Tonight we plan to walk the play cycle route as it gets dark, so I can see what it might have looked like as the last few plays were performed.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Davy at Davygate
Tonight we plan to walk the play cycle route as it gets dark, so I can see what it might have looked like as the last few plays were performed.
Meisha's Afternoon Tea Service at Betty's Cafe Tea Room
Next we went to Betty's Cafe Tea Rooms. Dave ordered excellent crepes stuffed with berries and topped with a raspberry sauce and I ordered the Afternoon Tea, which consists of three open face sandwiches, a scone with raspberry jam and clotted cream, a mini chocolate eclair, an elderflower cake, and a berry tart. Everything was yummy, especially the tart.
Dave Demonstrating How to Look Dapper on the City Walls
Today we went to the Jorvik Centre and it was very cool. They have a glass floor in one section to show the simulated excavated dirt underneath with examples of the types of objects they found, like knife blades, amber, bones, pottery shards, oyster shells, jewelry and metal slag. The next section was a ride you get on that takes you through a replica of the Viking settlement with house interiors and workers making leather goods or metal objects, etc. That part was especially fascinating. Then there are extensive displays about the way things were made. We got a coin made in the method of the Vikings: They have a mold for each side of the coin, a metal disk is put between them and the coinmaker hits the "metal sandwich" with a hammer to imprint the coin.
After Jorvik we started to walk the city walls. We went part of the way and then stopped at Goji, a vegetarian restaurant, for lunch. The food was delicious and so were their house teas. I had the mushroom burger and Dave had the Indian platter. We continued on the wall and finished the route. On our way back into town we met one York resident who was a little too friendly. By his own estimation he had "had a few" but we wager it was much more than a few. He was very difficult to understand, between his accent and his slurred speech, and he shook both of our hands several times as he walked down the sidewalk with us, talking about his girlfriend and a horse at the local track that he had "a few pennies on." He also warned us about pickpockets and assured us that he wasn't one, which only made us more suspicious, but we eventually extricated ourselves, with our wallets intact, when he found another open bar to go into. :)
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Sunday
After making blueberry pancakes for breakfast today we went exploring and shopping. We both had bangers and mash at the Punch Bowl pub. Dave's sausages were veggie of course. :) On top there were a few onion rings and they had to be the best onion rings either of us had ever had. The batter was somehow buttery tasting. It rained most of the afternoon but we kept wandering around until about 4:00 when we went to Marks and Spencer to get a few groceries. Since it kept raining all evening, we decided to stay in and eat tonight. It was a nice relaxing day after the last few days of traveling.
Meeting Dave at Heathrow and the Play We Saw
The trip to pick Dave up was no trouble. He called me when he was approaching customs, letting me know where he was and asking for the apartment address in York to put on the card they make you fill out for customs. I told him that after getting his luggage he should be able to come through certain doors and see me in the passenger pick-up area, which he did. The underground and train to Cambridge was also without incident. The train from Peterborough to York yesterday was crowded and we sat with the luggage under our legs (since the alternative was to stand with it the whole time), but it was only about 75 minutes.
The play we saw last night was interesting. It had humor, but we agreed that it really could have benefited from some plot and/or character development. It was more of a snapshot of a boy's life, and although it spanned a few years, it was very repetitive.
