Dover Castle

We checked out, loaded up the car and took a scenic route into Kent, arriving at Dover Castle around lunchtime. When there we were ambushed by an English Heritage lady, who persuaded us of the benefits of joining EH. Basically, entry to the castle would have cost us £60, whereas annual membership of EH would be a measly £115 for a year’s membership. Even though we’re only here for a couple of months, many of the sites we’ll be visiting are EH places, and entry will be free. Cost savings!

We decided to lunch first, castle afterwards, so found a picnic table. It was a bit cooler and breezy, but not uncomfortably so, as we ate tuna sammies, strawberries, and more mediocre chocolate.

Before exploring the medieval castle, we had a quick look around the Pharos and St Mary’s church, which both stand inside the curtain wall. The Pharos, or lighthouse, is of Roman build and dates back to the second century.

 

To the lighthouse

Next to the lighthouse is the church of St Mary, built in the 12^th century. It contains many of the features of olde English churches, and is curiously mosaiced around the walls.

After that we went to the castle proper, and followed the tour route around that. This included a trip up to the top of the keep to view picturesque views of Dover. Unfortunately, Dover is not a picturesque town, but the views in other directions were fine. There were volunteer guides dotted around the place and we had a long chat with one in one of the bedrooms attached to a feasting hall. She was able to give us details about how life was lived in olden times, incuding taking your bed with you when you travelled, if you were rich and could afford (a) to travel with an entourage, and (b) a bed. They slept sitting up in Olden Times, which is why so many medieval beds look short by modern standards – it’s not that they were all midgets!

 

Mappa Mundi

The second part of the history of Dover Castle relates to World War II, but by this time we were a bit castled out, so we skipped that section, headed to the shop (where we bought a fridge magnet and sampled strawberry and ginger wines) and the café (where we bought tea).

Then onwards with a quick stop at Tesco to revictual, and finally arriving at the parental homestead at around 16:00 to met with Brother Jason, and Pa. We’ll be staying here a few nights so will explore the local area from here.