Well,
Today was another wet day. We woke up around 6:45 am and headed straight to the train station. Since we were in first class, we got breakfast included. However, we didn't know breakfast was included so we had grabbed some breakfast from the station to eat on the train. This was the nicest train so far. Dear me, I forgot to mention where we were going. We went to he lovely town of York. This was also the farthest town. York was the second to last stop before Edinburgh, Scotland. It was about a 2 1/2 hour train ride from London. Edinburgh was an additional 2 hours. In the train, we got breakfast. There were options of porridge, toast, croissants, and full English style breakfasts. I had tea and this egg soufflé thing. The food was surprisingly good. As far as entertainment goes, I read the entire way. When we left the train, it was raining. We walked from the train station to town, about a 5-10 minute walk. We had no map, so we wandered a wee bit before finding the visitors center. We got some maps, and were directed to the history of York museum. We were taken back about 2,00 years. This museum mainly focused on the animals, environments, and roman and Viking rule. There was a section on evolution...which we skipped. But the sections on the Roman Empire was very interesting and intriguing. There was also a section on the Vikings in which they had artifacts found from that time. Please note that the Vikings didn't wear helmets with horns :) the museum only took us about 45 minutes. Midway through we watched a video in the museums theatre. It took through the different rulers of York, as well as all the battles that were fought. After we had our fill of roman coins and Viking swords, we braved the weather and walked to the minster of York, which is the large church. As always, the interior of the church left me in awe. However, this church was unique. It holds around 60% of England's stained glass. It was a lot of glass and colour, but it was absolutely breath taking. The front panel is made up of 144,000 separate sections that display the trinity and the omnipotent power of God. There was a specific arrangement and story behind the huge front stained glass, but I forgot it. If I find something about it, I'll post it. This church also had the prettiest organ pipes. Painted in gold leaf, these pipes displayed the craftsmanship of the Victorian era. When we left the church, we found lunch in a cozy little tavern. Yorkshire pies are popular, so I decided to try one. Essentially it's a chicken pot pie, but I got the spinach and cheese version. Once we'd dried off a bit, we walked through the rain to The Shambles and Shambles Market. Well, so we thought. We got a bit turned around, but eventually we found our way. Although we couldn't admire the antique cobblestone streets, we still got a wonderful view of alleyways and such. We passed a chocolate shoppe, and we got some tasty treats for the train ride back. York is famous for chocolate...just chocolate in general, so we knew that the chocolate would be good. (No, York peppermint patties aren't from York, England. They're from York, Pennsylvania.) After we bought some chocolate, we planned on going to the castle/fortress, but we went to the museum of York. This was different than the other museum. This history museum was more on the people of York and how they and York have changed from the Romans to the Victorian era, to the world wars and even the 60s. It was interesting seeing the recreations of houses. After the museum, we walked through the rain and wind to the train station. We got situated in our seats, and rode pleasantly for an hour and a half. We got complimentary sandwiches and cake on the train as well. With an hour left, we got a broadcast from some train official saying that there was an issue with the train and our train would terminate at the next stop. How annoying! So EVERYONE got off the train, transferred to a different platform, and waited for the next train. It was only 15 minutes that we had to wait, but we had to get on the next full train with everyone else. As we waited, a non stop train passed through the station. I now believe the safely man when he said, "Stay behind the yellow line." The train was extremely forceful that as it passed, I felt the pull of the air from the train. I felt like I was going to get pulled off of my feet. If anyone would've stood on the end of the platform...the day would have ended tragically. Luckily my family squeezed in on the next train. The last hour was pleasantly uneventful...no surprises this train ride. We got to our apartment without any trouble. I am happy because I finished Pride and Prejudice this evening...three days and one novel complete :) tomorrow is our last day in England. I am happy and sad. London is a wonderful city, but home is...well home sweet home.
Cheerio!
~Hannah~
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