Nomad's Notes from somewhere on the road: YORKSHIRE Part 1--Leeds and York

Yorkshire was several distinct experiences. It included Leeds where I stayed with an old school friend, included the old walled City of York, and several days experiencing the coast.

LEEDS
My journey to Yorkshire began in Leeds where my friend Gayle lives. Gayle and I went to kindergarten together, lived in the same tract, finished high school together although she had a couple years away while her dad worked as a civilian for the military in Okinawa. Through the Internet we got back in touch a few years ago and I saw her in Arizona when she was visiting family and again a few years later when she visited Yellowstone.

I stayed with her and her husband, Andrew in their home in Leeds. She took me touring in the area and I saw a number of things I probably would never have found on my own, especially in the short amount of time I had for the whole country.

As the third largest city in the UK, which right off the bat would have put it lower on my list of places to visit, I discovered it had some delightful treasures. It always helps to have a local guide. Since her marriage to a native of Leeds, Gayle has learned her way around the city, goes everywhere on public transit, and is well informed on her adopted home. Once a leading city of the Industrial Revolution it has some magnificent old buildings. Besides industry as we think of it, it also was a center for exchange of agricultural products. The old Corn Exchange was one of my favorite buildings. Corn, in England, refers to grains and not corn as we Americans think of it. Today the building has been refurbished as shops and eateries. Note the bottom floor of the building in the photo. Here the grains were displayed before being auctioned. As I started to write this blog entry I wanted to refresh my memory. This spot isn't even on a couple of the tourist sites for Leeds. What a shame. But goggling "corn exchange, Leeds" I did find a listing.

This is the interior of the magnificent Leeds Corn Exchange.

Another treat in Leeds is the existence of several arcades. The first goes back to 1887 when a man named Thornton decided to cover one of the traditional shopping alleys

Two students make use of the piano at County Arcade,
providing an impromptu concert.

Below are some photos of another treasure. In 2007 renovations were being made to the museum and library complex. As they worked, they discovered that under various renovations in the past, were magnificent old tiles. Plans changed, and the remodeling preserved and enhanced this incredible room which is now a coffee house.

Here is Gayle just inside the arched entrance to the coffee room

On one of our excursions, we rode the bus out to Harewood House, an estate built between 1759-1771 for the Lascelles family. who made their fortune in the West Indies. It is a great example of how the top echelon lived, and lives. The house has a great history, including royal visits and the marriage of Princess Mary, oldest daughter of George V into that family. She lived here and was involved in various charitable works, including projects during WWI. In WWII the ground floor turned into a convalescent hospital and the estate was used for military personnel. Part of the house and the gardens, a trust, are open to the public for tours while the Lascelles family still maintains this as their family home and are using the estate for projects of sustainability.

Since the family fortunes were made in the West Indies, it is likely that the ownership of slaves was involved, although the literature indicates that the family member who commissioned the house was not a slave owner, even if earlier members were. That said, a visit was interesting. The current Count of Harewood is a film and television producer. The TV series, Victoria used Harewood House for the scenes which took place in Buckingham Palace. The Count of Harewood, although a producer, is not listed on the credits so it does not appear that he was involved in this production.

Although a shuttle will pick you up at the gate, Gayle and I chose to walk through the estate, not a very long walk, to see the house and gardens. We started walking back, but when the shuttle came by, we did decide to hop aboard. The sky was threatening rain.

The downstairs kitchen

Ceilings in the ground floor

Gayle outside the house, looking towards the formal gardens.

These dresses were used in the filming of the TV series Victoria.

Organ in the city hall in Leeds

Inside concert hall in Leeds City Hall

Another day we traveled to Ilkley. Ahead of my visit I told Gayle I would like to see both an estate (above) and some of the countryside of Yorkshire. After reading all the James Herriot books, All Creatures Great and Small, and additional titles, I wanted to see the countryside a bit. We headed to Ilkly by bus which was perfect. We hiked up the hill above the town for the view. Although we didn't go all the way to the top, we saw the rocks that crown Ilkley Moor. We had tea at Betty's Tea House, one of five that exist in Yorkshire. (I had high tea at Betty's in York as well)

When we returned home, Andrew delighted me by singing "On Ilkla Moor Baht 'at," considered the unofficial anthem of Yorkshire. He did all the verses!. Done in Yorkshire dialect, the title means, "on Ilkley Moor without a hat." For fun, check it out. Google has the history and several You Tubes of various singers.

View from the moors

View of town

YORK

View from the stone wall around the city with York-minster in the background, lovely garden in the foreground

York goes way, way back. It has been a center on the Ouse River for thousands of years. One of the things to see in York, which I did on a very wet day, is the Jorvik Viking Center. Back in the mid-1970s, the city was planning a major redevelopment. As some Viking artifacts had been found, they gave archaeologists time, while plans were being drawn and approved, to excavate the site. In their digging, including under some existing buildings, they found an entire Viking village from the 10th century. The peat had preserved not only the metal and stone artifacts, but items that usually rot like clothing and wood.
Today, the Jorvik Center includes life-size dioramas. Visitors ride through in open cars on a track.You see the period from 948 AD back 100 years; the houses, the trades, animated manikins, talking and working. I was told to be prepared for some pretty gross smells in one area, replicating what a town with animals, sewage, smoke etc. would have been like. But either that feature has been disbanded or my allergies were worse than I realized, because I didn't experience that part.
I don't seem to have photos of Jorvik. I didn't take many inside, but had some. I need to go back and look at my backup drive. But my photos hardly do it justice. Take a look on-line for more on this incredible experience.

One of the hallmarks of York is York Minster, the Gothic cathedral that dominates the skyline. The original church was built as early as 637. By the 13th century, a Gothic cathedral had been built. But over the years, fires, wars, structural collapses have plagued it.
In addition to touring the inside, I went back for Evensong. Often that service is done by the children's choir but it was a school holiday. Instead it was the Men's chorus and I was not disappointed. The singing and acoustics were close to celestial.. No, there are no photos or recording of that. It is not allowed. But I do have some photos from the touring I did earlier in the day.

Ceiling in York Minster

York is a walled city. The walls still surround much of the old city and are accessible to walk. I walked both sections and enjoyed the sense of history and the views.