A Day in Canterbury

Today, we followed the footsteps of pilgrims past and made our way from London to Canterbury. Canterbury is important for a number of reasons; it was here that St. Augustine first brought Christianity to England in 597. The current leader of the Anglican church, the Archbishop of Canterbury, is also based here. Pilgrims also used to travel here to visit the grave of Thomas Becket. Pictured above are the ruins of St. Augustine's Abbey, where Augustine converted the Anglo-Saxon King Ethelbert and introduced England to Christianity.

More of the abbey. It is largely in ruins now because Henry VIII had it destroyed and disbanded when he broke from the Roman Catholic church in 1534.

And here is the famous Canterbury Cathedral, the destination of thousands and thousands of pilgrims over the years.

Thomas Becket was the archbishop of Canterbury in 1170, and in that year he was murdered at this very spot in the cathedral. It was his tomb and shrine that people came from far and wide to visit because it was supposed to have miraculous healing powers.

Some photos from inside the cathedral.

And the stunning exterior.

After touring the cathedral, we had a little bit of time to explore the city of Canterbury itself. We stumbled upon this used book shop with a very peculiar door and door frame.

We also passed a chocolate shop with this sign out front. I don't think I've ever seen something that has more accurately described my stress relief methods. :)

That's all for now. Hope you have a great day!

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