Spring 10 - School Trip to York

Romanticizing on the York Trip

by Kathryn Cesarz

Saturday Morning started bright and early for students going on the York Trip. The buses left at 8am into the cool, morning fog (but the weather was reasonable; after a month of living here, this climate that, in the beginning, made us seek the Tube in London not because we wanted transportation but because we needed the warmth of the subway cars, and that made us think our hands would fall off while we stood in the rain on the Lincoln field trip has now put us into a state of mind, where if we only have to wear one coat while eating in the refectory rather than two, we say "well, what a pleasantly balmy day!")

Though some would call them just a means to get from A to B, I personally enjoy the coach rides. This morning, the picture windows of the bus (and they are huge windows) presented us with a scrolling blue countryside speckled with sheep and flocks of birds. So I'm a romantic. It's travel; I'm allowed.

We arrived a couple of hours later in York, home of the world-renowned York Minster Cathedral. Most students headed from the Coach Park straight for the Cathedral (which was easy to spot, since it towered over all the puny buildings between us.) Walking the streets to the Cathedral, we could tell right away that the city would be a pleasant place to spend the day. Tea shops and quirky stores (life-like baby dolls in the shop window! vintage records!) lined the narrow, cobblestone roads, many of which were closed off as pedestrian-only streets.

And the Cathedral was impressive. We were able to buy passes to see just the cathedral, or the cathedral and the crypt, OR the cathedral, the crypt, and climb the tower. I buckled up my adventure belt and did all three. The treacherous 260-ish-step climb to the top was well worth it, because the view (although it was one we came upon huffing and puffing, hearts pounding) was lovely. 

The crypts in the cathedral had remaining structures from both the Roman Basilica and the Norman Cathedral that preceded the modern Cathedral. These sites were both fascinating and useful; I used York Minster's architectural history as an example on last week's British Studies Exam! 

The other features of the city gave day trippers lots to do. I walked the walls of the city with a friend, stopping shortly in a big tea house (shortly because it had no vacancy), and then (maybe being rewarded for our failed efforts) found a wonderful coffee shop in one of the wall's gate towers. The weather remained cool and misty all day, but it wasn't enough to keep us tourists inside.

A lot of tourists were there, actually. The shopping streets were crowded like US malls at Christmastime. They had good reason, though. The shops were great, as was the bustle and seeing all the people. I encountered three street music performers - a guitarist, a violinist, and (I kid you not) a pianist on an upright piano. They were worth stopping for (especially with my rose-colored glasses on.) The piano man treated us to a rendition of the "Family Guy" theme song.

As 4:00 approached, students returned to their seats on the coach, and headed back home to Harlaxton. The countryside that was bright blue that morning became a dark indigo as the sun set. Most people fell asleep. It was a good day.