York....

Today is Wednesday and we are going to York!!! Haha... you guys must be wondering why right? The lecturers have cancelled all the lessons for the day and we have 1 free day. Hurray!!! So, we decided to go to York and bought the train tics too.

We left for York in the morning and reached there 1hr later. York is the epitome of Ye Olde Englishe Towne. It is a city of extraordinary cultural and historical wealth. We were so amazed that the city is actually surrounded by a magnificient ciruit of 13th century walls. At its heart is the immense, awe-inspiring minster, one of the most beautiful Gothic cathedrals in the world. The medieval spider's web of narrow streets are similar to those in Durham and Alnwick.

York Minster

We went to the National Railway Museum immediately after we dropped off from the train. This museum features a wide display of trains from the first train that was used to transport cattles to Eurostar which runs from London to Paris. It also depicts the history of the railway in UK, how it was constructed etc. The museum also showcases miniatures of trains and of the people constructing the railway. The workmanship is really good and all of them look so real.

Later in the afternoon, we went for the guided tour around York. The guide is a nice old fellow and started bringing us around, telling us the history of the place. We soon got bored of the grandpa and grandma stories and broke off from the group. Went to the York Minster instead. The York Minster is the island's largest medieval cathedral and Yorkshire's most important historic building. The Minster had been badly damaged by fire in 1984 and the government spent a huge sum restoring it.

We paid 6.50pds for a tour in the Minster and the undercroft. Unlike the Durham Cathedral, we are allowed to take photos in the Minster. We then started taking out our cameras and snapping shots everywhere in the Minster. The Minster is at least 1.5 times bigger than the Durham Cathedral. The interior is magnificent. Sinuous stonework surrounds a wonderful uninterrupted space. There are more than 200 expressive carved heads and figures. The main attraction is still the conical rooftop with no central support, which clearly represents the major stages of Gothic architectural development in the early 12th-century.

In the undercroft, we are able to see the treasury and crypt. The treasury houses 11th - century artefacts, including relics from the graves of medieval archbishops. The crypt contains fragments from the Norman cathedral, including the font showing King Edwin's baptism that also marks the site of Paulinus' orginal wooden chapel.

We ended our day at the Clifford's Tower. The tower is the precious little left of York Castle. We dun get the chance to go into the tower as it was closed for the day. However, we managed to capture some photos of the exterior before going back...