York, England

My sister and I spent 4 days and 3 nights in York.  Danny opted out.  When I planned the visit I had no idea there would be a food faire going on, so we discovered the city was very crowded. 

Our B & B was very close to the old city and to York Minster.  The Hazelwood  B & B was very comfortable with fabulous breakfasts.  Our twin room was on the 3rd floor and we found the bathroom quite small, but otherwise everything was fine. 

Restaurants
We both recommend The Phoenix Chinese Restaurant.  Delicious meal.  We also highly recommend
Cafe No. 8  for a nice, but somewhat expensive, meal.  The steak was fabulous!  The famous Betty's
(almost) always has a queue outside the restaurant.  Luckily we went at just the right time - 11.30 am on a Monday.  Betty's is a restaurant but specializes in baked goods.  The Fat Rascals (giant fruity/nutty scones) are simply gorgeous. 

York is charming with a long, interesting history including Romans, Vikings, Normans.  Old York is surrounded by the old city walls.  The city is well-preserved with cobbled streets and old buildings.  Charming! 

We visited York Minster, the largest cathedral in Northern Europe, an amazing building with a long history.  York Castle Museum was very interesting but we were most impressed with Jorvik Viking Centre.  Jorvik is on the site of an amazingly well-preserved Viking settlement.  The umm...authentic smells are included, but I could have done without them. 

York Photos Here

Tour - Italy, Switzerland.....

Danny, my sister and I did an 11 day coach tour which included an overnight ferry trip to Amsterdam, a drive through Germany, France, Switzerland, and on to Italy.  The return trip also took us through Luxembourg and Belgium. 

I have done a travelogue which is located here:
Italian Adventure

Photos are currently being uploaded here:
Tons of photos!

Prince Charles - hypocrite

Prince Charles should practice what he preaches

Yesterday as I was travelling through Glasgow Central train station with my husband and sister, we spotted the royal train with many police and cameras scattered througout the station.  Around a display labeled Green we saw a crowd and in the centre of it the very recognizable back of the balding head of Prince Charles.  We discovered that Prince Charles was travelling around the country to promote sustainable living. 

Cost to the taxpayers:  at least £50,000.  Cost to the environment:  too much.

As the article above states, he was travelling the country in the royal train which consisted of 8 cars and carried a total of 14 people. 

Of course, you have the option to read the propoganda on the BBC site which praises the Prince.
BBC praises Prince