*in a british accent* After a hectic night of failed gambling and unconvincing ghost stories, today was a restful juxtaposition. Breakfast was a slight improvement from the past couple of days because of an extra selection of food (at an extra cost). Though the new potato cakes and sausage links may have just led to extra exhaustion at the educational sessions. As exciting as public speaking practice may be, after lunch (which was painstakingly mid) the group was extremely excited to get out into the city once again. We began our afternoon excursion with a tour at the Minster, where the groups were had to decide between two tour guides. Everyone wanted to be with our favorite stunningly awe strikingly beautiful guide Rose, but alas not everyone could get her (nice guys always finish last 🙁 ).
Getting a better look at the Minster was much needed, as we got to take time to appreciate the intricate stone and glass work developed over the last millennia while learning about its rich Catholic and Anglican history.
After the intricate mix of Gothic and Victorian architecture, the Vikings seemed crude at best, which once again demonstrated the deep history of this city. The main attraction of the Jorvik Museum featured a ride through historical replicas of day to day life. While the humanoid figures fooled some, the pungent smells drew the most attention — especially the fish market and outhouse ones.
The group promptly left the museum once we learned we had free time until tea (that’s what Northern England folks call dinner! Can’t say we’re surprised). A large majority of the group rushed to the Minster to explore the brilliant views it had to offer. Climbing up, step after step after step, we made it to the halfway point. We felt a smooth breeze as we walked onto the first roof, and the group could finally give a sigh of relief in the open air. T’was short lived though, as we had 150 more steps to climb — swirling around the spire with our heads dizzying by the second. At last we reached the top — and the views made it all worth it (in the few squares cut out of the metal cage surrounding the whole roof). After sightseeing York from an aerial view, we headed back to the halfway point for our ground liaison to take a photo, only after getting yelled at by the loud speaker for the felony charges of having a banner out and being too close to the railing.
Following the day’s European history lessons, we earned a throwback to our American way of life with burgers and chips (fries for you Americans). A vote was taken on who will watch the Barbie movie, and an overwhelming majority of scholars agreed.
To end the day, we figured we’d undergo a rematch in some British football. Valerie decided to play goalie, and she was a critical complement of the team she was on, and the other team’s goalie Andrew was just as critical. Some injuries were incurred on the field, but all is well here in York tonight.
Cheers,
Gavin and Annie
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