Our Visit to Buckfast Abbey
"Very well, it's settled. Buckfast Abbey it is". We had all decided to go to Buckfast Abbey for the afternoon and so we set off just before lunch. We arrived at Buckfast about half past one and we started to walk towards the Abbey. Being a little unsure of the direction to take, we asked a monk going into Buckfast for supplies. On being directed to the Abbey we thanked him and went on our way.
From a distance the Abbey does not look very impressive but to be able to realise how splendid it really is, one must see it. The Abbey is surrounded by spacious grounds and plenty was to be seen. So, armed with a camera, we set off on a tour of inspection. We agreed to meet at the large gates later, and my friend and myself decided to see inside the Abbey first.
Inside the Abbey, monks were acting as guides and showing the people round the various small chapels and the High Altar. Leaflets on the Catholic beliefs were on sale at the door and one shelf was devoted to Protestant beliefs. As these were being sold to help the Church Fund we procured one or two and started off on our tour. Photographs could not be taken, so we had to be satisfied with just seeing the inside of the Abbey and not taking photos as a memento.
The altars surrounding the Church are for the different Saints and different prayers. They are decorated by gold plaques and stained-glass pictures. They were, at that particular time, decorated by rich green tapestries trimmed with gold.
The High Altar, of course, is the main feature of the Church, the sight of which takes one's breath away. Heavy gold candlesticks and the story of the Lord's Supper carved in gold dominates the Altar, and rich gold brocade surrounds the structure of it.
Above the Altar, a large statue of Mary and Jesus can be seen and on the roof are paintings and writings by famous artists. The floor of the Abbey is made entirely of marble, and in the centre is raised higher than the ordinary floor level. The Abbey was built by the monks themselves, and is made entirely of local stone.
When we had seen all we wanted to see, we left the Abbey and went into the Abbey gift shop. After buying a few trinkets as mementoes we regretfully returned to catch our bus which was then due.
We took some last snapshots of the outside of the Abbey and returned to Paignton talking of course about our memorable visit to Buckfast Abbey.
Tour of Wales
The day of August 12th, 1955, was a fine day as far as the weather was concerned and at nine o'clock I went to meet five of my friends at the Roxy Cinema, Hollinwood. We were going on a nine-day tour of Wales. It was the first really long ride I had attempted by bicycle and the whole tour was a thrill to me. We set off for Chester and on the way there whenever we came across a boundary post we raced for it just for fun. We spent our first night at Chester and the following morning, after doing our hostel duties, we set off for Colwyn Bay about fifty miles distant.
We arrived in Colwyn Bay about two o'clock and here we enjoyed ourselves. We saw one of the boys who used to attend our school but went to live in Colwyn Bay. We next visited Bangor and after Bangor we had an hour or two in Anglesey. From Bangor we went to Snowdon and we went down the famous Llanberis Pass. On the following day the hardest stage of our tour was to be tackled, the rise to Llangollen, via the Llanberis Pass which, of course, we had to go up. To make matters worse it was raining, but we finally arrived in Llangollen where we met four riders from Royton.
After leaving the fine hostel at Llangollen, which is a Tudor-designed manor house, we went to Rudyard Lake hostel, which is a new hostel, and its design is rather like that of a castle. From Rudyard Lake we set off home and it was a fine day for us and also we passed from Staffordshire, through Cheshire, into Lancashire, arriving home about dinner time. We all voted that the holiday had been a real good one and a great experience for us all.
DEREK MORRIS, 4G.