Photos and the City

Tag: my new british summer

Sunday morning in York

The next day, Sunday, I set my alarm for half past 5 and made my way into the still sleeping city around 6 – what a difference to the day before!

It felt like I was the only person in York and I made the most of this!

The Shambles

The Shambles really felt like a movie set, no wonder they were the inspiration for Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter books and movies.

“Shambles” is an old word for an open-air slaughterhouse and meat market. And the Shambles in York used to be filled with butchers. Some of the houses, dating back to the 14th century, still have the meat-hooks hanging outside and the outside shelves to display the meat.

I walked without having a real idea on where to go and rediscovered a few of the Snickelways I had explored on Saturday. Like the Coffee Yard, the longest of the Snickelways.

York Minster

York started to wake up slowly, there was a group of bicyclists waiting to go on a biking trip and music coming out of the Mister, people going to church.

The Roman Column vis a vis from the Minster.

This Column came from the north-east colonnade of the Roman headquarters building. It was originally built in c100 AD by the soldiers of Legion IX. It was re-assembled and re-used by Legion VI in the 4th century. (Historic England)

York Minster – the Cathedral of York and one of the biggest in Northern England, founded in the 7th century.

York Assembly Rooms

It was time for breakfast and I started to look around for an open café and actually found some that already were opened at 8 – the city started to wake up!

After breakfast, I made my way to the train station to catch the bus to Castle Howard. Walking towards Micklegate.

19/09/2019
The Snickelways of York

Snickelway

What is Snickelway? You only find them in York…

All around the (inner) city you find these little, often hidden, passages and very narrow alleys, medieval streets – the perfect way to explore the city and also sometimes hide from the tourist crowds.

These passages are neither snickets, ginnels, or alleyways, but a mixture of all three! “Snickelway” is a term coined in 1983 by local author Mark W. Jones, which is now in popular use throughout York. (Atlas Obscura)

Sometimes they open up to a big square and sometimes to other little Snickelways.

A Snickelway is a narrow place to walk along, leading from somewhere to somewhere else, usually in a town or city, especially in the city of York. (The Snickelways of York)

I followed the walk in Mark W. Jones´ book “A Walk Around the Snickelways of York” published in 1983. It will guide through 50 snickelways through the town of York, the town within the city walls.

As the Snickelways are largely medieval, they often feature weird and wonderful names such as “Mad Alice Lane” in reference to a woman who was hanged after poisoning her husband, “Hole-in-the-Wall,” and “Nether Hornpot Lane.” (Atlas Obscura)

Not all snickelways are that easy to find but it´s a fun way to explore York and even discover some more hidden corners.

From being just 80 cm wide to 67m long, the snickelways come in all different sizes, lengths and wides.

Somewhere in between I reached the famous “The Shambles” – the former street of the butchers in the medieval time and today one of Britains most famous streets.

The Shambles is a meandering medieval street with much character, it features overhanging timber-framed buildings, some of which date back to as early as the fourteenth century.

There is evidence of butchers using the street for their shops from before the Norman Conquest. The street is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086.

It was once known as The Great Flesh Shambles, probably deriving from the Anglo-Saxon Fleshammels which literally meant ‘flesh-shelves’, the word for the shelves on which butchers used to display their meat for customers. As recently as 1872 there were twenty-five butchers’ shops in the street but now there are none. (Yorkshireguides)

Today the Shambles, like most of the city, were just very crowded, I was quite overwhelmed after my quiet days in Haworth. And had decided to get up very early the next morning and enjoy a sleeping York.

Don´t get fooled by these pictures, I can be very patient and seize the moment. And it was around Dinner time, that helped too.

Harry Potter is a big theme in The Shambles, no wonder as they were the inspiration for Diagon Alley.

Walking back to my Airbnb place along the river and over the Millenium Bridge.

17/09/2019
Saturday in York

I had to say goodbye to my Folly Cottage in Haworth, board the Brontëbus one last time and one train later I arrived in York. I stayed a bit outside the city centre and walked through Rowntree Park towards the city walls.

Situated at the junction of two rivers York was founded by the Romans in 71AD and became the capital of “Britannia Inferior” and later of the kingdoms of Deira, Northumbria and Jórvík, a Vikings capital.

York City Walls

I started exploring York with a walk on the city walls starting at the Micklegate Bar – once the most important gateway into the walled city.

York had been defended by walls since the Roman times, even today some parts of the original Roman walls and the Multangular Tower are still visible and can be visited in the Museum Gardens.

The name of this four-storey-high gatehouse is from the Old Norse ‘mykla gata’ or ‘great street’, and leads onto Micklegate (‘gate’ is Norwegian for ‘street’ remaining from Viking influence in York). It was the traditional ceremonial gate for monarchs entering the city, who, in a tradition dating to Richard II in 1389, touch the state sword when entering the gate.

The lower section was built in the 12th century while the top storeys in the 14th; the original barbican was removed in 1826. (Wikipedia)

The two top floors were inhabited until the mid 20th century, today they house a small museum.

The Victorians restored the walls, widened the wall-walk and rebuilt some parts.

View of York Minster, the Gothic Cathedral, from the city walls.

Museum Gardens

From the picturesque the Medieval ruins of St. Mary’s Abbey, the Multangular Tower and other stunning buildings there is much to see and to do in the Museum Gardens. And it´s also the perfect place to relax and take a breath. The city was quite full and after my quiet days in Brontë Country, I felt a bit overwhelmed.

Remains of the Roman fort are on both sides of the gardens and then there is the tower which is partly Roman and Medieval.

A 76-foot (23 m) section of 4th-century wall connects the Multangular Tower to a small interval tower. The side of the wall and towers facing into Museum Gardens is carefully faced in stone, as during the Roman period it was on display. The other side is rougher because it was originally covered by an earth bank. The wall and towers were still in use after the end of the Roman period in Britain, and were subsequently incorporated into the medieval city walls. (wikipedia)

10/09/2019