Cauldron boil...... Cauldron bubble...... Glastonbury has a reputation as a New Age community and supporter of Paganism.  Legends surrounding the Holy Grail, King Arthur and the rumor that the town is the mystical Isle of Avalon, abound.  White witches convene regularly and most shops are permeated with the aroma of cascading lines of smoldering incense, crystal amulets, and many other new age items.

The iconic Tor, seen below, is alleged to be one of the world's great spiritual nodes marking the meeting point of many mystical lines of power. There is a lot of information or speculation regarding this landmark   Suffice it to say there are more questions than answers.

 The Abbey above was built in 7th century and enlarged in the 10th century, burnt down in the 11th century, rebuilt to become amongst the most important in England by the 14th century. It is a grade I listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument. So it is equally impressive that we were able to sneak in to get a photo of it, thanks to a kind workman who left the gate open.

The White spring pictured above is the sister spring to the Red Spring or Chalice Well.  Both springs are rumored to have healing powers. The Chalice Well has long been a site of pilgrimage, presumably for that reason.  The iron in the rock turned the water red in this 8 year old well.  It is also rumored to be the hiding place of the Holy Grail.

The water is still very drinkable, in fact there was a line up of people filing bottles when we arrived.  They kindly stopped their harvest to allow me to take the picture. Johanne asked them if they were selling it! They didn't seem amused.......

Today, Glastonbury is best know for its annual music festival. Ask anyone under 30 and I am sure they will know about it. They even made a movie about it a few years back.....

We made our way down the road to Wells just in time to catch the morning market. Everything from woven hats to local cheese was on display. In spite of the pouring rain, the vendors and customers were actively playing their part.  The market experience is so different here.   Unlike other places where it it a frenzy to get the vendors attention....people queue to make their purchases.   How polite, so totally British!

Wells dates back to Roman times. It's name drives from the nature springs found here.  England's smallest city with a population of only 12,000, gets its city status from the 13th century cathedral and the moated Bishop's palace, pictured below.

This little village is a really nice example of a working residential town that has learned to embrace tourist without losing its uniqueness as a place.  We left feeling at peace. Back to the hotel after a pomenade along the beachfront and a classic pub dinner of fish and chips for me and the biggest club house sandwich you have ever seen for Johanne.  Washed down with a nice local pint of grog.  Priceless!

Tomorrow it is time for Exeter.

Be well

Cheerio