WHAT BENNIE'S BEEN DOING: Weeks 5-6 (Scotland/England, Ireland, France!)
Part 4: Day trip to Holy Island and Alnwick Castle
There are many, many tours from Edinburgh inviting folks to explore the Scottish Highlands and other remarkable sites. The one most in line with my sabbatical plan was a "Day Trip to Holy Island and Alnwick Castle." Honestly, I didn't even know about the Alnwick Castle part when I booked the trip. But, given that David and I are such Harry Potter fans (along with many of our friends, family, church-folk, etc.), we welcomed this additional destination where some scenes from Harry Potter movies were filmed as a fun bonus! And, when we got there, we found out that several scenes from Downton Abbey were also filmed there, so it was a double-bonus for me!
In the early 7th century, the future King of Northumbria, Oswald, was in exile on the island of Iona and became a Christian while he was there. When he returned to Northumbria as king, he invited Aidan, a monk from Iona, to be bishop of his kingdom and even granted him the entire island of Lindisfarne to build a monastery.
Just off the coast of northeast England near the border with Scotland, Lindisfarne is a tidal island with a causeway to the mainland being covered twice a day by the North Sea. It became known as "Holy Island" following the Viking attacks in the 8th century. As the monks of Durham observed: "Lindisfarne - baptized in the blood of so many good men - truly a 'Holy Island.'"
Considered the epicenter of Anglo-Saxon Christianity, Holy Island is also famous for the Lindisfarne Gospels, a 7th century illuminated Latin manuscript similar to the Book of Kells associated with the Irish monks of Iona. Because these manuscripts are housed in the British Museum in London, we did not see them. But, we did walk on the grounds of the monastery that produced them.
Following the Viking attacks, the monks fled to safety on the mainland. In the 12th century, monks from the priory of Durham re-established a community on Lindisfarne and built a new church as the old one had been destroyed. The monastery flourished until the 16th century when King Henry VIII dissolved all the monasteries in England and Wales. In the 17th century, the buildings fell into ruin.
Built in the shape of a cross, the arms of the church met under this Rainbow Arch, which miraculously survived!
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| Rainbow Arch of Lindisfarne Monastery |
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| Saint Aidan |
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| Rev. David Holden preaching in the "Presbytery" section of the church |
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| Stairs leading to the monks dormitory |
After a Taste of the Holy and History at Holy Island, we headed to Alnwick to have a taste of History and Harry at Alnwick Castle! While open to the public for touring, the castle is also still home to the current Duke of Northumberland and his family.
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| Alnwick Castle |
With the first parts of the structure being built in 1096, the castle draws many for its historic significance. But, it was also on these very grounds that Harry and his friends first learned to fly their brooms in The Sorcerer's Stone. And, it's also the spot where Ron and Harry crashed into the womping willow on their first day of school in The Chamber of Secrets. And, part of the Downton Abbey Christmas special was filmed in the castle dining room! So, the castle is quite a tourist attraction for all ages.
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| Broomstick Flying Lessons |
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| Inspiration for Neville's Broom-flying crash in Sorcere's Stone |
David and I did not have time to take broom flying lessons, but we did sneak in a dragon fight!
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| Dragon Lunch! |
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| Nice Dragon.... |
Finally, on the way back to Edinburgh, we stopped at Coldstream so we could walk over the the bridge from England back into Scotland at the River Tweed.
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| Bridge over the River Tweed |
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| Leaving England |
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| The River Tweed looking toward Coldstream |
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| Entering Scotland |
That's all for now...
Stay tuned for Dublin!!
