My tour to Leeds Castle, Dover and Canterbury Cathedral was well worth the time and money. Mostly anyway. Leeds Castle is as picturesque as a castle can possibly be and so well intact and cared for you can almost imagine living there. Lady Bailey lived in it until 1974 when she turned it over to the National Trust.
On the bus I sat next to Sue from Australia who was also traveling alone. She was great company. Our tour guide was a very friendly, proper, English lady. Talk about thoroughly knowledgeable, this woman seemed to know just about everything. Then she knocked my socks off when she began speaking fluent Japanese. It was a bit of a shock really, mostly because it was so unexpected. Sue and I looked at each other with faces that read "Wow, am I losing my mind or is she speaking another language ?!"
The expedition to the White Cliffs of Dover was disappointing to say the least. Apparently the only place to get a tour bus close to the cliffs is near this old seaside resort area. The cliffs are oh, about 4-5 miles away in the distance. Very visible, even on a foggy day as it was, but with all the marina stuff in the foreground, it doesn't make for good pictures. However, I'm glad that we stopped there because I had thought of planning a trip out there just to see the cliffs and frankly, the town is a bit grotty and there really isn't anything else do to there. So, now I know.
Our next stop - Canterbury Cathedral is located east of London in Kent. The foundation was build in 597 AD over an ancient Roman road. Thomas Becket (a famous Arch Bishop) was murdered here in 1170 by the knights of King Henry II. As this was considered a martyrdom visiting his shrine is a pilgrimage for many and these journeys are famously described in Geoffrey Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales".
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