Yorked!

By the wonders of the Grimston Bar Park &  Ride and a rather smart bendy bus, we found ourselves in city centre York in under 45mins.
An old walled town with centuries of history, it's going to take a few visits to really get around all there is to see.

The Minster is probably the most famous building in York. Notable for the events of June 1984 when the Bishop of Durham was ordained there.
He had previously been outspoken about certain elements of The Bible and cast personal doubt about the truth of such things as the virgin birth and walking on water.
Two days after the ceremony, York Minster was struck by a thunderbolt, destroying much of the roof and causing £2.5m of damage.

Hmmmmm.....

York is a Minster. It's a Cathedral too, but the Minster part refers to a prior use as a teaching centre for a local monasteries. A sort of outpost of religion. Usually the first church in an area whose function was to introduce the idea to the locals and teach monks to go forth and do the same. 

Basically, it means it's VERY old. 

York is a medieval city, with many visible references to it's long past. A staging post for the Roman 6th Legion, a mooring on the River Ouse for Viking longships (ahead of the battle at Stamford Bridge in 1066), and the birthplace of Guy Fawkes who is fondly remembered every 5th November with the mass burning of his effigy.

More up to date, "Betty's Tea Rooms" on the corner of St.Helen's Square  remains in a 1940's timewarp, when it was the 'go to'  place for the RAF Air Crews on leave from the Bomber Airfields of North and East Yorkshire.