 minutes of seeing some rooms, but there was no discount and it was 20 Euro's. Kind of expensive for 15 minutes. So we peaked inside the building and walked around. Then headed out to some shops nearby and sat to have a few pints prior to heading back to Paris.

Fourth day in France we left Paris for the Champagne region of France. Destination Chalon de Champagne to met Katies childhood Au Pair. Katie is from Lancaster, England and moved to the US in her mid twenties. Her Au Pair had continued correspondence for the last 25 yrs. despite them have only spent a summer together and not have seen each other since then. We made it to Chalon without fail but once in Chalon, yet being a small town it took us about an hour plus to find the house. Katie couldnt recall how to speak French all to well, and my extremely sucky French, which I did horribly in in High School for some reason was able to get directions that were actually very clear. Katie was driving and went into a panic attack. I got her thus far and she couldnt manage to drive in a small town, despite me giving her directions. When I told her to turn right she headed directly into a farmers market. We were the only car in the middle of a farmers market, and believe it or not it was actually not apart of the road and had been blocked off. But for some reason she squweezed the car in. We headed out, we argued I had her stop to call and see if we could be directed in. But in Katies conversation she manged to panic on the phone saying we were lost and would be late but forgot to ask if we could met someone somewhere and be directed in. I told her to go back to where we were and try again. Finally at last minute she saw the street sign and turned at the right. Then making some comment on why I didnt tell her to turn there. Ummm I did and secondly I couldnt read the sign. For information that maybe helpful there are no street signs in France, street names are posted on buildings that are on that actual street so you cant read the sign because you have to actually be on that street to see the name. No there is no logic. But I only knew for her to turn right because I had the woman in a flower shop draw monuments that would allow me to follow when I was near and when we went to far. This day of driving turned out to be the worst day in France as Katie and I screamed at another. Me probably a little more because I raised my voice so that she would snap out of her panic. She ended up crying and holding a grudge. Yet she forgets that she was bickering and snapping at me for 2 solid hours, not to mention I was funding her trip until we got back to England. However to make something terrible go better the Au Pair and her family were so incredible kind. The lived in a home that was from the 13th century, typical French home with the wood beams showing on the outside of the building as well as inside. Lavishly decorated with the typical French style and colors. Lots of gold, yellow's and blues, with antique furniture. That evening they should us to their flat above their legal office (both attorneys). Then they took us out to dinner, with lots of wine and champagne. Ok best things in France undoubtly: the food, desserts and Champagne and art. The worst things in France is the driving.

Last day in France we headed out from Chalon by 1:30 p.m., a little late as we were attempting to be out by noon because we had a 5:30 p.m. train back to England. Luckily the speed limit in France is like 110 and no one goes under 130. We made it back to Calais within 3 1/2 hours. I made eight to ten miles every minute. This is no joke. I flew. Luckily we made the channel within 15 minutes of departure. Once on the train Katie ended up driving to her friends house.

Dover to Potter's Bar England. Potters Bar is north from London about 45minutes. The BBC tv shows are filmed in this area. The popular soap show was filmed only a few minutes away from Katies friends house. We stayed the night in Potters Bar. The friends were nice. Definetly gossipers. Which I suppose was ok because they were updating Katie on friends but I thought some of it was just bitching and cattie. I dont think I said more than 20 words the entire night. They never really incorporated me into the discussions nor asked me anything. So I just sat there and listened. But they were pleasant and it was somewhere to sleep for free. Next morning they made us a typical English Breakfast with eggs, bacon (ham), baked beans, mushrooms, sausages and toast. There after we drove I think close to 5 hours north to Lancaster to visit Katies Dad.

Lancaster spent time with Katies dad then the following day went to Lancaster Castle / prison/ government building / abbey. This was interesting. It had all the crest on the walls in the judicial building. Some just family names, most royal sheilds. Downstairs you can go into the dungeons and they will allow you to walkin. The will close the door for 3 minutes were it is virtually pitch black. Apparently people up to 8 would be inprisoned in these cells from petty stealing to murders. Common amount of time people would be imprisoned in these lightless cells was 6 months solid. No restroom, a small hole to pass food, rats and disease. Many never survived. So you had decaying bodies laying with you. Talk about torture. Three minutes in there was plenty enough. Very creepy as you couldnt even see your hand in front of your face. Air tight and light tight. Your locked in there with strangers. Everyone was a bit creeped out. Another cell had "a ghost" I walked in not sure if it was just eirey or the concept that they told me the cell was haunted. Then we went into a medievel torture chamber / museum. In the gift shop I got a book on the Castle and a few family crest things. The rest of the day was just wondering about, visiting pubs, visiting Katies friends. Which all were adultresses, including Katie herself. I make's you wonder why they think sex is so casual and has no impact on others. None of the woman cared, would attempt to rationalize but didnt think their husbands should know because it was just random sex. One woman even slept with her husbands own brother, for several years. She was a fake blonde so that should explain it all.

