Posts Tagged ‘york’

UK Vacation Day 6 Recap

laelene Posted in lifestyle glimpses, photo blog,Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

Day 6 of our UK trip was a wonderful day of revisiting memories and sharing them with Panda. We wandered all through York and checked out a bunch of stores, buying some items but mostly browsing. I got a chance to feed some ducks and geese by a river, which I loved. We even had time to enjoy afternoon tea at Betty’s before returning to the hotel to rest and wait for the train to Edinburgh. A few hours later, we were stepping off onto Scottish soil and making our way to the hotel (getting a bit lost along the way). Once we finally found it, we happily settled in and enjoyed the welcome gifts and nice warm quarters.

[Need more recaps? Here are Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, and Day 5 recaps.]

view of york eye and train station from hampton inn by hilton hotel window

Good morning, York!

yorkshire soap co bath butters and soap on specialty tray

I had a lot of fun choosing what to get from the Yorkshire Soap Co.

holding up yorkshire soap co shopping bag and cute paper box

Yippee, now I’ve got awesome bath products from lovely Yorkshire.

cat scarves at the cat gallery in york uk

Cat scarves?! I was really tempted, but next time…

guy fawkes born here sign in window

Did you know Guy Fawkes was born in York?

collage of person taking picture of york minster and photo taken of york minster

Panda got a shot of me getting a shot of York Minster.

collage of york city walls

Our wanderings eventually took us outside the city walls.

guy on stilts and man with ghost walk sign promoting york ghost walks

Fancy a ghoulish tour? Then meet these guys for the Ghost Walk!

purple windblown street performer frozen on bike in middle of road in york

Hehe, check out this windblown street performer.

storefront for evil eye lounge asian fusion food and bar

Evil Eye lounge! All I remember is weird beds upstairs and Asian fusion downstairs (with a bar too, of course).

collage of mr chippy fish and chips shop

Panda had to try some fish and chips. Tasty!

standing in middle of road walking streets of york

Caught me wandering.

collage of sainsbury grocery store and products inside

The Sainsbury that I once walked all the way back from with my groceries!

trees overgrown on bridge over river with lily pads and boat

I wish we could get on that bridge.

collage of river and hungry geese and birds being fed

I had to stop and feed the birds. It’s a compulsion.

grinning happily while feeding ducks and geese in river

Can you see how gleeful I was? I love animals.

collage of ducks and geese in river being fed and following food along bank

A ton of them joined in when they noticed food and I had fun walking along the bank sharing the wealth.

collage of pigeon and black duck waiting for food

Even this pigeon wanted in on the action. Check out the cool black duck too!

collage of person leaning over bridge feeding birds

At one point, I leaned over the bridge to feed them.

walking on bridge holding plastic bag with wind blowing hair around

After running out of food, I happily walked off into the wind.

large marketing suite building

If they can make their marketing suite this big, I wonder what the places they’re selling are like!

collage of old cars on display in plaza in york

Back in the center of town, we discovered some old cars on display.

large owl eye contact cases and googly eye iphone case

Random browsing brought me to these adorable contact lense cases!

exterior view of betty's cafe tea rooms in york

It was cold out, so Betty’s was especially inviting to us.

collage of betty's tea room afteroon tea set

I loved warming up to a pot of tea and some snacks. Afternoon tea rocks!

old toff's club in york now rebranded tokyo

Back by the hotel, I hardly recognized this as the old Toff’s where I went clubbing once. (I much preferred the Gallery.)

hampton inn york bridge entrance

Does this look like a proper hotel entrance? Cuz it totally was.

view of edinburgh castle at night from princes street

After a few hours on the train, we arrived in Edinburgh and got to see the castle from afar!

free glass bottles of strathmore water and jars of the dormen nuts and candies

All settled in at the hotel, with these nice treats waiting for us.

UK Vacation Day 5 Recap

laelene Posted in lifestyle glimpses, photo blog,Tags: , , , , , , ,
3

By day 5 of our trip, Panda and I had made it up to my old stomping grounds of York. I went over some of this in my post in honor of York, but here’s another look at it. We walked around town before meeting up with Philosopher and reminiscing about old days with him as we returned to the Uni of York campus. We took a break for lunch at one of my fav sandwich shops, then checked out the rest of the university. Later in the day we wandered back into town and explored a bunch of shops before ending up at York Minster. From there, it was time to grab dinner and hang out with Philosopher a bit more before sending him off… til next time!

