Gloucester - Cathedral and Beatrix Potter Museum

One last trip for 2015

It's hard to say goodbye to anything, especially since this year has been so wonderful in so many different ways. To begin, I graduated (finally!), I undertook two amazing internships that have given me lots of new skills and insight into the careers I can see myself pursuing in the near future, and of course I spent lots of time with friends and family. The most exciting part, without a doubt however, was definitely having the opportunity to travel to so many new places. Aside from exploring the UK, I also wandered through the streets of Japan and Singapore, plus the trade show grounds of Hannover - I am more than satisfied with my travels for this year.

Scrumpty Claus

So, for the first travel post for my blog for 2016 (happy new year to everyone btw!), I thought I'd tell you all about my trip to Gloucester (which happened to have been my final UK adventure for 2015).

First look at the amazing Gloucester Cathedral

Beatrix Potter Museum

Arriving at the museum

My main aim was to visit Gloucester Cathedral (which I did in the end - this'll come later in this post!), but I ended up making a quick but worthwhile detour at this lovely little museum. It hadn't been planned - in fact I was quite surprised when I saw it. Aside from selling the usual Beatrix Potter world's merch (e.g. cups, keychains, toys etc.), there were two parts of the store that were museum-themed. I particularly liked the basement area's display, which boasted the scenery seen in Potter's "The Tailor of Gloucester" book (which is precisely why the museum is in Gloucester and is subtitled "The House of the Tailor of Gloucester") as well as a little TV showing the book in cartoon form. The second floor was equally as interesting. It continued to illustrate the Tailor of Gloucester through words, portraits and plush toys. 

Of course, a trip to any Beatrix Potter attraction is not complete without stopping to say hi to Peter Rabbit. Managed to find him in the end (thankfully) -- the best way to end a wonderful pitstop at a quaint and well-designed museum.

Peter says hi

Gloucester Cathedral

There's no surprise that I chose to visit Gloucester Cathedral for a reason. The original goal had been to admire/photograph/view its stunning historic cloisters (which were used in the 1st, 2nd and 6th Harry Potter films). However, when I arrived at the Romanesque and Gothic construction, I was greeted by two additional activities that were equally fun to attend.

The first was the Christmas market, of which was taking place in the historic cloisters - I thereby saw it as Christmas at Hogwarts (with lots of decent and quirky bargains for any shopaholic -- I'm definitely one!). Although the cloisters were packed, that didn't stop me taking as many photos as possible (after I got paid for a license to do so legally of course - you can get one at the cathedral shop btw).

Purchases from the Christmas Market

Pano of the Christmas Market

Browsing the many MANY stalls

I have to say, I think they're quite decent - don't you?

The ceiling - simply breathtaking (cloisters)

The second was the Christmas concert - now that was fun! We sang a bunch of my favourite songs (e.g. Silent Night) and it was nice talking to the people next to me that had also attended the event. I think that kind of became the highlight of my trip - who knew singing could bring so much joy?

Shh!! The concert has started

And after all that singing and shopping, it was finally time to do some surveying (i.e. touring the cathedral). With every corner I turned and every step I took, the true beauty of the cathedral became even more prominent. I spent the majority of my trip simply gawking at the different types of tapestry and ceiling designs present. It is, without a doubt, an architectural masterpiece. Imagine all those hours that had been spent in drawing and later building the cathedral - absolutely incredible.

Another ceiling - even more amazing (east end)

The stunning stained glass window

New year = new (travel, foodie & fashion) adventures

The above pretty much summarises my trip to Gloucester - it was short but definitely sweet. I have many memories of it that will undoubtedly last for a lifetime. So I'm gonna let you all go now - enjoy the new year and its respective celebrations.

A must visit for any architecture fanatic

The Cathedral's exterior - just as breathtaking as the interior

And what about me you might ask? That's for the next blog post.