"For I have learned / To look on nature, not as in the hour / Of thoughtless youth; but hearing oftentimes / The still, sad music of humanity..."

Today, we stood where Wordsworth probably stood over 200 years ago as he hiked a few miles above Tintern Abbey to compose his famous poem, "Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey, on Revisiting the Banks of the Wye During a Tour, July 13, 1798." And yes, that's the exact title of the poem.

Our trip started like any other trip: we rode the bus from Oxford to Tintern Abbey, which is just over the Wales/England border, and walked through the actual abbey itself. It was magnificent in its own ancient, slightly dilapidated way. Obviously it's not a functioning abbey anymore, but that doesn't take away from its appeal.


And it doesn't stop college students touring it from taking crazy pictures. (Elizabeth and I are clearly reliving our former cheerleader days...and yes, I'm making a "T" for Tintern Abbey.)


As my classmates and I walked through the high-reaching arches and grassy expanses, I couldn't help but feel grateful toward the people who built this beautiful scene centuries ago. It's hard to believe that generations of people have walked on these same grounds, seen these same sights, wondered how something so magnificent ever came into existence. And wondered how William Wordsworth expressed all these thoughts and descriptions in his poem.

After eating lunch at the neighboring Anchor Inn, we trekked up the adjacent mountain to see what Wordsworth might have seen as he wrote his poetry. We crossed a bridge and got a spectacular view of the River Wye, the abbey, and the mountainside before starting our hike up the mountain.

Take note, reader, of the large, tree-covered mountainside in the picture above. Beautiful, isn't it? We hiked up the ENTIRE thing, and probably all the way across it. Dr. Mee (my Romantic Lit professor who planned and led the excursion) originally made the trek sound like a short, leisurely stroll up a hill. Well, it may have started that way, but the 3 hour hike didn't finish that way. By the time we made it through the steep, muddy, narrow trail to the top, we were sweaty and exhausted. The mountainside was quite steep and precarious in many places, but the view from the top was spectacular. Think about it -- this is possibly the spot where Wordsworth got the inspiration for his writing. According to my professor, Wordsworth walked 25 miles a day most days, which put him in better shape than all of us today. And the hike up to this spot was probably the short, leisurely stroll up the hill my professor talked about.

Here's a shot from the top:


It was worth it. And the conversation on the hike made it that much more enjoyable.

• "I wish I was Spiderman right now -- then I could just swing from tree to tree instead of walk on this stupid trail." ... "But Batman is definitely better than Spiderman -- he's rich, and he's got the Batcave..." -two students in my class
  
• "Look out for the American students I lost on the trail last year." -Dr. Mee
• "Suddenly I was known as the man who walked up the mountain carrying his daughter on his back." -Dr. Mee

After 3 hours of stepping around muddy patches and maneuvering through the rocky paths, we all made it back to the Anchor Inn for free tap water and then clamored back into the bus for the ride back to Oxford. We made it back in one piece -- a stiff, achy, accomplished piece.

EDIT 1: Here are the pictures from the trip! Sorry if they're a bit repetitive.