At about 9:10 we left Wolverhampton for York. The weather prospects were very good and we were very excited.
About 3 hours later we arrived at York. The first thing we noticed were the spires and the tower from the cathedral (York Minster). You can see them from a great distance as they are the highest points in York.
The road to the centre took us all the way up to York Minster. Wauw, I was quite impressed. This cross-shaped cathedral was enormous! It is the biggest medieval church above the Alps.
First thing we did was looking for a place to eat. We found one in one of York's many lovely small streets. To me everyting was very overwhelming and I didn't really know what I wanted to do first. So we decided to hop on a sight-seeing bus again.
Now this was something we shouldn't have done. To be honest, besides the cathedral, Clifford Tower and the city wall with its bars, there isn't a lot to see.
The word 'Bar' has a different meaning here. If you're looking for a real bar to have a drink just ask for a pub. 'Bars' are actually 'gates' in this city, and 'gates' are 'roads'. (influence of the Old Norse language of the Vikings)
Clifford's Tower stands on a high mound erected by William the Conqueror as part of his campaign to overthrow the North. He threw up two mounds with wooden keeps on top - one became Clifford's Tower .
Clifford's Tower was the scene of one of the most terrible events in York's history. In 1190 about 150 Jews of York sought refuge there after being attacked by a local mob. They were given the choice of being either baptised or killed, but they took a third option and committed mass suicide. At this time the tower was built of timber and so burned to the ground. It was rebuilt in stone. We didn't enter this Tower.
Anyway, the rest of the city was quite disappointing. I can image that it's great to shop in such a nice city with all its nice little streets and it's nice to have a drink near the river or on one of the many terraces. Although there is a lot of history, there's not much left to see. The tourbus lady was telling a lot about things and buildings that were no longer there. You couldn't see a lot of influences of the Romans, Anglo-Saxons and Vikings. (Danish and later on Norwegian. They called the city Jorvik and it became the capital of the Viking Kingdom for a while). I had expected to see much more in this city.
After the tour we went to visit York Minster. Because it's very touristic you had to pay an entrance fee for basically everything. The cathedral itself AND the Tower in the cathedral. We began to climb the Tower which was about 270 steps. The view was great, we could see very far because it was a clear day. After that I visited the cathedral itself while Jos went into the centre.
York Minster is absolutely beautiful. The ceiling was very high and there was a lot to see. There was a memorial service, and there was a girl singing. I just sat there for a while, listening. In combination with this impressive building it just gave me goose bumps! I'm glad I saw this, it made the trip worthwhile.
After I joined Jos again, we went to have a drink in a beergarden. The weather was still beautiful. About half past 6 we took the train back to Wolverhampton. We travelled in luxerious Virgin Trains, they've got a lot of technology on board and they even have electrical sockets next to every chair!
We were very tired from all the walking and travelling and when we finally got home we did nothing else really. Just went to bed very early :)
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