A New Yorker in York

Listen, I have to tell you something. When I was a kid, I was raised to be extremely proud of my Irish ancestry. My dad's idea of a lullaby was Molly Malone. As such, I always thought once I got to travelling I would go to Ireland and never want to leave. Well, I did get to Ireland, and I loved it, but I left and haven't exactly rushed back. For this trip, I thought for sure I'd love the Scotland part more than the England part. I mean, pffft, England. Whatever. Sure history is nice and all, but there's no way this Irish(ish) lass was going to love England. 

But that was all before I fell in love. With York. 

York is a medium to small sized city, which like St. Albans has it's foundations in a Roman town. Eboracum was established in 71 AD, but unlike St. Albans' gradual abandonment, the Anglo-Saxons took over the town after Roman withdrawal and renamed it Eoforwic. Vikings came along in the 9th century and reestablished the town as Jorvik, which was later anglicized into York when the Vikings were driven out. History!

The town has, historically, always been walled, and much of at least the most recent medieval wall remains. Some parts are older, or are built on older foundations, as well.  Interesting note about York: the city gates are called bars, but the streets are called gates (which stems from the Viking word for street). So my favorite saying from York is "here our streets are called gates, our gates are called bars, and our bars are called pubs!"  

Our hotel was just a few blocks away from Bootham Bar, which we had actually been through the night before as the Hole in the Wall is just on the other side.

Delighted to find that most of the city wall is still accessible, we headed up.

The banks below the wall were drenched in these lovely pale-gold daffodils. I couldn't get enough of them!

Adam paused in a lordly fashion:

And I took the photo op as well:

Atop the walls we had our first daylight view of York Minster, and oh, it was lovely:

We exited at Monk Bar, which dates back to the 14th century, and houses a still-in-perfect-working-order portcullis:

I was astounded by the four story tower at Monk Bar, and especially the figures on top.  They're shown holding boulders, which they appear prepared to throw.  Clearly a 14th century message that could not be missed: KEEP. OUT. 

 "One step closer and I will drop this on your head!"

Having ogled long enough at the wonders of Monk Bar, we moseyed along. Our destination this morning was York Minster, but passing by a pub I caught sight of something unusual.  This little guy was standing on a table inside, just watching the passers by.

Architectural wonders along the way were in ample supply.

Finally, we came to York Minster. Most of the current structure dates to the 13th and 14th centuries, but it is steeped in history going back long before that.  There is (of course) a Roman town under the foundations, as well as bits of earlier churches from the 7th century onward. I could not wait to get inside.

But first - foot problems. I bought a new pair of boots for this trip, as I did not really possess footwear one might utilize for the anticipated environment - namely wet and/or muddy - especially later in the trip. I was wearing them this day, and while they were mostly fine, I was wearing the wrong socks; I had ankle socks, and needed knee highs. Already a little chaffed spot was bothering me. Rather than let it get worse until I could hardly walk any more, Adam left me to sit outside the Minster while he hoofed it back to the hotel to get me the right socks. My hero!

I had a great time people watching and exploring the little square outside the Minster while he was gone. I learned that the Constantine the Great was actually declared Roman Emperor in York, not too far from where the Minster stands now. History!

Adam soon returned to save the day with the correct socks and even a band-aid. He's the best. 

Into the Minster we went. I love grand cathedrals and history, but getting to experience grand, historic, ANGLICAN churches was something new. Adam and I are Episcopalian, which is the predominant branch of the Anglican conference in the US, so there was a nifty sense of "belonging" in appreciating York Minster. Of course, there's an irony there, as the Anglican church is known for being overwhelmingly inclusive - membership in most Anglican churches is open to everyone, regardless of sexual orientation, race, background, etc. It's one of the many things I love about being a member. But in regards to appreciating the minsters and cathedrals of England, maybe it just extended a little more understanding - I know the rites and rituals of these churches like the back of my hand, and it was really cool to see it in a historic and gorgeous setting. To know that I could attend my Sunday worship here made it feel a little closer to home.

Anyway, on to the pictures because words won't do York Minster justice.

This clock in the north transept dates back to 1749, and we were lucky enough to see it strike the noon hour. The two knight figures turn on their pedestals, and their lances strike the chimes to announce the hour. 

 I thought this dragon sconce was endearing.

Attached to the minster is the original Chapter House, an important building in cathedrals where meetings are held for the community or the church's deacons, etc. This is a much smaller building, although the intricacy of the detailing was jaw dropping.

Chapter House ceiling, overview and close up:

Carvings from over the seating areas of the Chapter House:

Being that this is England, of course when the church began to grow among the people in the early days there was much incorporation of early pagan symbolism to give a sense of familiarity to the new religion. As such, I was excited to find a few Green Men incorporated into the carvings all over the church. Here is one from the corridor that connects the Chapter House to the north transept.

We also explored under the Minster, although I have no pictures. In the 1960s an attentive architect realized that the building was in danger of collapsing. The primary cause of danger was that instead of resting on a proper foundation, the cathedral was built on top of the ruins of previous churches and a Roman settlement - all of which were starting to give way under the enormous weight of the building. An effort was put together to dig under the Minster and reinforce the foundations. While they were down there, excavators and historians left much of it open so that it could be explored by future visitors. If you get the chance, I highly recommend taking a tour of the exhibition they've laid out down there, as well as the church's crypt.

Next up: lunch, and exploring the Shambles!