Chester, England and ‘Home’

On the day before leaving Gladstone’s Library in Wales, I ventured back across the border into England and visited the ancient Roman city of Chester.  According to some reports it dates back to approximately 79 AD when the Roman Empire extended northwards into Britain.  Chester was, at one time, a Roman fort and eventually was the busiest port on the west coast of The Island.  Most of that heritage is long disappeared, but the city remains unique even within Britain.

It has a cathedral, which is beautiful.

It has Britain’s oldest horse race track, with the first race held on February 9, 1539.

Below you can see the ancient Roman ampitheatre, where gladiator games were held during the years of the Empire.

The city is perhaps best known for it’s unique architecture in the city centre, the ‘Old City’.

Chester is also known as one of the few (perhaps only?) remaining Roman city around which the Roman walls remain intact.  In the photo below you can see part of the walls which surrounded the ancient city.  These walls extend about two miles around the city centre and can still be walked today. 

Chester offered a great half day’s escape from the library, before I left Wales and England for good yesterday.  I’m now back in St Andrews, have re-settled in at Gowrie Cottage, and returned to the office for the next brutal six months of work.  My hope is that by this summer I’ll have a complete, or near complete, draft of the dissertation.  Having the draft done will allow me to either a) relax a bit as I edit the work in St Andrews next fall, or b) get a job back in the States and not still be in the writing stage.  

If you think of me on Monday, the 20th (you should be thinking of me… it is, after all, my birthday), say a prayer for me at 2:30pm EST.  I’m scheduled to have a phone interview for an Assistant Professor in New Testament position at that time, at a University a mere 17 hours from Minnesota, 30 hours from Montana, and very close to the (hopefully) future home of Dye’s Bait and Tackle.  Just think… only a car drive away.