York, England

Quacker Jack is ready for the train ride from Edinbugh to York.

Here are some photos of the English countryside from our train ride:

We spent three days in York, and found that to be just the right amount of time to explore this old, old town. 

Look at how tiny the doorway is!  This is in the area of town called The Shambles. 

Another view of The Shambles.

We liked the colors and the knocker on this door (Roll Tide).

York is FULL of streets like this.  It was a fun little city to get lost in.

This was on a street corner that was once known for book making.  I don't remember the name of the goddess, but she is the goddess of knowledge.

This fella was on another building's corner-we don't know his story, but the store that occupies this building now is an "Old Guys Rule" store.  Hmm

The weather and lighting on the afternoon we walked over to York Minster proved to be the best for picture taking (and the best weather we experienced while visiting York).

There was scaffolding around parts of the church.  It seems that there is always scaffolding somewhere on the church because they are always cleaning or repairing it. 

Quacker Jack had to have his picture made in front of York Minster, too.

One of York's claims to fame is that Constantine was named Roman Emperor here.

J is pretty proud of this awesome photo.  Constantine can't be bothered with you.

A sneaky little door at York Minster

We walked the medieval city walls, which were built along ruins of the Roman walls that were here around 50 AD.

A tower that served many purposes near the city walls

One of the gates in the city walls

This was an addition to the guardhouse on the gate-it was used as an apartment until the 1950s.  Now it is a cafe.

A cafe with delicious coffee and shortbread

Just some Roman ruins in the back of these apartments-we were looking down on them from the city walls.

Another gate into the city

Roman baths were discovered under a tavern in York-you can enter their little museum to see just a bit of the ruins and learn about Roman bath culture.

I'm the friendliest Roman soldier you'll ever meet.

Can you see the Roman soldier's footprints in these tiles?

Quacker Jack just hanging out on the ruins of the Roman city walls.

There were some birds of prey on display outside the York Museum.  I liked this guy's fluffy feathers.

We think someone got married in one of the parks in York and forgot to take their sign.

I'm learning so much about Rose Nylund's heritage.

Another gate to the city

We climbed the 275 skinny, winding steps to the Central Tower of York Minster. 

I thought we had reached the top, but no.  These are some pictures from the half way point: 

We still had to climb up to the top of this guy.

Quacker Jack with York in the background

York looks like a puzzle or a maze from the Central Tower of York Minster.

These are some pictures from the inside of York Minster.  We dedicated a whole day to seeing it-and it was well worth it!

The ceiling of the central aisle

This stained glass window is from the 12th century AD. 

Can you see the detail of the carvings above my head?  Each set has unique carvings over them-there are 8 walls with 8 seats on each wall.  That's a lot of different faces.  This is in the Chapter Room of the minster, so it is not a sacred space.  It is used for meetings and church business.

More of the carvings (at the bottom of the picture) and stained glass in the Chapter Room

After spending the whole day exploring York Minster, we hung around for the Evensong service.  We even got to sit in the choir stalls-it was a beautiful service.  

The Shambles again-see how close the buildings are toward the back of the street?  Rumor is a person in one building can reach out and shake hands with a person in the other.

Quacker Jack liked touring The Shambles.

This is a restaurant called The Blue Bicycle.  It has a very interesting history.  They were all booked up, but we found a great Scottish restaurant just across the bridge for our last night in York.

We really enjoyed our time in York-it was a nice quiet town to visit before heading into the hustle and bustle of London.  We spent a week in London and I hope to get some pictures up very soon.