After a few days in Lancaster area we then headed South / Central England to Nottingham / Derby area. Katies uncle was getting married to a woman that he had been with for something like 20 years. So this was my very first truely British wedding. And yes most of the women wear big hats.

An English wedding is an all day event. Its meant for family and friends. The actual wedding is for strictly family and very close friends followed by a reseption that goes on for hours on end. The first part of the reception has a meal then a break for a few hours (pub run) and then another part of the reception, snacking that allows other friends and distant family to come. So the wedding went from 11am to midnight. It was fun. People were very nice and actually spoke to me. And everyone was tanked by the end of the night. I've come to the conclusion that once you end up in the British Isle's its like mandatory to be an alcholic. lol. My own vice is cider. Strombow thank you. lol. That night we stayed with Katies cousin Kerry. They were very sweet. Prior to leaving Derby we went to a canal to visit the newly married Aunt and Uncle. The have a canal boat that they live in year round. That was cool. We went aboard and damn is that tight living. Extremely narrow boat was no more than 5 ft wide and about 30 ft long. So if you have furniture like a couch your pathway has now come to 2 ft. Then bed is tiny and handcrafted to fit in a little niche. The bathroom is amusing. The tub is more like a sink you stand in, with a hand held shower head. But they spend a lot of time at the boat house, somewhat of a community center for canal boat owners. I really would like to spend a few weeks traveling along the canals. The whined through England, Wales and Scotland going from Lock to lock. Men typically drive the boat while the women open the locks for passing through. Its rather interesting, manuvereing the boat into the lock takes a lot of skill despite the fact that the locks need to be cranked open to adjust water flow. One enters the first gate of the lock at one level. Close the door and wait for the lock to readjust its water level for the next lock. Water rises, lock adjust, open the second gate and enter trying not to hit the sides of the canal or flipping the actual boat. A canal boat maximum speed is 3 to 5 miles an hour. Very slow traveling. But then again the actual canals are fairly narrow with a span of maybe 15ft, barely enough room for passing by another and leaving about a foot space between the side of the canal and another canal boat.

From Derby to Bristol. We head Southwest towards the border of Wales and England, separated only by water. In Bristol we go to a few clubs, a few pubs, go to some costume party that was alright but more boring that anything. With some creepy Englishman trying to chat me up. Other than him no one ventured to talk to Katie or myself. They were in their own little clicks worlds. A waste of time but we went because Drew and Rachel wanted us to meet their friends. Personally I couldnt see these individuals being too tight with them, they seemed more self absorbed than how Drew and Rachel are. They are more accomadating genuinely social people that try not to impress and far from rude. So we stayed a few hours and were out of there. Thankfully I didnt have to do more than 3 hours.

Touristy things we did was drive around. Went to Monmouth, Wales back to Gloucester, England, Bath and Stonehenge. And other various small villiages with hatched roofs, typical stone cottages with english gardens. All very storybook.

A few days later I left England and headed to Egypt. After Egypt I met Drew and Rachel in London. I stayed in the Kensington area. First day I just met up with them to say Hi. I wasnt feeling well because I got bug bites at the Red Sea that were causing me to get very ill. I ended up at a clinic for shots, meds and skin cream for the bites. Doctor said it was good I came in because the bites were going toxic. After the doctors I went to get some food and headed back to the hotel. I slept the rest of the day.

Following day was completely running. I cramned in too much in a short day. I was leaving the following day back to the US. We saw the Dungeon of London, Westminster Abbey, Opening of Parliment, Downy street, St. Pauls Cathedral, a fee market places, Art museum near Buckingham Palace- Trafalgar Square, a pub naturally and too many trips on the Underground.

England April 2005 / May 2005

Ignore the dates listed on the photos. I never changed the date on the camera. Me bad.