[If you missed out on the others, here are Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4 recaps.]

hampton inn by hilton in york uk

We stayed at the Hampton Inn right by the train station, which was quite modern and new.

city of york council courtyard

We were right next to the City of York Council, which had a nice courtyard with a quote by WH Auden, who was born in York.

pathway in york with red brick buildings and black metal fence

Off we go to the more busy side of town!

akbar's restaurant in york

I remember eating the largest naan ever here… it was at least the size of my torso and came hanging from a giant hook.

river ouse in york

The River Ouse running through town.

red brick buildings in york with york dungeon and gallery night club

Good old York Dungeon, which I’ve never been in, and Gallery, which was my go-to club.

sunny british street with people walking

Met up with Philosopher and started our stroll to the Uni of York campus.

sunny with dark clouds in sky

The day couldn’t decide if it’d be sunny or cloudy, which made for some cool skyscapes.

foot with knuckle portion rubbed raw and red

I thought my flats would be fine for walking but my feet got rubbed raw.

university of york alcuin college m block flats building

We used to live here in M Block!

staring up at brown's of heslington deli sign

For lunch we went over to Brown’s in the little town of Heslington.

brown's of heslington sandwich, tyrrell's potato crisps, and ribena drink

Brown’s sandwiches are yuuummy!!

collage of university of york buildings

After lunch we went on a little tour of the main campus area.

chasing and trying to catch university of york bird

On our way back towards town, we came across a bird that the guys tried to corner.

edible york mini garden area with plants growing

Love the green initiatives popping up.

clifford's tower up on hill with stairs

We’d never actually been to Clifford’s Tower so we decided it was time to take a look.

view from top of stairs at clifford's tower

Got up to the top of the stairs for a great view, but didn’t feel like paying to enter so we left.

large map of york

Back in town and where to go?

native american street performer playing music

We came across street performers doing Native American music, which was quite good.

pink silicone ice cube tray in cat shape with cat-shaped cubes

I never knew we had a cat store in town! And check out the ice cube tray I knew I had to have.

spider living inside mug in gift store

Browsing a store, I found an unwanted resident in one of the mugs for sale.

view of york minster from side angle

We then approached York Minster and went inside just in time to catch the evensong performance.

interior of gert & henry's restaurant cottage

For dinner, it was Gert & Henry’s for their Sunday roast.

collage of gert & henry's food including lemonade and sunday roast

A delicious meal to warm up to.

The forgotten city of York

laelene Posted in general blog, photo blog,Tags: , , , , , ,
0

When I told people I was studying abroad in York back in the day, they said, “Cool, New York!” *cringe* It was a common encounter with my American friends and one that baffled me – I mean, I just told you I’m studying abroad… which means out of the country. Somehow that didn’t click with them and as soon as they heard York, they automatically added the “new” part. It’s kind of like when they first try to spell my last name and even though I say “Q with no U,” their brains sort of filter out that fact and continue on with “Quin” as if I’d never said a thing.

People don’t seem to be aware of (or care) what New York was named after. In fact, many don’t even realize its namesake is over in the UK. I guess they’re just not curious about how New York (or New Jersey or New Hampshire for that matter) got its name. It’s kind of sad because York has gotten rather overshadowed by its far more famous counterpart. Granted, it’s nowhere near as large or populous, but it has a charm all its own. So today I’d like to share with you what the original city of York is like…

welcome to york large map in town

Welcome to York!

toffs green street in york with black fence on one side and red brick buildings ahead

Here you will find a picturesque town with many quiet streets.

clifford street in york with york dungeon entrance and lots of red buildings

The busier streets contain many attractions like the York Dungeon.

overlooking part of river ouse in york from street bridge

The River Ouse makes it way through the town and offers fun boat rides. Watch out for when it floods!

view of clifford's tower from side with staircase

One of the more distinct landmarks is Clifford’s Tower, high atop its own hill.

view of merry-go-round and york castle museum from clifford's tower

Clifford’s Tower offers great views of the town!

clock tower of all saints pavement parish in york

You’ll find very historical spots here and beautiful old architecture.

view of york minster from side

York Minster is a major attraction and the largest building around! Check out their evensong generally at 5.15pm.

mansion house at st. helen's square in york in plaza with flowers

There are some plazas where you’ll find beautiful flowers and space to sit.

university of york vistior welcome centre

Over to the southeast, you’ll find the University of York (where I spent my year abroad!).

view of university of york lake and department of mathematics building

The campus is quite nice and always improving!

standing outside browns bakery of heslington where they specialize in quality sandwiches

On the far end of campus is a teeny town called Heslington, where you’ll find this awesome deli/sandwich shop. Go try their food!

And that’s the York that I know and love. There is plenty more to see and do, which I will try to highlight another time, but you can see it’s got a character far different from the big city lights that people mistakenly envisioned (thinking NYC) when I said I was studying there. I’m happy that I got to share this place with Panda and I hope to continue coming back over the years.

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