Chapter 7 - York, Edinburgh, Inverness & Lake Windermere.

Friday 14-10 88.

I caught the 11am train from London to York. Today marked the start of my run around the country. I had five weeks to see all the places on my itinerary so Louise had set me a cracking pace. As you can see I left London and was on my way from York to Edinburgh by 3pm. No time to waste.

The walled city of York. York Minster in the background.

On arrival I did find time to sit quietly and listen to the Heraldry Choir practising in the magnificent York Minster while soaking up the beauty of my surroundings. I'm so glad I took the time to listen to the glorious voices in such a setting..I believe the Great East Window is the largest single expanse of medieval stained glass in the world, the measurements close to the size of a tennis court. Created in 1405 - 08 by John Thornton at a cost of fifty eight pounds.

Telling the story of the world from beginning to end.

York Minster. The crowning glory of the city.

It took 250 years to build.1220 - 1470.

Then it was off to explore this delightful walled city. York has more miles of intact city walls than anywhere else in England. Some sections date back to Roman times. When the Romans first came here they built a military fort on the banks of the river Ouse. Strong walls were built to enclose the fort and the town. These form the base of the city walls that remain today.

The wall stretches around the city for about three miles.

I found time to walk the wall.

The Shambles is something to see. It is considered to be one of the best preserved medieval shopping streets in Europe and is mentioned in the Doomsday Book.

The street is so narrow that you could probably reach out and touch the other side. Many visitors assume that the structures tilt because of their great age.

In fact the Shambles was made narrow to keep the meat sold there out of direct sunlight. Nevertheless it was a dangerous and unhealthy place in the middle ages and probably a hot spot for periodic outbreaks of plague.

Today the Shambles is lined with small coffee lounges, boutiques and people with cameras.

The Shambles.

Petergate in the shadow of the Minster.

Some Petergate symbols.

Shopkeepers would display a symbol over their shops for the benefit of the illiterate, some still remain. Minerva the Goddess of Wisdom complete with a stack of books and an owl, a reminder of the days when this was a street of booksellers.

A fanciful belief was that a special devil haunted every print shop performing mischief such as inverting type - mis spelling words - removing entire lines of complete type. The apprentice was later given the blame and the name, guilt by association.

An angel guarding what is now a tea room, surely something more appropriate in days gone by.

All very interesting but Tempus Fugits, so off to the train station en route to .........

EDINBURGH.

Edinburgh Castle.

I had no trouble finding the youth hostel and settling in for the night. I forgot to mention that everyone staying at a youth hostel has to do a chore each morning. I had to sweep the dorm. My daughter Louise remembers when staying at the same hostel her job was to wake the girls up and get them on their way. After being on the receiving end of threats and insults from some victims of the dreaded hangover, she quietly moved on and let sleeping dogs lie, to coin a phrase. Some of the young backpackers party hard.

Saturday 15th. Foggy and cold.

After completing my chore I checked my back pack in left luggage and started to explore this famous city. The fog was so thick I was right outside the wall before I could see it.

Imagine not being able to see this huge landmark!

Edinburgh Castle is a fortress which dominates the city skyline on top of volcanic Castle Rock. Over 1,000 years of history sits on top of this rock and more than one million people visit each year. It is a child's dream of how a castle should look. I looked around for hours, so much history to be absorbed.

Helping to guard the castle.

The one o'clock gun has an interesting history, it was not started as a tourist attraction although it has become one. It was not intended to alarm shoppers in Princes street although it does. It began life as a means of giving an accurate time check to the ships in Leith Harbour, two miles away. A time ball which dropped from a tower in Calton Hill could not be seen on foggy days so some one came up with the idea of a gun shot at I pm daily. This practice continues today except on Sundays and holidays. It has been unkindly suggested that being true Scots they chose I o'clock to save gun powder.!

The one o'clock gun.

I walked down the Royal Mile (Princes street ) to Holyrood House. Lots of interesting shops to see on the way.

The Royal Mile.

The fog lifted about 11 am. which made sightseeing a lot easier. It was very cold.

Holyrood House. They call THIS a house??

The acclaimed Military Tattoo is celebrating its Diamond Jubilee this year 2010. Over 217,000 people see it live from the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle each year, and it has sold out for the last decade. 30% of the audience are from Scotland, 35%from the rest of the United Kingdom and the remaining 35% consist of 70,000 visitors from overseas including niece Bernadette last year who was an enthusiastic member of the audience and really loved it.

The Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

I enjoyed roaming around this great city but time to press on . Wending my way down to the railway station I collected my backpack and waited for the next train to.......

INVERNESS.

On my way again. I am amazed how much one can see in a short time. See is not a good choice of word at the moment, the fog has returned with a vengeance, the view from the train window is nil. Such a shame as I was looking forward to seeing the 'heather on the hill.

After a while I got my wish when the fog lifted. The rest of the trip was enjoyable , the scenery stunning although the heather in October past its prime.

I'm very glad to have my rail pass, such a convenient way to travel.

Inverness is a pretty city (achieving city status in 2000 ) on the banks of the river Ness overlooked by a Pink Castle.

Inverness Castle.

After a stroll around looking at the sights, especially the good looking Scots lads in their kilts I found the hostel which was run by a very strict lady...(no escaping chores here )

Sunday 16th

Inverness and the river Ness.

My chore done (sweeping the dorm again) I was off to search for Nessie, my reason for being here.

It was at this time that I met another link in my chain of delightful and lasting friends I connected with on this trip of a lifetime. Nora, a lady 76 years young, so full of vim and vigour was also on her way to Loch Ness so we set out together. Eventually arriving we decided to take a cruise on the loch which was marvellous.

Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle.

I really thought that I would be the one to sight Nessie. No go. The closest we got was a documentary we saw after a tour of a woollen mill.

Nora and I roamed around the ruins of the castle for ages before making our way back to Inverness . I subsequently visited Nora on my next two trips. She made such an impression on me. She was one strong lady who became a dear friend. She has been a walker all her life and has walked all over the mountains of Britain. Probably the reason for her remarkable health. We stayed in touch for years until one day I rang her and she couldn't remember who I was. The dreaded dementia.

Nora and me at Urquhart Castle.

Sometimes I find it hard to believe I am really here in all these long dreamed of faraway places. Another tick on my bucket list.

The ruins. Fun to explore.

After an excellent day we headed back to Inverness, had dinner and chatted until 9pm when we said goodbye. I walked to the station to sit in my train which didn't leave until 11- 30pm . All alone in a dark (try pitch black) deserted train for two hours. Very, very spooky, not a soul on the station and the train sitting on a siding. I remember all the connecting doors being open, it was like a long corridor. Another job for my poor Guardian Angel.

WINDERMERE.

17-10-88. Very foggy.

Lake Windermere.

We arrived at Glasgow station at 5. 20 am and I caught the first available train to Windermere. Nora would have loved to come with me on this leg of my journey as this is her very special favourite place. I won't be doing any more walking than I have to though, no time and even less inclination.. Windermere is a lovely quaint village.

Windermere Village with the lake in the distance.

I wonder if these people realise how lucky they are to live in here. I really loved these old towns of the Lake District,

The adjoining village of Bowesness.

but unfortunately the fog descended and it was hard to see the lovely landscape.

Thanks to the heavy fog I missed this beautiful scene.I'm glad I bought a postcard. I suppose this is the reason that England is so picturesque,all the cold rainy foggy weather.

So as I said before, places to go , things to see. No self respecting Beatles fan could miss the experience of.....

LIVERPOOL.