The play we saw last night was interesting. It had humor, but we agreed that it really could have benefited from some plot and/or character development. It was more of a snapshot of a boy's life, and although it spanned a few years, it was very repetitive.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Cambridge
We made it back to York. Cambridge was good (although I like York better :)). Tonight we are going to see a play called My Family and Other Animals at the Theatre Royale. The meeting with Marilynn was good and she and her husband and Dave got on as well as I had hoped, considering their very difference senses of humor. : ) Yesterday in Cambridge we went to a museum of the History of Science which was really interesting and Marilynn got us into King's College Chapel, which has incredible sculpture, fan vaults in the ceiling, Henry VIII stained glass and a Rubens painting of the Adoration of the Magi. Before we did all of this, of course we walked in a big circle as we tried to go from our bed & breakfast to the center of town. That part wasn't so much fun, but we saw a lot of the River Cam and its inhabitants on the way, and we made it to town eventually. We spent most of the day just walking all over town and then after we ate dinner we headed back to the B&B. Dave is doing well with the jet lag so far. We saw lots of "glamorous ladies" (as one passenger called them) and some less glamorous ones get off in York with us, but hopefully they won't be too loud tonight and Dave can keep up with his new sleep schedule.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Meanwhile Back in the States
So back home Dave got ready to fly out from JFK Wednesday night. Meisha met him at Heathrow Thursday morning and they headed off to mean Marilyn, Miesha's mentor, in Cambridge.
Wednesday
Today I went to the library in the morning, then I tried to visit St Mary's Bishophill Jr., which was supposed to be open from 12-2, but when I got there the door was locked and it said you could call a number if you wanted to get in. I didn't feel like waiting around for someone to come let me in, so I decided to walk to the Rowntree Park and the Millennium Bridge that Dad had found towards the end of his stay. It was a pleasant walk. After I got back to town I went right to the Minster for the Bedern Gaziers Studio Tour at 2:00. The tour explained the conservation process for the East Window, the one they say is the size of a tennis court and the biggest medieval stained glass window that survives in England. In 2008 they took the entire window out and they work panel by panel, making a rubbing of it to record how it was, carefully taking out the old built-up lead between the pieces, cleaning the glass, going through a process to decided if and how anything should be replaced or enhanced, and then using some lead and some super adhesives to put the panel back together. The end result is a clearer image and a lighter window panel, because there is less lead. They also are doing their best to undo any changes made in previous restorations, in hopes of restoring the panels to a more original state using detailed descriptions of the windows made by a glass enthusiast in the 1690's. It was an excellent tour. We got to see some of the conservationists working on panels and they explained what stage of the process they were in. Pictures weren't allowed though, so the above description will have to do.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Window Donor Panel
A close up of the donor panel on a window in St. Michael-le-Belbrey's with an inscription below that explains the donor is John Listar, a taylor, and his 3 wives.
St. Michael-le-Belfrey's
I stayed in Tuesday the morning to collect my thoughts about meeting with Marilynn (my mentor), get ready for the visit to Cambridge and decide what I should and could do these last two days to get as much of my work-related activity out of the way before Dave arrives. I noticed that I could take a tour of the stained-glass restoration workshop on Wednesday if I made a reservation, so I'm signed up for that, and one of the last churches I'd like to see is also only open on Wednesdays and Fridays, so I'll go visit that one tomorrow too (St. Mary Bishophill Jr.). Today I tried to get inside St. Olave's, but there was some fancy function going on, so I went over to St. Michael-le-Belfrey's again and they were open luckily. I took pictures of the stained glass, which is original to the current version of the building, built in the mid 16th century.
Monday's Lecture
The lecture I went to was titled "Learning, Patronage and Art in the English Late Medieval University." It focused on Merton College of Oxford and proposed that the glass and other art, some of which had been funded by specific alumni, could be read as asserting ideologies particular to the college community. I mainly went to learn more about how to think and talk about medieval stained glass (I learned, for instance, that blue glass is often used to represent black, since black is not translucent), but I also learned about early English universities, which was very interesting. Apparently, just as they do today, universities struggled with the conflict between using what money they had to build more buildings/prestige and using their money to take in more students. They too looked to alumni as one source of funding and hoped that the very successful ones would "give back" by donating.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Interesting University Students
I saw a new kind of waterfowl at the University today. I think it's called a Coot. Look at it's feet! Very cool.
The Oldest Stained Glass in York
St. Denys has the oldest glass in York, 12th Century, and some of it is in very good shape. Other sections were restored in a haphazard manor.
