Just lovely!

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I got to York with no problems, though had sort of regretted my decision to begin conversation with an older English guy on the train, who kept drinking beer and got a bit obnoxious.

I was not prepared for how small York is. I walked literally 2 minutes from the train station, outside the walls, to the hostel, inside the walls. Again, it was pretty dead as people were heading north. That first day I probably saw nearly all of the city. I went to its most famous landmark, the Minster (Cathedral), which is the largest Gothic cathedral in northern Europe and is the seat of the Archibishop of York as well as the cathedral for the Diocese of York. In addition, Constantine was crowned emperor here in AD 306, so it has a plethora of history.

York seemed to me the quintessential lovely English town. I cannot imagine staying there for a long time, or living there, as it is just too small for me, but it is very quaint and the buildings are gorgeous; not to mention there is so much history there.

York is a walled city, and you can actually walk on the walls, so that was something fun I did the second day. I had thought about also going for proper English tea in the afternoon, because I had read about a recommended place in my guidebook, but decided it might be nicer to wait until I get to London and go with someone.

In the afternoon I had to decide where I was going the next day. I wanted to get to either Oxford or Cambridge before heading to London but couldn't decide which to go to. Cambridge made more sense as it is nearly directly south of York, north of London. But since I was buying a ticket last minute, fares to both Oxford and Cambridge were pretty expensive. For some bizarre reason going to Cambridge would involve three changes of trains. Not wanting to deal with that nonsense that factor made the decision for me and Oxford it was (not to mention it made more sense because my sister had studied there two summers ago and raved about it).

That night was New Year's Eve, and I went out with some of the employees from the hostel, who were very nice. Everyone in the city goes to the Minster for the countdown, and I think probably never again will I spend New Year's Eve outside a several thousand year old cathedral! It was funny to think that last year I was in Cairns, Australia, and could not have told you I'd be in York, or England for that matter, this year (and who knows where I will be next year!).

The next day I was off to Oxford...

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Photos

Typical English street
(in my mind anyway!)

New Year's Eve
people from the hostel: Australian, English, and American