Day 24 York, UK

The last day of 2023 and a lovely relaxing day spent in York. We all had a much needed sleep in before cooking some breakfast and then heading out to yet another farm shop and an M&S food hall to find food for the next couple of days. The drive out into the country was interesting and we saw some lovely homes. The farmland however seems very water logged and muddy. We returned to the house to catch up on a few jobs that needed sorting and then walked 200m to the bus stop. The ride was less than 15 minutes and dropped us in the centre of town. The cathedral York Minster is huge and dominates the area but the busiest area is The Shambles. The Shambles is a historic street featuring preserved medieval buildings, some dating back as far as the 14th century. The street is narrow, with cobblestones and many timber-framed buildings. It was packed with tourists like ourselves struggling to find a space to take a good photo. We wandered down many similar streets before climbing a small tower to arrive on the wall that surrounds York. York has, since Roman times, been defended by walls of one form or another. To this day, substantial portions of the walls remain, and York has more miles of intact wall than any other city in England. The view from the walls was down over the old part of the city and also into the back gardens of many homes. We left the wall for a brief look in some of the more modern shops, and then headed into a very quaint and old pub for a lovely drink. By 5 30pm it was time to locate the restaurant we had booked for dinner. The Guy Fawkes Inn was busy, with it being New Years Eve, and our meals were delicious. Alanna had the dessert of the day which was a banoffee pie which came in a small toffee tin which amazed us all. We then caught an uber which brought us home in ten minutes. After two lovely calls to Brenna and Shaun we were all off to bed by 10 30pm. It will be morning before we welcome in 2024 in York.Read more