Heather K.
Yelp
This cathedral is absolutely amazing. Although I found Norwich Cathedral to be a little more elaborate on the inside, Salisbury surpasses Norwich on overall design due to its insanely high steeple -- I believe it's the tallest one in the UK? Maybe I'm wrong, but someone told me that and I believe everything I hear. Anyway, the outside of the building is covered in detailed carvings including all the saints....and there are even empty spaces left for anyone else who happens to be canonized later on (I'm sure they'll add my own stone effigy once I take a dirt nap, right??). The vaulted ceilings inside are ornate and impressive, and the stained glass and general architecture are just so beautiful. The fact that this place could have been built so long ago and is STILL standing just blows me away. And....I overheard one of the church officials telling another visitor that the floors are only 4 feet thick -- the people who built it didn't create a "real" foundation to support the place, and that right there either demonstrates amazing luck or some seriously sophisticated knowledge of bedrock and geology. There are a bunch of highly elaborate tombs throughout (I think I posted some photos) as well as incredibly old ones (12th century, OMG). Plus the medieval clock -- the world's oldest fully operational timepiece. Crazy! OH -- and in a back room, there is an original copy of the Magna Carta. The Magna Freaking Carta!!!! Unfortunately you aren't allowed to take photos in that room....but wow. I thought seeing the U.S. Constitution was cool when I was younger, but this shit blows that out of the water hands down.
The only things I didn't like: 1) the bathrooms suck, they're in a gross little trailer about 400 miles around to the back of the building, and 2) there was some really weird-ass art exhibit going on throughout the chapel and its grounds -- creepy modern sculptures of people which were not only disturbing to look at, but just seemed really out of place and honestly kind of inappropriate when surrounded by all the beauty and REAL artistry of the cathedral itself. I mean, I wanted to take a photo of the whole lovely courtyard, but one of those atrocities was smack in the middle of it and ruined the shot. Gross. I'm no art critic, but....wait, as of now, yes I am. That shit sucked.
No admission required, however donations are encouraged.