Read my Southend travelogue here.

The 20th city on my list is the Hertfordshire city of St Albans which you will find twenty miles north-west of London.

St Albans is named after England’s first Christian martyr who was executed in the 3rd century AD after refusing to renounce his faith. Before Christianity, Britain followed the ancient Roman religion before Emperor Constantine switched to Christianity a few years after Alban was killed. Too bad for him.

Anyway, my trip to St Alban’s began at London St Pancras where I took the 12.21 Thameslink train. Not even half an hour later, I was arriving at St Alban’s City station where I quickly learned the station is on the outskirts of the city.

On my way into the city, I spotted one of many churches I visited in St Albans, although this one seemed to have been converted into a Sikh temple.

Anyway, I pressed onto the city where I was greeted by a charming town centre that had nicely blended the traditional and the modern. After a brief nosey around some charity shops where I bought the film Memento, I headed to St Albans’ cathedral. Unlike Salisbury or Lincoln, this oversized church was free to enter. And it was very impressive.

They had put so much effort into making it entertaining complete with a dress-up and brass rubbing sections – and you know I participated in both of them.

I could have spent hours here, but I was a busy man, so it was onto my next stop which was St Alban’s museum. On the way there, I petted a little cat person

and then it was onto the museum. This also had free entry.

It was here I learned that St Alban’s gained city-status in 1553 when Edward VI granted the area a market charter. Later on the area became well-known for straw-plaiting and hat-making before a big aircraft industry developed there.

As well as being interesting, the museum was also house in a rather attractive building

which I later learned was the city’s historical courthouse. You could even go and eat your lunch in the courtroom. A downstairs exhibition had artwork made my prisoners, as well as a model cell you could enter.

Some people can spend twenty-three hours a day here. No wonder our reoffending rate is so bad.

By now, my stomach was making dying whale noises, so I headed to a nearby food truck that sold baked goods. I bought a sausage roll, cheese and bacon toastie and a piece of bread and butter pudding for £7.50, which I ate in the nearby St Peter’s Church. The food was good if not amazing. It would have been nicer if it were warm, but the pudding was deliciously rich and indulgent. It was definitely nicer than what I had in Derby, Gloucester and Portsmouth.

The church was also very pretty. It was quiet and peaceful too.

By now it was 2.45 so I decided to wander down to the Verulaminum Museum.

Because my sense of direction is awful I generally get very lost, but I somehow found the museum without issue. It was 3.15 at this point. Now, I was all excited to learn about the Roman St Albans, but then I discovered the museum was £10 entry. NO THANK YOU. Especially since the St. Alban’s museum was free.

If I were ballsier, I could have sneaked in the back way, but I chickened out at the sight of the security camera and three members of staff standing by. Instead, I headed into the nearby St Michael’s Church

before walking through the Verulaminum Park.

Seeing as it was a gorgeous summer’s day, I succumbed to my base desires and bought a cool, refreshing ice cream. Best way to cool down on a hot day.

And I also had a nosey around the Roman mosaic

which was all that was left of a Roman house that once stood in the park.

The park itself looked glorious in the March sunshine complete with rolling green hills, the River Ver and even a waterfall.

It wasn’t quite as impressive as the natural scenery in Milton Keynes or Chester, but it was certainly lovely all the same.

At 4pm, I headed into the city centre where I bought a Too Good To Go bag from the Baker’s + Barista’s bakery. I was rather hoping for something savoury that I could eat for dinner. Instead I received three muffins and a pain aux raisin. But it was only £4 instead of £15, so that was something at least.

By now my throat was drier than the sands surrounding the Egyptian pyramids, so I wanted a drink. But rather than going to a pub and paying £6 for a pint – I had trouble finding the city’s Wetherspoons – I bought a £2 bottle of beer from an off-license. At least that was the idea, but I also had trouble finding any off-licenses. Instead, I had to buy a beer from Tesco and by 5 I was drinking it in the cathedral grounds. I almost had a chance to pet some little dog people who approached me, but alas ran away when I tried stroking them. Somebody also got yelled at for peeing in the grounds. Lesson for all you gents. Don’t pee in the cathedral grounds. I stayed here until 6 where I decided to return to the station. At 6.45, I was on the train back home.

I thoroughly enjoyed my day in St Albans. True, it was a gorgeous sunny day, but it was a very attractive city too. Unlike certain cities *cough cough* Norwich there was plenty to do, plus there was some gorgeous natural scenery. True, there wasn’t too many corner shops and too many hills for my liking, the many pretty churches made up for it. I’m not quite sure if St Albans cracks my top 5, but it’s certainly up there. And that concludes my day in St Albans: a day of stroking cats, dressing up and a sheer lack of corner shops. Southampton. You’re next!