Half Term Escape 7 - in to battle

Battle Abbey

A quiet day for us today.  I decided to go to Battle Abbey, Jo came with me.  The first hurdle is English Heritage trying to sell you membership.  It's getting a bit old, I'm not going to buy one because I don't know when I'll use it next.  I was last at the abbey when I was about 12 years old.  My memories are foggy, at best.

My impressions today were that the presentations need quite a bit of TLC.  Some are difficult to read because the words have rubbed off, and some are impossible to read.  These are 21st century problems, the ruins of the abbey, along with my fascination with the battle it commemorates, remain.  We struggled with the audio guides too, so abandoned those.  The view from the top of the Abbey is amazing.  The Battle Museum at the other end of the High Street is small, but well-organised, and staffed with enthusiastic volunteers.  From there I learnt that the gunpowder for the November 5th incident was manufactured in Battle.  They also have a 200-year-old effigy of Guy Fawkes.

The bonfire, before it was lit

In the evening, we went up the road to Cowbridge fireworks, where the bonfire almost didn't start in the torrential rain.  We got soaked, but we all enjoyed the show. Yes, even the small boy who doesn't like loud bangs.