Apparently, Yorkshire is God's own country and so I felt like I should probably visit[1] as I had not spent any real time there previously. I cannot say that this trip was exactly an extensive route, but it was definitely in Yorkshire.
I was on my way to Scarborough, Britain's first seaside resort town, but I was going to be picked up in York on the way by a friend of mine. I took the train to York and ended up in York a little earlier than my pick up time so I could have a quick walk around. I knew that I would return on the way back so I was pretty relaxed in my walking around until I got in the car to Scarborough. I saw the walls and the cathedral but, truth be told, I had a little work to do.
We got to Scarborough a little later than expected so when we got there, the options for food were quite low – so we went and had some fish and chips from a local chippy. Waiting outside, and then eating outside, it did not feel like a well-to-do area. This was not helped by the people that joined us at the table (although another was also free) and proceeded to shout random, drunken abuse and suchlike at passer-by. The food was alright though.
The next morning, at about 8:30, we made our way out for breakfast, but without cash, and so we looked for cash machine. A few were out of order so a search was necessary. As we were walking, a woman shouted to me “Asalaamalaikum” (Greetings in Arabic) so I waited for her to walk over. This was a mistake. She came over and I was able to give her the brush off quite easily but my friend was less lucky and after an unwanted hug and a kiss, an escape was sought. She walked in the same direction asking if she was being rude, so we entered a local shop. As did she. It wasn't even 9 and she was a little drunk. We got away (after another “chat” in the shop) and headed for a breakfast in a café that had been freshly painted. Apparently, we were the first ever customers.
We made our way into Whitby (and I was struck by a hotel offering "en-suite parking" – I am genuinely not sure what this means) where we saw the infamous “Vote Leave” red battle bus. Emblazoned with the £50m per day lie and the chutzpah of saving the NHS too[3], it summed up the hate of EU regulations by parking where it was not supposed to in front of the Tourist Information (per discussion overheard inside asking them to move), and not for the first time. Whitby has a very impressive Abbey that is reached over a 199 steps. It is worth the walk. We continued that walk for a few hours to Robin Hood’s Bay which was a Cliffside walk with lovely views and gradients that were unexpected.
Returning to Scarborough via Whitby again by bus, we got back to Scarborough for a far more enjoyable evening than the one before as we took in some classic seaside treats like doughnuts and arcades.
Having decided to walk the York city walls later that day, we spent only a short time in the North Bay of Scarborough but it was enough time for some Adventure Golf (best course according to CBeebies) and breakfast.
York is a very old place and many of the city walls are still standing and can be walked along and the trail is 3.2 km. I thought that this was exactly the kind of thing that I would do. The walls are not unbroken with a few bits along roads or paths where the wall was but it is an interesting trip affording some nice views of York Minster and a few other things around the city.
The National Rail Museum is also based in York and I felt that this was also worth a quick tour before heading back to London by train. It is an OK museum but it felt more of a nostalgic view of train travel from a certain time with more evocative imagery than information about rail. I know museums are supposed to be about history, but it is a little sad how it does not seem to cover much about the rail network as a whole or non-steam trains. It does contain a Shinkansen train though so that was a bonus.
1. I hasten to add that this does not mean I am referring to myself as God, or his son or anything like that. That is for other people to say.↩
2. I had no idea of the Dracula connections but it seems most other people do.↩
3. Overhearing some of the arguments as I walked past later, it wasn't just the side of the bus that was reserved for nonsensical lies.↩
