Dover Castle

     On Saturday afternoon, we left Canterbury and headed straight for Dover Castle. Dover is on the coast on England, on the English Channel. I had always heard/read that on a clear day you can see France from Dover. Dover is also famous for their white cliffs. Well, it was GORGEOUS day in Dover, probably one of the best days we've seen since being in the country! I don't exactly know what I was expecting when I heard you could see France, but I wasn't expecting to be able to so clearly see it! It was incredible! I kept asking everyone, "are you sure THAT is France?" I just couldn't believe how close it was. I always assumed it was a tiny speck that you could see when it was really pretty outside. But no, it's right there! We spent a good amount of time at the Admiralty Look-out, looking at the white cliffs and France.

Kasey and me with Dover in the background

Rosemary, Kasey, Brantley, Natalie and me at Dover Castle

I believe that I was saying "Take a picture of me with my future home!"

The white cliffs of Dover

You can see France if you look closely!

France is at my ear level!

      Our professors recommended that everyone check out the Secret Wartime Tunnels that were used during World War II. There is a guided tour through them, so after we left the look-out, we got in line for the tour. As I mentioned earlier, the tunnels we went through were used in WWII because of Dover's proximity to France. This was literally the first line of defense from the Nazi invasion of France and potential invasion of the UK. The tunnels were really interesting to see, but I did not particularly enjoy the tour. The whole thing was a bit hokey. They had a voice that came over a loud speaker that treated you as though you were military personnel, giving you "green lights" to enter various parts of the tunnels. This was, in part, to make it interesting for kids. Perhaps even to make it interesting for adults who don't find the tunnels themselves interesting on their own. I don't know. Either way, the whole tour was a bit cheesy and silly. One thing that I did really love was the day-by-day run-down of getting Allied troops out of France and back to Dover. It helped me see Dover and the tunnels as the command center it was during WWII. Don't get me wrong for all my complaining of cheesiness-these tunnels were VERY fascinating. I love WWII history, and it was very powerful to be in the small space where part of the war was fought and strategized.
     After the tunnel tour was over, we walked up to Henry II's Great Tower. It has been meticulously recreated to appear as what it might have looked like when Henry II was there. Some of the exhibitions were a bit cheesy but the historical power behind it made that irrelevant. We climbed to the top, to look out beyond the roof, at the English Channel and Dover. It was breathtaking. I really thing that Dover Castle has the best view of all of England. I loved it. By the time we climbed back down, it was time to get back on the bus and head back to Oxford. As short as the trip was, I was ready to be back in my own room and my own bed!

View from the top of the Great Tower of Dover Castle