Europe on 5-10 Nervous Breakdowns a Day (32)

DAYS 34, 35 – WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY, MAY 29 & 30, 1974 – NOTTINGHAM & YORK

Wednesday, it was time to leave Corby. Our family would have enjoyed another day or two, but it was time to say good-bye to the Worgans. They were exhausted from the lectureship and we thought they would feel strange if we got a hotel room.

We caught the bus near Frank’s house at 1:55 and were soon in Kettering. We walked to the train station and caught a train at 2:30ish and arrived in Nottingham at 3:00ish. Nottingham is now an industrial town with train tracks running through the middle of town. Robin Hood would never have recognized it.

I had no recommendations regarding reasonable places to spend the night, so Debbie and I left the rest of the family while we looked. We only had one choice a reasonable distance from the station: £1.50 for Angie and £3.80 each for the rest of us—in three rooms, for bed and breakfast.

After we were installed in our rooms, we went exploring. The part of town the hotel was in was pretty shabby (a sex shop was next door to our hotel), but a couple of blocks away we found a new shopping mall under construction. I got a map and some instructions. We also bought food for lunch the next day.

We then had fish and chips (i.e. french fries) . . . and a “milk shake.” The milk shakes in Australia are wimpy with their small spoonful of ice cream, but these had that beat. They had a “chocanilla” syrup which combined chocolate syrup with vanilla flavoring. They put this in some milk with no ice cream at all and whip it up. All froth. A cold glass of milk would have had twice as much milk and cost half as much.

We next walked to the Nottingham castle. The old castle (part of the Robin Hood legend) is now gone and a more “modern” castle (built in the 1700s) is in its place. But the location, gates, etc. are the same. The grounds are beautifully kept.

There is a statue of Robin Hood there.

I don’t think I’ve mentioned that the weather has been nice since we got back to England. A little cooler than it would be in the U.S. or Australia, but sunshine most of the time (one small shower) and very pleasant as long as one keeps a jacket handy.

Wednesday night, but no place to go for a midweek service. After a few days’ break, it was hard to get back into the routine of traveling, so we were all rather grouchy.

Thursday morning everyone seemed more chipper.

We caught a train at 11:39 to Derby (pronounced “Darby”). At Derby, we changed trains for York. York is an old walled city with a notable museum. The plan was to spend the night there and then go the next morning to Scotland.

We arrived at York at 2:30ish. Outside the station, we had our first glimpse of the walls. They are about two and half miles long and completely enclose the older part of the city except for a few spots where they have been torn down to construct buildings.

Debbie and I found a room. Then, after a short rest, we headed for the York Castle Museum. It was almost 4:00 so we didn’t know if we would have any time there. We were in luck because the museum stays open until 8:00 during tourist season.

The museum shows how people lived at different stages of English history. The main attraction is a recreated Victorian cobbled street with costumed guides and period rooms including a schoolroom.

Outside the building was an old, old tower set on a high mound, part of the original fortifications of the city. Three of us climbed up to this.

It was nearing 7:00 and we hadn’t eaten. Our hotel was near a supermarket, which was still open. We bought some yogurt to go with the bits and pieces of food we had left, plus food for lunch tomorrow.

During our entire trip it seems to stay light longer than we are used to. Everywhere we’ve been is considerably farther north than where we live; does that make a difference? Anyway, about 8:30 we decided to give the walls a closer look. The four original gates are still there. We headed for the Micklegate to the south (the road to London). This is the gate where they hanged the heads of traitors as a warning to those who visited the city.

From there we strolled around the walls. There is a walkway on top of the walls (for soldiers defending the city?).

 

We walked on the wall until we got near our hotel. Then to our rooms and to bed.