A wintry walk around Rochester, Kent

Take a walk with me around a very frosty Rochester from the comfort of your own home; no outdoor clothing necessary!

Rochester is an ancient town which stands at the mouth of the River Medway and has a cathedral, a Norman castle and many other wonderful buildings. It's been an important stopping off place for travellers and pilgrims for centuries, so we have the Sacred and the Profane - we are well supplied both with ale houses and Houses of God!

Here is The Vines, now a public park but once a place where medieval monks grew grapevines so that they could brew their own hooch. Today I almost expected to meet Mr Tumnus under the lamp post.






Close to The Vines is Reformation House, which Dickens called 'Satis House' in Great Expectations. Charles II is supposed to have stayed here on his way back to claim the throne. Note the icicles on the street lamp.






Next is Eastgate House, which was built in the 1500s. It was a girls' boarding school in Dickens' time and features in some of his stories. Although it looks very sturdy in this picture, it is falling into disrepair and needs quite a lot of money spent on it. I do hope it isn't allowed to rot. I love it.






A short walk up the High Street to the Cathedral Precinct, looking very pretty in the snow.






And here is the Cathedral itself. The wonderful tree outside is an Indian Bean Tree. It is now railed off to prevent children climbing all over it, as it is quite elderly. However, there have been dire predictions of its imminent demise for as long as I can remember, and it is still going strong.






Opposite the Cathedral is Rochester Castle, looking rather dour and forbidding. Henry VIII met Anne of Cleves for the first time here and if the weather was anything like this it couldn't have improved his mood much.






Now we're going up the hill and into St Margaret's Street.






And here is St Margaret's Church. Its churchyard looks out over the River Medway.






And here's the view from the churchyard. Lots of sledging fun today.

 

Thanks for the tour Clara, I haven't been to Rochester for 30 years or so, a visit to Kent is long overdue.

 

Great pics ClaraLou and thank you for posting them.
Rochester looks lovely - I love old towns and old buildings.
I always enjoy Woo's walks too and his pics of the River Medway. Guess I love rivers too :luv:

 

Thank you for the beautiful tour, Clara....i loved seeing them!

 

Many thanks for the walkabout Claralou. Its been many a year since I have been around those parts.
I lived for several years in Walderslade. Not so many miles away.

 

Small world, Robert!

Glad you liked the pics, everyone. It's still snowing here. My cat is refusing to 'go' in the snow and he doesn't like the indoor facilities I've provided. I think this may end badly ....

 

Thank you for the lovely pictures Clare. We're hoping to take our boat down the Medway and through the lock at Allington into salt water and up to Rochester one day.Eek!

Still snowing here too, hasn't stopped for two days and one of our cats has to be helped out of the cat flap with a gentle boot!:D

Chris

 

Wait for some nice summer weather, Chris! Just spoke to my Mum, who is also snowed in. Her cat decided to use the linen bin! Right room, almost the right idea, but not quite. :(

 

Is this the place ?

Cheers for sharing Clare. I went to Rochester once, there were hundreds of people with bells & sticks.

 

Yes, it is indeed the place, Ziggy. And 'Delce Mill' must have been very close to where I now live, since there is a place called 'The Delce' nearby. It was obviously the moth-eaten bit of the town then as now :hehe:.

You must have been to the Sweeps' Festival. The guy over the road from me used to dance there with a Morris group. We always knew when he was coming back home because his little bells would ring as he walked. :hehe: Usually you could tell by the rhythm (or lack of it) how much he had had to drink.

 

You mean you live in "The Shades" as in the Discworld series :D

That was it, the sweeps festival. great fun, beards bells & brews.

The pics are from Unknown Kent by Donald Maxwell, printed by Bodley Head in 1921.

I got a copy for £15 but they go for £30-40 now.