Glastonbury Vibes.

Sara and I had been wanting to plan a weekend getaway for yonks. Her boyfriend had to work, she had a weekend off, and I had reading week – we had all the time in the world! Where should we go? Manchester! Edinburgh! Liverpool! Cambridge! The isle is our oyster!

We sat at a coffee shop for hours researching train times, accommodation prices, tour bus dates, and ran into an issue with each and every location. Closed for winter, too expensive, sold out, no vacancy, the list goes on. We stared at a map of Great Britain and went city by city asking "Is there anything here? Does a bus go here? I think I heard about this town one time?"

Eventually we decided on a two-day marathon of day tripping. Day one to consist of the Somerset countryside and day two was a visit over to a castle in Wales.

First up on the menu not-so-bright but early was Glastonbury.

I had heard of Glastonbury the festival, aka the Coachella of England, but didn't know much about the actual city. It seemed like a pretty typical English town with a high street and lots of cute little shops scattered throughout, but unlike lots of other towns these window fronts advertised everything from witchcraft supplies to Alice in Wonderland themed tea rooms. I don't know much about Paganism or Wiccan other than bits and pieces I've read, but it had a really unique and quirky feel to it. We didn't explore the town centre too much other than grabbing a cup of tea, as our main goal was seeing the abbey – or what's left of it, should I say. 

Sara is the history buff and probably has much more eloquent things to say about the visit, but I was having one of those moments were I was just in awe of how old it was. Living in England I've become used to buildings that are hundreds of years old, but this was in a league of its own. Established in 712 AD, these walls have seen more history than I can wrap my head around.

Up away on a hill in the distance is the Glastonbury Tor, home to a host of myths and legends, including a claim that the Holy Grail is buried deep within. Sara mentioned she had read that the doorway at the tower is said to be a gateway into the underworld. 

"Let's let our legs rest and stay in this world instead."

Glastonbury is also *debatably* the resting place of King Arthur, as explained below.

There was a curious number of people walking their dogs around the area, which includes acres of land with benches and water, which made us think that not everyone necessarily goes through the main entrance and pays the admission fees. The fence around the area is more of a hedge, so understandably some locals may wander in for some peace and quiet.

Definitely worth a visit if you are into mind-melting amounts of history. Bring a friend who can break it all down for you.