Ghosts of York

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From Conwy to York

Saying goodbye to Conwy, we set out early for York because we wanted to take advantage of early check in at our B&B before noon. It was nearly a 3 hour drive, but this would be the last hurrah for the car as the rest of our trip would be on foot or by train. York is the second most visited city in England (next to London of course) and with good reason. Not only does York still have its castle walls around the town, but it is chock full of old building from the 1600’s which means there are plenty of ghosts and haunted houses. York was founded in 71 AD by the Romans, later invaded by the Vikings before finally becoming English after the Normans invaded. Castles, ghosts, Romans and Vikings made me excited to visit this city!

Hidden Hertz and the Rental Car That Wouldn’t Go Away

After checking in at the B&B I left Tiffany and the girls so I could return the car to Hertz at the train station down the street. I had studied the route on Google street maps so I knew exactly what the station looked like, I just didn’t know where Hertz was located. When I arrived at the station there wasn’t a Hertz sign anywhere, so I drove by slowly a second time again with no luck. It was like the rental car didn’t want to leave me! Finally I pulled over and called on the cell phone to ask for directions. Naturally Hertz was hidden in the back of the station, and you had to enter through the short term parking lot. Hot tip to Hertz - put up some signs!

But this wasn’t the end of the Hertz saga. The Hertz person had told me to park in one of the specially marked Hertz spots but they were all full. So was every other parking spot in the short term parking area. So I sort of parked in an unmarked space at the end and hoped that the car wouldn’t be towed. Returning the keys inside the Hertz office was no better. The computers were not working so the guy could only take my keys but could not give me a receipt. All I have to say is thank goodness I have good insurance on the rental. With all this trouble I was beginning to think this was payback for Ireland last year. In the end, I was rather pleased with my driving performance in the UK. I didn’t contribute a single scratch to the car, and apart from getting lost a few times it wasn’t that stressful.

Impressions of York

The walk back from the train station to the B&B gave me some time to absorb my impressions of York. In a way it reminded me of Galway with lots of students, people on bicycles everywhere, and a subtle charm that exuded from every street and building. Except of course that York also had a ghosts, a castle, Romans and Vikings. Woot!! Exactly 16 minutes later I arrived back at the B&B, not bad for a walk from the train station.

After traveling with the girls for so long I have learned two essential lessons. To keep the happiness it is very important to 1) visit the potty straightaway and 2) keep everyone fed when arriving at a new location. After checking in at the B&B #2 became a priority, so as we walked into the center of York we kept an eye out for food. We didn’t have to wait long as we came across a baker’s shop within a block and bought some sandwiches to eat. I love the little shops that seem to line the streets. You are never far from a snack or a frosty treat.

Vikings of York and Petrified Poo

By unanimous consent, everyone wanted to visit the Jorvik Viking museum first. It wasn’t hard to navigate the medieval streets because everything was sign posted so well. We weren’t enjoying much of the scenery because Mother Nature decided to welcome us to York with a good dousing of rain. We were thankful to get inside the museum and out of the weather.

Sometime back around the year 800 something, the Vikings had invaded York and liked it so much they decided to stay. The museum was full of Viking artifacts from that period including skeletons, coins, and even petrified human poo. Yes, you read correctly - poo. Viking poo to be specific. Imagine the archeologist who found it. They must have thought, “Hey, who put this Baby Ruth candy bar in my digging area?! Wait, this is no Baby Ruth!!”

The highlight of the museum was a ride that took us “back in time” to see how York looked in Viking time. The town was mocked up complete with animatronic Vikings who looked like rejects from Disney World. In fact the whole ride looked like a bad consulting job from Disney. If they could combine the Norway ride in Epcot with the Viking artifacts from Jorvik that would be one awesome museum. Still, there were enough things in the museum to keep the kids happy and that was the most important thing.

The Shambles and Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate

After the Jorvik museum we re-entered the rain to explore York some more. Because York is so old, there are many streets that look like they did 400 years ago complete with timbered houses and narrow alley ways. One street of significant beauty is called The Shambles. If it wasn’t for the tourists, you could swear you were somehow transported back in time. Nearby was the shortest street in York called Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate. Roughly translated it means, “What a street!” In case you were wondering, in York streets are called gates and gates are called bars. Thank the Vikings for that word mixup.

Ghost Tour of York

After a bit of dinner we decided to take one of the many ghost walks offered in York. It was the typical shtick, with our “guide” dressed up in costume acting strange and telling scary stories as we walked around the town. The story about the ghost Roman legion parading down the street and the little girl left to die in the plague house were pretty chilling. The girls thought it was fun even if it wasn’t too scary. Along the way we enjoyed the evening bells of York minster. The bells were going nuts like there was a wedding or something. We finally wrapped up the evening around 9:00pm after a full but enjoyable day. But I could only think of one thing. All that walking on cobblestones hurts the feet!

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Photos

Petrified Viking Poo
Told you it was real!

Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate
The shortest street in York

The Shambles
Old timbered building in the Shambles.

The Shambles
Narrow lane in The Shambles

House Near The Shambles
Your eyes are not deceiving you, the house is really bowed in the middle!

Ghost Tour of York
The girls get a final fright from our guide.