Harry Potter in Exeter

 

As many of you know, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling read at Exeter and reportedly based many of the locations in the book on places in the town. I've tracked down a few of those places to see how they compare with the beloved wizarding world locations. Did they really inspire one of the greatest authors of all time? I have my opinion, but I'll let you decide... (keep in mind that the stills below are from the films, which therefore might not accuratly reflect Rowling's orginial vision)

Pennsylvania, Exeter= Pivet Drive

  

The top picture is a street in Exeter called Pennsylvania Court while the one on the bottom is the infamous Pivet Drive, the street where Harry Potter is forced to live when not at school. The street is close to the school and I walk by it all the time, so its quite possible that J.K Rowling did get inspiration for the Dursley's street from the area. That being said, I can't say that its very different from many of the other streets I've seen in England, or even in America.

 Gandy Street= Diagon Alley

Below are some pictures of Gandy Street, a quiet collection of shops right in the heart of Exeter. If you only stay on the main street, you will definitley miss this street, but if you know where to look you're in for quite a treat, rather like many shops of Diagon Alley. 

While I couldn't find Ollivander's Wand Shop or  Weasley's Wizard Wheezies, there is no  denying that the two locations bear a very similiar resemblance to one another. 

                                         

                                        

                                       

Thankfully, I left right before the Death Eaters attacked. 

Firehouse Pub= The Leaky Cauldron

This excellent pub has great pizza and great drinks at amazing prices so its a pretty sure bet that J.K. Rowling visited here at some point. The dim lighting, long tables, and friendly service (one waiter come around the other day offering free drinks to everyone) are very similiar to the atmosphere of the the place where the wizarding world first meets the Boy who Lived. (The top picture is the Firehouse, the bottom is the Leaky Cauldron)

                                          

 Well, what do you think? Did these really life places inspire J.K. Rowling when she was writing one of mankind's greatest achievements? Unless someone asks her ( I believe that she has confirmed Gandy Street, but that's about it) we won't ever know, but I wouldn't be surprised if she drew upon the University of Exeter for some of the locations. Indeed, she was friends with a kid named Harry Potter when she was young so it's not like she hasn't drawn inspiration from the real world before. If nothing else, it was great fun for me to visit the locations and wonder what Rowling was thinking as she looked at those locations, whether or not the wheels in her head had already began to shape the story of the boy with the lightening bolt on his forehead.

A Little Walk With a Lot of History

Hello again! I had the pleasure of taking a walking tour around Exeter today, and I was quite happy to find that I hadn't seen even half of the cool sites that this city has to offer. To begin with, I finally saw the Exeter Cathedral, and all I can say is, "Dang, I can't believe this is just two blocks down from where I go grocery shopping"

Quite the sight, isn't it? The church itself took over 200 years to complete, partially due to a change in design (they decided midway to go English Gothic in style, rather than the earlier Norman style) and the plague (according to the tour guide Exeter was hit so hard that the population, at one point, was reduced to a man and his dog). The front gate shows kings, angels, and saints, complete with one matyr, flayed alive for his faith, holding the skin that was taken off him... sorry for spoiling your lunch.

Right across from the church where a mixture of buildings that dated from medieval times. One had what was termed a "Judas" door that was about 2 feet shorter than I was, and lead into a quaint courtyard.
There's the door...

And the courtyard,

Along the same lane was a coffeeshop which, it is rumored, Francis Drake stayed in after the defeat of the Spanish Armada.
Drake: Guys, we won, let's all get drunk!
Owner: This is a coffee shop.
Drake: I just saved England, get me my beer!
(As a history major, I can say that the above conversation that I fabricated in my head, is 100% historically accurate).

As the tour continued we passed one of the oldest government buildings still in use...

And the world's narrowest street...

The story goes that in the early 19th century Parliament expanded voting rights. However, they did so in a very narrow manor, so the residences of Exeter struck back by building this street and naming it Parliament street. (As our tour guide said, the French built barricades when they were mad at there government and the English built streets). Said street has a reputation for traffic jams of the toy car variety.

Another cool site was the House that Moved. This house dates back to Tudor times, because it was classified as a historic site, was moved in order to accomodate a new road, hence the name.

In addition, we visited the remains of a medieval bridge that was recently discovered...

And that wrapped up the tour for the day. After a quick walk across the river...

my friends, Ani and Finn, and I got lunch together, ending a fun and interesting morning in Exeter.

