Winchester

We woke to a clear but cold day in Winchester. After a juice to get us going in the morning we took off for a walk out through the water meadows to the St John's Cross Hospital about a mile away. A nice walk.
The hospital is an alms house for old men and has been in use for 600 years. On the way there we left Winchester via an old city gate and above the gate they had built a chapel called St Swithuns (patron saint of Winchester and tutor to King Alfred) It was amazing, so peaceful,tiny and ancient. Lovely memorial plaque written about a local doctor attached. It made us laugh.
On the way back to Town we had a look at the ruins of Wolvesly Castle. Walked back home to get ready to go to Evensong at Winchester Cathedral. Arrived about 4:45 which meant we got free entry. Enjoyed evensong and it was nice to revisit the cathedral again since our 2012 visit. It is still a fascinating and beautiful place. Had forgotten that the huge west windows had been smashed by Cromwells men around 1650 and the people of Winchester had collected all the stained glass and reassembled the pieces in an abstract way which looks like a contemporary window that could have been done this century not in 1660! Back into town for dinner at the William Walker pub. William Walker was the diver who saved the cathedral by renewing the crumbling foundations around the turn of the century. He had to work in deep water to access the foundations and it took two years. The town is a very easy place to be and it's history spans 1000 years.Read more