A Long Weekend in Historic York

We built a little city break around the York-to-Hull Friday Night Ride to the Coast, arriving back in York at  about 1.30pm on Saturday afternoon and leaving for home at about 3.30pm on Sunday.

We wandered around on foot and saw -

York Minster

... which dominates the skyline from every direction.

Oh wait, what's that...?

...a scaffolder with nerves of steel!

The Shambles

with its very own Moaning Lisa -

Then we toured the Solar System.... on the Planets Trail -

"Venus passes by the sun..." Oh wait, that's not right!

an earthling - or so he claims

We took on the challenge of the 'Missing Toilets' in Tesco -

We then did this little thing called a night ride... well, the first 30 miles of it anyway.
Wherein we rode a train into the sunrise and gazed upon the wonder that is the Humber Bridge -

Arriving at the breakfast cafe, we then awaited our braver, fitter and luckier compatriots (speaking for myself) -

a sunny spot in the window

Here they come!

After a cold but triumphant night (for some), there was a general consumption of cake (again, for some) -

and a gathering (or 'fold') of Bromptons

After returning to York for a shower and nap, we had a gorgeous meal in the pub where we were staying -

Chicken breast in garlic, mushroom & bacon sauce,
with new potatoes and fresh homemade coleslaw

then hit the City Walls in the waning afternoon sunlight -

the wall opposite our pub

Fishergate - from inside the city looking out

the tower and roofless barbican of Walmgate Bar

Walmgate Bar (again from inside the city looking out)
The FNRttC passes through this gate at 12.10am!

standing inside the now-roofless barbican of Walmgate Bar

On Sunday, we submitted ourselves to the full-immersion experience that is the Jorvik Centre.
See -- and smell! -- the Viking city of Jorvic at the height of its dominance (second largest city in Great Britain). Highly recommend! I didn't take any photos, sadly -- bit of brain scatter due to lowgrade migraine -- but cameras are permitted so do take one.

We wandered around the city and at some point had lunch (where? when? what? lost in the migraine mists). Along the way, we saw -

a gosling nursery on the River Foss

a contender for the Mirror Fetish of the Year Award

flood marker in the River Ouse

a sign in a shop window that makes absolutely no sense
(see next)

??!!

Just one of what must be about 10 gazillion nightclubs
in this fayre cittie...

...directly oppose a Girls' School!
(To be fair, the school had closed by the time 'Mansions' opened.)

a bookshop in the finest tradition

"Potted History: The Story Of Plants In The Home"
And I rather like the bunnies.

A whole book devoted to "British Basket-Hilted Swords".
(Oh Barb sister dear, this is right up your alley!)

leatherbound set of George Eliot!

just the book I've been looking for:
"Keturbah: The Art Of The Jewish Marriage Contract".
(NOT.)

leatherbound Sterne
(Who reads Sterne these days?)
Oh, and Kafka's America, too. That, I get.

Pulling ourselves reluctantly from the endlessly surprising bookshop window displays, we admired what surely must be one of the poshest hostels in England -- built mid-1700s by a man descended from one of the signatories to the execution warrant issued for Charles I!

We bemoaned yet more photo-wrecking roadworks -

... admired an unquantifiable number of stunning churches, any one of which would be rather striking in its own right... in a town that did not have the Minster -

We then had a look round one of the main medieval gates to the city, Micklegate Bar -

 

stage your own medieval portrait as a denizen
of this fine city

the dress up cupboard

We filled out the rest of our time before our train to London by walking more sections of the city walls -

something interesting on the horizon...

York rail station (from city walls)

modern urban planning: an enormous covered bicycle
"parking lot" serving a hotel and the surrounding cluster
of office buildings

York Minster on the skyline

the gorgeous (if stupidly named) Cedar Court Grand Hotel & Spa

Completed in 1906 as the new headquarters of the
North Eastern Railway (one of the most powerful public companies
in Britain at the time). Later, it was the headquarters for British Rail.

These days, British Rail (now Network Rail) is housed in this
grim 1960s office block around the corner from the
Cedar Court Grand.
What a come-down.

Magistrates' Court

interesting building (storehouse? see winch) below York Castle walls
on the River Foss

 And then we made our way home - 

clock in York Station

The UK currently relies on coal for 31% of its energy needs.
However, a third of these power stations have to be shut down
by 2016 to meet EU air control legislation. With the shut-down
less than 4 years away ,the UK is still not sure what
it's going to use in place of coal.

In case it's of interest, we stayed in the Masons Arms. This is a 1935 pub built in the Tudor style, making use of much older materials such as Gothic oak wall panelling from York Castle and a fireplace from the Castle's gatehouse. The pub certainly looks and feels older than it is - but is cleaner and in better repair than it would be were it as old as it looks!  The food was delicious - they have a well-deserved reputation not only for high quality but generous servings!

At the back of the pub, outbuildings (whether purpose-built or not) have been fitted out as overnight accommodation, I believe a total of 4 rooms. Our room was quite small but the furnishings were of good quality and overall the provisions were well thought out. The flat-screen TV was very small - I didn't know they could be made that small! But then we're not big TV watchers -- we really just wanted headline news and weather forecast. The room would have served us well even if we had stayed a few more days. However, given its small size, you'd get a bit stir crazy if confined to it in the event of prolonged bad weather!  In our circumstances, it was more than adequate and we'd definitely recommend. Having good food on the doorstep was a big bonus.

Our room was upstairs on the left.
(The back of the pub is to the right.)

The building with our room is in the centre.
The single-storey building on the left is
further accommodation (possibly 2-bed).
To the left, the parking lot leads down to...

the beer garden...

overlooking a lock on the River Foss

P.S. on the Mason Arms
I've just had a look at reviews on TripAdvisor. It seems opinion is divided according to how much knowledge people had beforehand, that is, what they expected. Those who, like us, knew it was a pub that had rooms, i.e. that it was not B&B and the pub didn't open til lunchtime, were very happy with the accommodation, location, food etc. Those that expected breakfast - well, they obviously weren't paying attention before booking!  There are some complaints about the small awkward car park. We were on bicycles so had no problem with that! (Hint hint people: Bikes make your life easier.) Being able to store our bikes and bags securely (even after we'd checked out on Sunday) was crucial - and the staff were super helpful and accommodating with that. We had an upstairs room (with a party wall with one other room) and heard absolutely no noise from next door, or indeed from the pub, even though we had naps in the afternoon and retired quite early on Saturday evening. It's possible the adjoining room would get some pub noise. But again, so long as you understood it was a pub before you booked, you could plan ahead and bring earplugs!  We found the entire premises pleasant and civilised, even when the pub was obviously busy.