york

How to go
<Train>It takes about two hours from London, King's Cross station to York.
<Bus>It takes about four hours from Victoria Coach Station to York.
<In my case>I used trains on both my first and second trip. On my third trip, I took a train from Scarborough.

He was hunchbacked, ugly and ill natured. Moreover, he confined his two nephews, the young princes, in the Tower of London and finally killed them. At last, he took the throne. Shakespear wrote about Richard III like this. I heard that English people are taught at school about him in this way.
However, in "Ten no Taikan", a Japanese comic strip written by Kumi Morikawa, he yearned for his brother, Edward IV, and was a gentle man.
When I was a university student, a senior student told me that the strip was based on a novel, "The daughter of Time". Actually, Kumi Morikawa, herself graduated from our university and seemed to attend lectures which Hiroshi Imai gave as I did. I felt sympathy for her because she may have thought of the Middle Ages, during the War of the Roses, while listening to his lecture just as I did.
The basic story is "The daughter of Time" written by Josephine Tey. In this book, an inspector, who had an accident and suddenly was hospitalized, began to be interested in Richard III when seeing his picture. The portrait of Richard looked very gentle. He began to doubt if he was truely a bad guy. After some investigation, he reached the conclusion that Richard , who was thought of as a very bad man, was a duke loved by people.
"The daughter of Time"is a unique mystery.
"Why did Shakespeare make him a bad man?" The inspector thought it was because it was unfair that Heny VII became a king of England. However, he killed Richard and deposed him from the throne. Henry needed a reasonable excuse.
Thus, his deduction is expanding interestingly.
I totally was caught up in the deduction and became a fan of Duke of York, Richard. I planed to write my graduation thesis about him, but it was crushed because I gave up leaning Latin. However, my enthusiasm toward Richard had never diminished. Therefore, when I traveled privately(or, not on a guided tour) for the first time, the No.1 place which I wanted to go to was York. When I visited the city of York for the first time, I wasn't disapponted. It overwhelmed me by its beautiful scenery which was surrounded by the castle walls.

　

castle walls surrounding the town of York. If you see them, I think that you'll be overwhelmed.;

the middle in the upper line : York Minster ; right : a view from Cliford's Tower.
left in the lower line : Cliford's Tower ; the middle & right : Castle Museum.
Do you know that about twenty years ago, lightning struck York Minster, which we can say is the No.1 symbol of York? I heard that some parts of the building which had been struck by lightning were shown to the public soon after.

I have visited York three times. On the first occasion, I stayed in York for one
night. I walked on the stone pavement, which is called "Shanbles" and saw the stone gate which was made in the days of the Romans. Moreover, I went to Cliford's Tower. When I visited York Minster, I was truely impressed by the superb atmosphere. You can't imagine how beautiful the view from the tower was after going up 200 steps if you haven't been there.

On my second occasion, I visited the same places and moreover went to Jorvik Viking Centre.
However, on my third trip, I was a little disappointed. I had similar feelings when I went to Sagano in Kyoto several years ago. The dirt roads were paved. I liked to walk on its gravel road because I could touch of small stones under my feet and liked the sound which they made. Moreover, incredably, convinience stores were built along the road. The scenery was still beautiful, but there was too much tourism.
I thought that the same thing happen to York. Of course, York had remnants of its former beauty. The walls which surround the city were really wonderful. York is still a good sightseeing spot. It isn't so far from London, so you can go on a one day trip. However, I also think that there is too much tourism.
Apart from London, York is the No.1 place which I had wanted to visit, so I could recommend it as No.1, but I put it in 5th place, because of too much tourism.
However, I was surprised that there were lots of places to visit and see in York even after I visited three times. The Castle Museum, the Friargate Museum, the Model Railway and so on. Actually, on my third trip, I wanted to go to the York Dungeon, so I asked where it was at the tourist information centre. However, in stead of giving an answer, they asked me why I wanted to visit to such place!
Although there are lots of sightseeing spots, I'm sure that the No.1 place to visit is York Minster.

Scarborough

How to go
<Train>It takes about two hours and fifteen from London, Paddington station. It takes about two hours from King's Cross station. Then, change trains. It takes about one hour from York.
<Bus>It takes about five hours and fifty from Victoria Coach Station.
<In my case>I changed trains at York.

Scarborough is a one hour ride from York. Some friends asked me, "Is it the place which is famous for Scarborough Fair?" It is so, but the reason why I wanted to visit was that it is related to Richard, Duke of York. There is a very small house which people say used to belong to Richard. When I visited there, I wanted to ask somebody, "Are you sure it is Richard's house?" Yes, it is very small.
When I went there, Scarborough wasn't so popular in Japan, so only a few guidebooks introduced the place. "GIO GLOBE TROTTER"* listed only one hostel. I liked to stay at the room with a private shower, so I decided to find a hotel or B&B after arriving there. "A cheap room with a shower". The tourist information centre chose a suitable place. However, when they telephoned, nobody answered. They said, "Why don't you go? I think that he'll come back soon. " I had reservations, but I went there. After all, nobody was there. I was thinking what should I do. After a while, I saw a man carrying a shopping bag which seemed to be heavy. Yes! He was the proprietor of the B&B!
"Which sort of room would you like? With a shower or with a bath?", He asked, but I couldn't understand the question. "A room with a bath should have a shower also?", I wondered. However, it was wrong. In England, a room with a bath usually doesn't have a shower. Then you might well ask how you can wash your body or hair. I don't know, but it seems to be OK for English people.

* "GIO GLOBE TROTTER" is a series of Japanese books which talks about travelling in each country all over the wolrd. There is a lot of valuable information which is written by many of it's readers.

the first line : Scarborough Castle.
left : A house which people say used to belong to Richard ; the middle and right : Saint Mary's Church. The right photo is the tomb of Ann Bronte.
the third line : Scenery of Scarborough.

I visited Scarborough in the spring. However, spring seems to be off-season. I couldn't believe it, not only usual shops but also restaurants closed around 5 o'clock in the evening. Therefore, I ate supper in Pizza Hut or MacDonalds. After that, I went back to the B&B and was surprised. It smelled like somebody probably had had a French dinner. I guess that in the B&B, the proprietor will cook for you, if you ask in advance.
It smelled really tasty, so I regreted that I couldn't have his dinner. "If I visit Scarborough the next time, I'll ask him to cook for me!, I thought. Since then, about 10 years have passed. My long-cherished dream hasn't been realized yet.
"Does he still run the B&B there?", I wonder.