More than just a festival (Glastonbury)

Member Name: DCSellman

Product:	Glastonbury
Date:	06/12/08 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lots of history, places to visit and Interest

Disadvantages: Chavs I suppose you'd call them

I'm writing about Glastonbury. Not the festival, but the town. Glastonbury is known as the Vale of Avalon. It used to be an Island town many years ago, with the surrounding land flooded. It wasn't until many ditches and rivers were dug did the land become farmable.

I grew up in Glastonbury so I know it pretty well. I've seen the place change over the past 15 years, some for better, some for worse.

If you are of a spiritual nature, then Glastonbury is a mecca in the UK because of the laylines that cross there. Hippy's, witches and druids have been coming to Glastonbury for years and years, and whilst it was pilgramage for most, over the years many have stayed and setup shop. Along Glastonbury High St you will find a variety of Crystal Shops, wicca shops (my fiance loves the goddess and the green man) and strange smelling shops.*

* There is also a shop down at the bottom, by the monument next door to the butchers (best in Glastonbury) owned by a guy called Rob Free Cannabis (he actually changed his name). Slight side-track from the review, but it will give you some idea of the mentality of the locals. As you might tell from the name, he likes cannabis. Well the story is he planted a load of seeds in the plant pots along Glastonbury High St. The police found out and tried to arrest him. His arguement was that he only planted the seeds, it was actually the local council gardner that culitivated them. He bloody well got away with it to!

Anyway, Glastonbury is also a very religious place, and very historical.

Places to visit;

Glastonbury Abbey. A wonderful example of Abbey ruins left in the wake of King Henry VIII's seperation from the Catholic Church. Many of the older buildings in the town are actually built from the rubble.

Chalice Well and Gardens. A beautiful little spot. Lovely well kept Gardens and a well producing spring water. You can take an empty bottle in a fill it up from the spring. Its very irony, but good for you. Just outside the gardens there is another spring called the white spring and that tastes much nicer.

The Tor. As most of you will no doubt know. A Tor is a hill. The tower on top of it is also the remains of old Henrys demolition days. Because his army were not wrecking crews, they could only destroy buildings made with wooden frames. The Tower with stood the flames and lives on to this day (though this is usually populated with smelly tramps)

The Thorn Bush. The story goes that Joseph of Aramathia planted his staff into the ground on Wirrial Hill (never remember how to spell that) and a great bush grew from it.

The Rural Life Museum. A great example of how rural life once was.

Just down the road you have Abbots Fish House in Meare (though the keys are intrusted the owner of The Manor House) in Wells you have the Cathedral and you have clarks village in street.

Just outside Meare on Ascott Road you have some amazing walks where you can see otters, swans, deer and kingfishers. In Westhay there is also a place called Willows Peat Museum. It shows life in the area as it used to be when it was all covered with swamps.

There are some nice places to eat, The Who'd a Thought It on Northload Street, and Knights Fish Bar, also on Northload Street. But unfortunately glastonbury is a place to be avoided at night. Its now full of drunks, rowdy drug addled morons spoiling for a fight and screaming girls dripping with gold, WKD and vomit.

Go there for a day trip but don't say the night.

Summary: You'll want to leave before it gets dark