Summer Holiday Part Two - Exeter

 Exeter is on of those places with a really fun vibe, especially in the city centre. So much of old Exeter is made of this charming reddish stone, and what I love about it, is they have managed to seamlessly integrate the old and new. Sadly a lot of historical buildings were damaged/destroyed in the slum clearances and then the second world war bombings and the subsequent rebuilding, but you find pockets of them dotted about. Like this one, where they've kept the ruins and added in little modern details to show you more of what the building would have looked like.

We were headed towards the cathedral, as with most cities in the UK, Exeter has one that would have been the spiritual centre of the city. The cathedral is also notable for having the worlds longest medieval vaulted ceilings, and when you see it, it is a masterpiece, it seems to stretch on eternally. There's also some beautiful carved statues, an astronomical clock and a rather lovely picnic area outside where you can enjoy a snack while taking in the beautiful building. Keep an eye out for the beautifully decorated keystones in the ceiling. Adult tickets are just £10, which is very good for a cathedral with so much to see and do. You can also book guided tours of the bell towers too, as well as others around the cathedral. Tours sell out fast so check the website for details and availability. (www.exeter-cathedral.org.uk/)

We then did something totally different, and something that I thoroughly recommend for anyone visiting Exeter who doesn't have a fear of small dark spaces of being underground. We visited the Exeter tunnels, a network of tunnels that originally contained lead pipes that brought clean water from springs outside of Exeter into the city. They have been opened up to allow visitors to experience them, as well as to learn more about the city from one of the guides that show you around. Some of them were very narrow and tight fitting, but the whole experience was thrilling and so so interesting.

James squeezing through!

One of the off shooting tunnels that led further towards the city centre 

I was right as the back of the tour group, so managed to get these brilliant pictures of the tunnels as we were going through them. Certainly not an experience for the faintest of hearts!

Tickets for the tunnels are only £7.50, which thought was pretty good for what you were getting. Just remember, medieval people were shorter than us today, I'm six foot tall and found it a little challenging height wise at times, and I was grateful for the hard hat they gave us!

We finished the day with a little wander through the Northernhay & Rougemont Gardens, which contained some of the old walls of Exeter, originally from the Roman times. In one of the towers, there is also a small plaque dedicated to the women who were executed as witches in a particularly shameful period of our history. I feel that the witch trials in the UK as not particularly well known or talked about, everyone knows about the one that happened the Salem, but there's not a lot of information or media about British witch trials. I hope this changes, It's important for us to reflect, learn, and then ensure that it does not happen again.

This was the view from the central car park, not bad eh?

Our friend we made when leaving the University halls where we were staying. Kitty followed us for quite a way, obviously interested in where we were going! Alas, kitty did not join us for the rest of our travels though. Maybe we could have convinced kitty with a can of tuna?