Oh the Grand old Duke of York…

Well that’s it. Bank holiday over. There isn’t another one until August now, I believe.  I started off the day in a somewhat passive mood and wasn’t aiming to do much of anything; luckily my girlfriend was in a more active mindset and persuaded me that a trip to York was a good idea – it was.

For those who don’t know it, York is a walled city, formed by the Romans and situated in the north of Yorkshire. It is famous for its historic architecture and typically middle aged feel. As a Yorkshireman I feel quite proud of York and it is reassuring that not all of Yorkshire has been neglected in recent years.  In contrast to Bradford, the streets are full of fashionable, tasteful retailers and there are a good number of pubs, restaurants and cafes all being enjoyed by a wide range of people from a wide range of backgrounds.

For anyone tempted to visit York, I would heartily recommend “The Kings Arms” pub which is owned by the Sam Smiths brewery. This place serves pretty awesome craft beers at literally half the price of the commercial, more popular beers; a pint of bitter clocks in at about £1.50 whilst the freshly brewed lager sets you back about another 40p. Bargain.

York’s most famous landmark is undoubtedly the Minster, it is pretty impressive and certainly looks spectacular from most viewpoints around the city.

The Minster

I probably would have gone in and had a look around but there were far too many tourists to allow the experience to be enjoyable. I couldn’t really quibble at the tourists (since I was one) and instead chose to enjoy the city by soaking up the atmosphere in a less forced manner – browsing the streets, bookshops, parks and ruins at a pace which seemed fitting for the city and surroundings.

I suppose today’s post wasn’t all too interesting but, then again, the main purpose of this blog (at time of writing) is to document the thoughts and events of my day to day life.  In the absence of much to write about; a cool person would probably not write anything and go surfing – well I’m not cool and I can’t surf!

For the love of Nadal…