Chester Cathedral

Monday July 25
With more rain in the forecast for today, Roger and I thought we’d go into Chester, where we could always look round the cathedral and the shops if and when it rained. Bernard was quite happy to have a quiet day at home. We drove to the Park and Ride and went in on the bus.
We visited the cathedral first and spent quite a while looking around. We’ve seen it before, but there were still several things I hadn’t noticed before. The cathedral is a Grade I listed building, and part of a heritage site that also includes some former monastic buildings to the north. The cathedral's construction dates from between 10th century and the early 16th century, having been modified a number of times throughout history. The Cathedral is built of New Red Sandstone, in this case Keuper Sandstone from the Cheshire Basin. The stone lends itself to detailed carving, but is also friable, easily eroded by rain and wind, and is badly affected by pollution. With the other red sandstone buildings, Chester is one of the most heavily restored of England's cathedrals. Chester suffered badly at the hands of the Parliamentary troops, and as a consequence, its stained glass dates mainly from the 19th and 20th centuries. There are also several notable modern windows. Having explored the cathedral and the cloisters, we had a bite to eat in their cafe, which we found a bit disappointing compared to other cathedral cafes we have eaten in.
We then walked the full length of the City Walls and explored the main streets and some of the famous Chester Rows, half timbered galleries, reached by steps, which form a second row of shops above those at street level along Watergate, Northgate, Eastgate and Bridge streets. I’ve put another collage in extras. The rain fortunately kept away, (apart from a bit of light drizzle while walking the walls) until we got off the bus at the Park and Ride car park, when we had a sudden downpour - so that was fortunate timing!
Step count: 13,710