York!

 This past weekend Scott and I travelled to the ancient city of York. York is a walled city, and was founded in 71 AD. It has Roman origins, but in 866 the Vikings arrived and the city, which had previously been called Eboracum, was now re-named Jorvik. Two hundred years later the Vikings were driven out and it was in English hands. The remains of the original Roman fort have been uncovered under the Minster and parts of the wall remain. Artifacts from the Vikings have also been uncovered, and Scott and I paid a visit to the Jorvik Centre where we learned about life in the Viking town of Jorvik, and we were able to see some of the artifacts on display. While there are large breaks in the ancient Roman walls, they pretty much surround the city. Our hotel was within the walls, making all of the things we wanted to see and do within walking distance.

By far the largest, and most dominant, building in York is the Minster. York Minster is a Church of England cathedral, and is one of the largest cathedrals in Northern Europe. Construction was begun in 637 but that structure was destroyed by fire in 741. A new Gothic cathedral was begun, and while it has been damaged, enlarged, and plundered over time, that cathedral still stands as York Minster.

It is a very large cathedral and has been at the centre of both English church history and England's politics for many centuries. There is a tower and Scott, of course, had to do the climb to the top.

While we enjoyed our exploration of the Minster, it is not the only thing to see or do in York. This next bit is for our friend George, and also a couple of photos for Jennie :). During the 19th century York became the hub of Britain's railway network. It seems only fitting that the National Railway Museum should be here, then. Scott and I spent some time meandering around the trains.

Hmmm.....where have I seen that before?? In a movie somewhere maybe??...

Look Jennie!

Yep. It says "Hogwarts Castle" for all of you Harry Potter fans!

We visited the Railway Museum and Minster in the morning and then headed to a street in York called "The Shambles". This street has buildings dating back to the 14th century and was originally filled with butcher's shops. Many of the buildings still have the large windowsills where the meat would have been displayed. The buildings were intentionally built to overhang the street to keep the sun off the meat. The Shambles was recently voted in the top 5 of Europe's most recognizable streets. No butcher shops here now, though. It's mostly filled with unique shops and cafes. Scott did tolerate a quick peek inside the Christmas Shop, but the rest will have to wait for another visit.

After a nice lunch in another little cafe we headed to the previously mentioned Jarvik Centre. It was quite interesting to learn about the city and to see the artifacts. After the Jarvik Centre we walked to the Castle Museum. This museum is unique in that the areas are laid out in "periods" with rooms set up as they might have looked. Imagine our surprise, and dismay, to find an entire floor filled with the things we remember from our childhood! In the basement of one wing are the castle dungeons. (Did I mention this was part of the original York Castle?) Anyway, the exhibits were quite interesting, and a little creepy. I was glad to get out of the dungeon and back into the fresh air! There is one remaining structure which was build on a hill and served as the lookout point for the city. This building was constructed in a clover shape. For a fee you can enter this ruin and climb up and walk along the top. Neither of us was game for that exercise however as the whole structure looked as if it might collapse at any moment.

On our way back to our hotel we found the ruins of an old hospital, and the ruins of St. Mary's Abbey which was thought to have been as large as the Minster at one time. 

York is said to be one of THE most haunted places in Europe. One of us believes such things might be possible, the other, foolishly, scoffs. Anyway, we had thought to do a ghost walk in the evening, but after a full day of walking and sightseeing we decided that could wait for another visit. I have not mentioned the weather but you can see from our pictures this was not a "postcard" day. Sunday weather was similar so we enjoyed a nice breakfast, packed up and headed home. We moved to our permanent flat last week on Wednesday. Poor Scott had such a busy week that he had not really been able to spend any time in the flat except for sleeping. It was nice to get home early and we were treated to an afternoon of beautiful sunshine in Whitehaven. Scott did take a walk along the wall before we left, and here are a couple of pictures from that walk. The first picture is taken along the wall looking towards the Minster in the distance. That brick building on your right is our hotel. The second picture also from along the wall looking towards the Minster.

 

As I mentioned, we moved last week. It is really great to be in a more permanent place. We now have the luxury of 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms and.......2 parking spaces! On Sunday afternoon we went and picked up my car. I had not driven since before Easter as we had no place to park the car when we were in our old flat. Now I have a nice space in the garage. I'm working on getting up the courage to take it out as, two months into our adventure, the roads here are still somewhat intimidating. 

Scott and I are heading home to the US in less than a month! My flight leaves here on the 10th of June, and Scott will follow about a week later. We are really looking forward to seeing family and friends. We will return during the first week of July as Scott has to get back. So, friends and relatives, I will practice my driving skills between now and when I leave, and once we return we will be ready for visitors!