Meng's Travels: Old York, not New York

This is a story about York, England, not new York. You can't find two more different cities. York, England was first settled by the Romans about 2,000 years ago, around AD 71. It has gone through several settlements by different invaders: Romans, Vikings, etc. York today is a historically modern city.

I have heard about York from reading many different articles and people who have visited the city. They all agreed on one thing - it's a beautiful city. From Edinburgh I took a two and a half-hour train directly to York train station. I made reservations a few weeks ago with a Bed & Breakfast (B&B) called No. 21 York. I paid £80 (about US$105) a night, planning to stay 2 nights. I looked at several other B&Bs' in the city. They are all similarly priced or even slightly higher. It says a lot about the popularity of York. I could've paid less but I didn't want to stay at a dump or some place where I don't feel safe.

Simon from No. 21 York gave me directions on how to take a shortcut from the train station to his B&B. His directions were perfect. It took me only about 10 minutes, across car parks (parking lot) and bridges. It was quite a scenic walk as well. Taking a taxi may have taken a little longer, with the tourist traffic and cost about £8. After checking in, I immediately started to get some lunch and then explore the city. It's not a very big city. A few streets in the city center are blocked off for pedestrians only.

The most famous landmark in York is the Minster. "Mynster" was an old Anglo-Saxon term for a missionary church. Building of the Minster started in 1291 and it took 250 years before it was finally completed. Considering it was built before the days of mechanization, it is a very impressive building. It is the second largest Gothic cathedral of Northern Europe.

Front View of York Minister

B&W View of front of York Minster

The Nave of the Minster

It is interesting walking through the pedestrian streets in the city. Almost all the businesses cater to tourists: restaurants, souvenir shops, cafes, etc. Many of the buildings and streets have been around for hundreds of years.

Street musician on one of the pedestrian streets

Farmers' Market

An Art store

The Yorkshire Museum has many exhibits on artifacts left from the Roman and Viking days. I paid £9 for admission. It is a relatively small museum so I was able to walk through it in less than an hour. Next to the museum is the remnants of St. Mary's Abbey. Only part of a wall is left. Apparently, the roof was taken off for other uses and the inside started to deteriorate. Slowly, over time, it started to lose most of its structure.

Yorkshire Museum

Remains of St. Mary's Abbey

River Ouse

Shambles Street, one of the oldest streets

Bridge across River Ouse, on the way to the B&B

Cornish Pasties

Clifford Tower

York was a wall city, like many old cities. A big section of the wall still remains and you can walk on it. I followed a Guided Walk of the city and park of the walk was on the wall itself. The purpose of the wall is like other wall cities, to defend against invaders. Some of the other wall cities that I've been to are: Dubrovnik, Croatia; Xian, China; and Londonderry, Northern Ireland.