St. Denys
St. Denys was the most rewarding church visit I made today. The current church is only a third of the structure built in the 12th century. What remains was the east end of the larger church and the current entrance was once a window opening. St. Denys was the guild church of the city's fishmongers and was also associated with the powerful Percy family, which had a mansion opposite the church.
St. Mary Castlegate
St. Mary Castlegate has been converted into a venue for art exhibitions. I couldn't take pictures inside the church, but if you are interested in the current exhibition it is by Mary Parker and it's called "Thirty Pieces of Silver." To see pictures and a video of the installation click HERE.
Monday
Meisha wrote, "I visited the Common Guildhall, St. Michael-le-Belfrey (although I couldn't get inside), St. Mary Castlegate, and St. Denys today. Then in the afternoon I went to the university and spent some time in the library before going to a lecture by one of the University professors, Tim Ayers. This is the Guildhall window: Designed and painted by H. W. Harvey as part of the 1960 restoration of the building after the 1942 bombing raid."
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Saturday: Pretty Landscaping on the Way to Tyburn
Meisha wrote, "Today I walked to Tyburn, the place where executions used to take place. It's about a 30 minute walk from the city centre. In the late medieval period, crowds used to follow the condemned from the city to Tyburn. A bit later they moved the courts next to the Tyburn so people often watched the trials and then the execution. The road there is mostly residential and seemed pretty upscale with lots of nice landscaping. Right next to the Tyburn marker is a huge mowed field and beyond that the race track that York is well known for. They originally held the races there because it was already a popular place for entertainment. :) A bit macabre."
Street Musician
Meisha, wrote, "This one's for Dave. In St. Helen Square I walked by this street performer playing the Who's 'Pinball Wizard' on a clarinet. It was a combination of material and instrument that I never expected, but he certainly had the talent to pull it off. I hope that tomorrow I can find someone playing Radiohead on a tuba. I think it could be done."
The St. Martin Window
The church is named for St. Martin of Tours (c. 316-397) and a vicar, Robert Semer, sponsored the creation of this window in 1437 to honor the saint. Parts of it are lost, but most still survives; it depicts events in the life of St. Martin.
St. Martin's
Meisha wrote, "Only about half of st. Martin's survived the bombings in the 40's. There are several memorial plaques there to honor both the British and German soldiers who died in the attack on the church. A man who was looking at the church at the same time as I was marveled aloud at the need for more of the kind of humanity that recognizes itself even in its enemies. We had a long discussion about the period when he worked for a US company that specialized in military contracts and he spoke very highly of the way the company's leaders conducted themselves with humility. I said I hoped that this kind of leadership was coming back into style in the US. He mentioned that our president is a good role model for just the kind of leadership he had admired in his former bosses and I was happy to agree. It's easy to forget how poorly Bush represented us on the world stage."
All Saints Door Knocker
All Saints brass knocker on North door: This a a replica of the original which is from the 13th century. It depicts a sinner being devoured by the mouth of hell, which takes the form of a monster. A hell-mouth is also listed among the props for the Mercers' Last Judgment play.
All Saints Tower
All Saints tower with octagonal lantern on top was "built around 1400. Throughout the mediaeval period, the light was kept burning at night to guide travellers safely into the city through the wolf-infested Forest of Galtres to the north" (poster in church).
Friday
Meisha writes, "It's was nice again today. I spent some time at the library in the morning reading a few wills and such. Then got a cheese and onion pasty and went back to the flat to eat. I worked on ordering Inter Library Loans for a few hours and then went to see All Saints Pavement and St. Martin le Grande (or Coney St.). This is All Saints west window: Originally created around 1370 as part of St. Saviour's Church, it was brought to All Saints and reconstructed in 1957."
