Day one started early, catching the 6:43am train from Edinburgh. Not much to say of that, as much of the journey was in darkness. We arrived in at York around 9:30am. The first port of call was the Ibis Hotel where we were booked. Too early for check in, we dropped our bag then promptly headed out again!
We went back to the train station, and jumped on the tourist bus which took us for a drive around the city to recorded commentary. This was a good way to find our way around (although Helen knew her way around already, having been here before :-) and learn about the sights and the city history.
York is a very old city with plenty of history, going back to the Romans. The city was once fortified, and to this day most of the city walls remain. These are quite impressive and are visible the moment you step out of the train station.
Once we finished the tourist circuit, we stepped off the bus and went for a walk into the middle of the city Here we found a small coffee shop where we warmed up over hot chocolate and scones.
Next we went to see York Minster. This is most impressive, both in size and detail.
We spent hours in there. After a casual look around, we walked up to the top of the tower. This was not easy. It’s very high and is reached via two spiral staircases. The first reaches perhaps half way, and at this point a walkway crosses a roof line to the tower. Next is a tiny door and corridor I could barely squeeze through, then a final spiral to the top which is very high, very tight and very narrow. My legs were burning by half way up. Being at the front, I just pushed on not wanting to hold up everybody else. When I reached the top, there was no Helen. Unfortunately she got claustrophobic and stopped not wanting to move. As it happens she was near the top, I went down and then she came up.
The views were amazing from the top. We waited a while before heading down.
Going down was almost as hard, playing tricks on the eyes and making us dizzy. My legs felt like jelly for a short while afterwards, Helen for longer.
We then took a guided tour around inside the Minster. The guide was great and pointed out all sorts of interesting details. There are so many things to see it would take days to get around it all.
After that, we headed outside the city walls and caught a bus to the hotel. After hotel check in and a break, we walked back through the city to find dinner, and as it happened the bells were ringing at York Minster. We followed the bells and they were still being rung when we got there. The sound was incredible. As it was dark, we could see the people inside pulling the bells, as it was lit inside.
With that excitement over, we found dinner at a small pub, then headed home for the night.
No comments:
Post a Comment