ITP 2013: September 15 – Ren Xiaojing
Day Trip to York!
Miral, Buket and I departed from Piccadilly Station at 9 am, and met Bryan and his wife Christine at York Station. Bryan, the curator of the Manchester Museum, lives in Leeds between Manchester and York, but nearer to York. And we also met Anna from the Manchester Museum who lives in Liverpool.
The trip began following a morning coffee. We visited 3 sites and walked through the city centre.
Yorkshire Museum & Gardens
‘The perfect place to begin your exploration of York’. So it is! If you want to see York, see the Yorkshire Museum first! The Yorkshire Museum,10- mins walk from the station, tells us the whole story of York from prehistory to the medieval period in its diverse collections and fantastic galleries. It was refurnished and redisplayed in 2010,and really gave us a quite impressive new look.
Here are some of the top objects I saw.
Ivory Bangle Lady.
Green dish.
Roman Hair.
The York Helmet.
Giant ichthyosaur skeleton.
There are botanical gardens around the Yorkshire Museum, among which, the ruins of St Mary’s Abbey is located. We took a photo outside the museum, and just in front of the Abbey.
JORVIK Viking Centre
We visited JORVIK Viking Centre after lunch. It’s a fantastic place as it is a perfect combination of museum and archaeological site. When entering the centre, we found the remains of 1000 years old houses covered by glass floors beneath our feet!! The JORVIK Viking Centre was built on the very site where the excavations had taken place, creating a ground-breaking experience to us.
JORVIK Viking Centre reconstructed the Viking-Age streets, as they would have been. The travel aboard the Time-capsule enabled us to explore the life in Viking-Age York. We heard the language Viking citizens spoke, visited their houses and back yards, saw a blast of smoke from blacksmith’s furnace and smelt the home-cooked stew.
Clifford’s Tower
In the medieval kingdoms of England, the north was ruled from York. Clifford’s Tower, a symbol of the power of England’s medieval kings, was once part of a much larger castle complex. Climbing up to the top of the tower, we enjoyed panoramic views of York and the surrounding countryside, and also felt the crucial role it played as a military foundation.
Besides the three attractions above, we also enjoyed a comfortable walk through the streets and on the city-wall with beautiful and peaceful views.
Wonderful day! We appreciated the tailor-made route by Bryan. Guided by him, we encountered the most and the best of sightseeing in York, and it cost as least a time as possible. We are also greatly thankful to ITP for providing us with such amazing experience!
Viking coins, it’s a gift from Bryan for each of us, so kind!