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Thursday
Meisha writes, "It was warm today--about 75. I didn't do much of note. After chatting with Dave about Gypsy (who hurt her neck) I went shopping for a few gifts, since most of the time I have been strolling the streets the shops have been closed or closing. I had some luck finding things. In the afternoon I worked with that database of wills I signed up for. Then during dinner (taco salad) Mark came by to tell me I could move tonight if I wanted and he gave me the key to the new apartment. So I spent the rest of the night cleaning up at the old place and moving to the new place. Here's what it looks like:"
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Communing with Nature
Meisha writes, "This picture is of my duck friend. I had already finished eating my sandwich and banana when he came up to me and I unfortunately had nothing for him except the dark chocolate Kit-Kat I had bought for dessert. I thought it might be dangerous to give chocolate to a duck, especially one who was likely part dog (given the way he begged for food). He eventually went to see about getting leftovers from the other people eating on the same terrace. I also saw two ducks sleeping next to each other on the concrete walking bridge that goes from the library to the area where the Berrick Saul Building is. They were cuddled and facing different directions, so whenever someone walked by one or the other duck could open an eye and make sure the person passing wasn't a threat. Pretty cute."
Wednesday
Rather than waste your time with the story of the fiasco of mowing the hay field we try to call a lawn, here is what Meisha writes about her day: "I went to the University of York's Center for Medieval Studies (which is actually in the city at the King's Manor, next to the Art Museum) this morning to ask the secretary to put me on their E-mail list and she printed out a schedule of events for me as well. She let me know that the event going on this afternoon was open to the public, which was cool because it was about space. So I walked right to the bus stop and got on a bus headed for the University. Once there, the building wasn't too hard to find, with the help of the campus map. The first picture is of the Berrick Saul Building, where the symposium was held, and the second picture is specifically of the building's lecture hall (from the outside of course, with some nice bright red coral bells in the foreground.) The event was listed as a Graduate Student Seminar, which to me means a course for grad students, but it was actually a grad student symposium or conference that went from 2-5pm, with 6 speakers. It was called 'Holy Space and the Senses,' so it was right up my alley and very interesting. I got some interesting ideas and introduced myself to two people to whom I gave my card (thanks, Dad, fort making the cards!)."
My Bags Are Packed And I'm Ready to Go
By 10:00 (York time) I was on my way back to London. The train was very crowded and I had to stand all the way, which I didn't really mind because I knew I would be a lot of sitting before the over long day was over. Upon reaching London I grabbed a little lunch at a Portuguese places called Nando's before hopping on the underground to get to Heathrow. My flight wasn't until 17:15 (that's 5:15pm) so I had a bit of a wait but reading The Time Traveler's Guide to Medieval England kept me occupied. Other than a little more turbulence than usual, the flight was uneventful. We arrived on time and by 9:00 Art had picked me up and we were on our way. He dropped me off at my in-laws where Nancy was waiting to take me the rest of the way home. We arrived at 1:00am, which would be 5:00am York time.
Meanwhile back in York Meisha was slaving away in the Explore Centre.
My Bags Are Packed And I'm Ready to Go
We decided to go back to St. Mary's for our parting "shot" since that was the first place we explored when we arrived two weeks ago.
Monday, May 30, 2011
Packing up for Tomorrow's Trip Home
I've confirmed my flight--with plans to print out my E-ticket at the library tomorrow morning--and packed my bags. After this final blog for the night, I'm back to reading Face of Britain, one of the books I borrowed from the Explore Centre.
York's Own Millennium Bridge
I wandered back toward the Ouse, finding a walkway running along the river, which I took heading south (south southeast, to be technical) until I reached this walkway bridge. I return to Centre York on the other side of the river.
My Last York Excursion
After dinner I decided to take one last stroll, now that the rain had stopped. This was taken along the River Foss, a bit north of Walmgate Bridge.
Barker Tower
On our way back to the apartment the rain finally started to abate. We walked along the east side of the Ouse, across Lindal Bridge, down the west side of the Ouse, and across the Ouse Bridge. Barker Tower, on the west side of the Ouse at Lindal Bridge, was used to draw a chain across the river to prevent boats from entering the city without paying the toll.
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