More Bath

To quote Sean Bean, "one does not simply blog one post about Bath." In keeping with that advice, here are more pictures from this ancient city...

As you might have guessed, the architecture here in Bath is heavily influenced by the Romans (despite the fact that most of the buildings were constructed after the fall of Rome). Furthermore, the cities reputation as a health spa meant that I was a draw for the rich and powerful. This led to many magnificent residences, among them the Circus...

And below, we have the Royal Crescent townhouses. Built in the 18th century, they overlook a pristine park that stretches as far as the eye can see...

In addition, I failed to mention that the Roman baths were the place to go when one needed to curse someone. That's right, in addition to exercising, bathing, and healing, you could also wish death from above for you enemies. The picture below shows some of the threats that the Roman's wrote down.

One last thing before I go. Take a gander at the picture below (hey that rhymed!)

Doesn't look very Roman does it? The statue was added later, and is supposed to depict, according to English legend, the king who discovered the hot springs. According to the stories, this individual was an ancient prince, who was banished from his kingdom because he had leprosy. He stumbled across the spring and, after bathing in it, found himself to be completely cured (and yet that same spring couldn't cure me of my cough). Since he no longer posed a health risk, he was allowed to return to kingdom, take up the crown, and eventually fathered King Lear. Small world isn't it?

Going to Bath

I know that I promised a Roman Wall in my next post, but life has a funny way of interfering with one's plans, so instead I'm giving you all a Roman bath instead. That's right folks, today I had the pleasure of visiting the ancient city of Bath. As you all recall, a long time ago in in a country not, that far far away, the Roman Empire invaded and conquered England. The Roman's were very much into bathing, and when they found a hot spring, this happened...

For the Romans the baths combined medicine, relaxation, exercise, and religion all into one convenient place. The Bath itself was dedicated to the goddess Minerva (Greek: Athena) and archeologists have even located the head of the statue that was worshiped at this site.

(Interesting note, that statue in question would have only been seen by the priests at the temple/bath, common citizens were not allowed). The baths themselves were huge. Hot baths, cold baths, and everything in between were a part of the Roman bathing experience, and while a large portion of the complex has been restored (the statues below for example), much of it is original.

The above picture actually comes from a tombstone. After the fall of the empire, the tombstone was used to help build the wall that protected the city. Once England stopped being invaded, walls like this became rather unnecessary so the tombstone was shipped to the museum.

 The elements of the above picture formed the top of the entrance to the Roman baths. They are arranged as they would have been when the baths were in operation.

 (If you look closely, you can see the steam coming out of the spring).

In the above picture, the brown wall indicates how, in the middle ages, the monks raised the water level when they used the baths to treat sick villagers. The handles were added when the baths were used by upper-class British citizens during the 18th and 19th century.

As a testament to Roman architecture, this drainage system still works. I'm not kidding, this drain has been transporting water from the spring to the nearby river since the time of the Romans.

Of course, there's more to Bath than just the bath, so afterwards everyone headed over to the fashion museum. As you all know, I've never been a big fan of fashion, but this museum... okay I still am incredibly bored with fashion and this museum didn't change my mind. That being said, I do think that I look rather dapper in a suit and top hat...

Hello Governor!

After that was a visit to the Jane Austin house. Now I'm not the biggest Jane Austin fan, so I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to think about this. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Pride  and Prejudice just fine, but I'm not exactly gonna go gaga over Austin. That being said, I know that many of my friends and family adore Miss Austin so I figured I should probably check. Now the house isn't the actual house that she stayed in (a dentist has his office there now), but all of the houses on the street apparently have the same design so its not that big of a deal.

Moving  on, we next visited an Abbey that dates back to Norman Times. It was partially destroyed during the Reformation (Henry VIII you're a jerk. An effective ruler and military commander, but a jerk), but it was restored to towards the end of the 17th century. Anyway, words can't describe the beauty and majesty of this place, so here are some pictures...

 During the Renaissance through the 18th century, there was fear that one's dead body would be dug up and used for medical research. As a result, many people requested to be buried in the actual church itself, hence the gravestones above.

Like I said the Abbey was gorgeous. In fact that whole city was gorgeous and it was sunny, which is something that I've missed since I've gotten here (the jokes that people make about England being dreary are, in fact, true). That's all for now, but I'll have more pictures from Bath coming up in a day or two. Enjoy!