Deciding to take full advantage of the sunshine we tackled our longest day on Day 2 - the hour drive east to Dover and its famous white cliffs. The scenery became stunning as the views opened up more than we've seen so far as we entered the Downs, officially an "Area of Oustanding Beauty". Vast brilliant yellow fields of ...rapeseed? Bright green grassy expanses, and miles and miles of twisty 2-lane roads.
Somehow our 1 hour drive took 3 hours - still trying to figure that out. The GPS was flawless, perhaps our pit stops? Or maybe the frustrating excess of miles of forced reduced speed long before we reached the port. Can't say the town of Dover had any immediate visual appeal, but high above town, set on a big bluff, was the amazing Dover Castle. A fortress sight for over 2000 years, the inner castle was circa Henry II (as in 1180's & Eleanor of Aquitaine), and the cliff front of most recent importance for its defense of the English Channel in WWII and the Dunkirk evacuation. We went on a tour of the tunnels which had a moving audiovisual reenactment of the week of Operation Dynamo as well as actual military communication and mapping equipment left from the war.
Just around the corner was a an ideal access to paths that ran along the White Cliffs of Dover so we braved the icy wind for some jaw-dropping views of the cliffs, the busy port of Dover with its multitude of ferries running back and forth across the Channel, and France! We could see France! How cool was that?
And, since we were so far east, we stopped in to Canterbury to see the famous Canterbury Cathedral. Being an English Literature major and a modern 'pilgrim', I couldn't resist visiting one of the most important pilgrimage sites of the medieval ages. The exterior was glorious, the interior, restrained. The church tried to downplay the Thomas à Becket connection by 1538 as Henry VIII wasn't so happy with the power of the churches so there's really nothing left to commemorate Tom's murder but an ever-lit candle. Still, very powerful impact walking in the steps of history....
Edward the Black Prince entombed here 1376. Becket's flame is over behind where his feet would be
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