York day trip

August 23, 2008
York day trip
This past weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to visit the historical city of York. York was the most northern city controlled by the Roman Empire until the fifth century; therefore, many Roman ruins and influences still remain. The most notable place to visit is York Minster. Just a quick history lesson:
o A minster (mynster) is the Anglo-Saxon name for a missionary church which was built as a new center for Christian worship.
o A cathedral is the mother church of a diocese. It is where the bishop has his cathedra or seat which is only found in cathedrals.
York Minster is both a cathedral and a minster as it is the cathedral church for the Diocese of York. York Minster was first begun by Romans and the original foundation can still be found in the caverns below. It is also the location at which Constantine was made Emperor. Next, the North and South transepts were built in 1220-1260 and is of Norman Gothic era and architecture. The Nave and the Chapter House were built from 1280-1350 and the Quire from 1361-1472 and are a mixture of Medieval and Gothic stained glass and architecture. I’ve included some of the pictures with historical explanations.
1. Rose window: c. 1500. Commemorates the union of the houses of York and Lancaster with the white roses representing the house of York and the red roses the house of Lancaster.

2. Five sisters window: c. 1260 contains gray and green “grisaille” glass in geometric patterns which is consistent with a Gothic design.

3. Tree of Jesse: c. 1310. The tree shows Jesse at the bottom and then Jesus’ ancestors all the way up to Jesus at the top.

4. Chapter house: c. 13th century. Where the dean and chapter met to discuss administration issues. It has carvings which contain hidden messages; a cat chasing a mouse imbedded in the foliage, and the Green Man which is a carving of Celtic origin and popular in Celtic architecture.
After completing the tour of the main level and crypts, we decided to wander into the nearby shops.
We had our dinner (lunch) at Betty’s tea room which is well known in England and then made our way to The Shambles. This is an area in which the homes are built at odd angles almost cartoon-like so that they appear to be falling or have crooked floors.
There was still one more activity to complete at the Minster; to climb 275 steps only 25in wide to the highest point in the Minster. Somehow I was at the front of the line and had to lead 20+ people to the top. For someone not completely comfortable with high places, this was quite a feat. I passed signs along the way that essentially said “You aren’t going to make it…turn back NOW!” I knew I couldn’t stop because there was no place to turn around and go back down until I reached the top. So, with my heart in my throat, and trying not to look up or down, I crawled the last 100 steps to the top and collapsed in anxiety on a bench on the roof. Coming down was another feat as I had to tell my trembling legs to place themselves on each step as a gripped the thin metal rail for dear life. After that, we decided to walk the city wall back to the train station and catch the train to Newcastle. At Newcastle, we enjoyed a mezze at a Greek restaurant. Basically, this is a sample of 12 dishes split between three people…we were completely stuffed with some of the best Greek food I have ever tasted. We then took the metro up to West Jesmond, walked a mile to our hotel, and then collapsed in exhaustion awaiting our next day’s adventures….