Saturday, June 17, 1989

It's My 20th Birthday... and a Farewell to Hull ...

Well, today is my birthday. And also Viv's father's birthday. And my friend Molly Sherman's birthday. And my friend Ted's brother Chip Schaeffer's birthday. And the Queen's birthday (observed.)

So on this, obviously one of the most important days of the year, I turned 20, and had only 2 1/2 hours of sleep at the same time. All the same, it was going to be a "big day" today (as Greg always says.)

I ate breakfast with my parents at the Beck House Hotel (which is conveniently only about a block away from The Grange.), and we dined at a leisurely pace as we chatted and got caught up on a number of things.

Afterward we packed up all of my gear, gave Sam my Social-Political Structures paper to hand in for me so that I could leave a bit early, along with a few other things I gave to him, and also bid farewell to Shannon the Hamster (Lorna, another hamster owner, agreed to care for her). Walked around the residence and bid farewell to J.P., Neil, and other people that I saw walking about.

Next we took a walk up to the Cottingham Road site so that my parents could see the area a bit, and also to return my library books. (Pictured above is a photo I snapped of my parents and sister along that walk.)

At noon, we hopped on the train and I said farewell to Hull for the last time, as we departed for a stop in York. While on the train, we met up with Dave Hart and his parents, who were going to York as well, so we traveled with them for a bit. It was a slow train and we didn't get to York until nearly 4 p.m., but it was another beautiful day and we still were able to see a lot.

We watched some crew races on the river (pictured is Mom and Dad watching the race), walked the shops, went through the Jorvik Viking Centre (third visit for me... my parents enjoyed it). Dad and I climbed up to the top of, oh, what's the name of that castle on the hill there again? Anyway, we climbed up and took some great photos.

At 6 p.m. we went to Pizza Hut for my birthday dinner, which marked the first time I drank a beer with my parents in public (or anywhere, for that matter). In a few days, it won't be legal for me to do that in public for another year.

While there, Dad committed a humorous faux pas. When the waitress asked him if everything was alright, he replied, "No, that will be all" (not listening to exactly what she had said.) I laughed, anyway.

Walked past the minster, and along the wall for awhile (pictured is Mom, Dad and Angie walking the wall), looking at the city until 8.15, when we returned to the train station. Dad called Dr. Morrison, while Mom and I bought drinks.

Another funny moment: Mom asked for a hot tea with a little milk, and when her order arrived, she received a hot tea and a little milk carton. Again, I saw the funny side of this.

We had a hectic train ride, constantly worrying if we were on the right train or not (the Brit Rail men did their best to confuse us). But in the end, we arrived in Liverpool only slightly late, where Dr. Morrison picked us up and drove us back to his house.

I took my parents through my photo albums over some drinks, and got to bed around 2 a.m. Almost didn't seem like a birthday, but it was a great day. Mom and Dad gave me a Beatles shirt on the train, which was nice, and Dr. Morrison and Fiona gave me a Liverpool F.C. scarf and hat. Love 'em both! (Pictured is me and Mom in Dr. Morrison's dining room, modeling my new winter gear over drinks and looking at my photo albums.)

Friday, November 25, 1988

Another Fine Day in York ...

Woke up to the thunderous sounds of J.P. pounding relentlessly on my door until I responded. So now that I was up, Viv and I went over to the refectory for some breakfast, and then it was time for another trip to the city of York.

J.P., Doug, Neil, Little Johnny, Viv and I caught the bus to York. It was a really nice day for the trip, and I was able to get a number of really good photographs. Shortly after we arrived, J.P., Neil, John and Doug broke away because they wanted to hit the pubs, and Viv and I didn't, so we were on our own for the day.

After stopping at the bank, we went to the Jorvik Viking Centre museum (which I liken to "Hershey's Chocolate World, but with Vikings and a Less Pleasant Aroma.") It was an interesting museum (I had been there with my high school group in '87), and there was no line to get in! When I went in '87, there was a huge line, but being a group, we were allowed to cut to the front.

After that, we ate at Wimpy's, and then hit Record Mania, where I found another Genesis single that I needed, "It's Yourself." I also bought some rock postcards to hang in my room, as well as a "Steamboat Willie" postcard and a copy of "The Times." We walked around the different shops, walked through York Minster (much less crowded then the last time I visited), and went to the York Art Museum.

After the museum we walked along the wall surrounding the city (farther than I walked last time), and then just perused the town until we stopped at a cafeteria for some dinner. After that, we casually walked back to the bus station, where eventually we met up with the rest of our crew.

So we waited for our 5.45 bus. And waited. And waited.

Finally, we were told that the bus was not coming and that we'd have to take an alternate and much longer bus route back to Hull. This was caused by an East Yorkshire Bus strike, so we did what we had to do to get home. We had some very interesting conversations with other passengers on this bus, and a "relieving" stop for some at the bus stop in Driffield, where we changed to the bus that would take us back to Hull. We finally made it back to Hull around 8 p.m.

Turned out the bus drivers had gone on a wildcat four-hour strike, right around the time we were needing their services. Convenient, huh?

Little John let me use the record player in his room so I could listen to my new record and the "Sussudio" EP I bought a few days ago. He played some Macc Lads as well. Afterward I returned to my room to rest and write, and spent the remainder of the evening with Viv.

*****
(Pictures: Top photo, is a narrow street known as The Shambles, which dates back to medieval times and featuring several small shops. York Minster is in the background. Second photo, a flamingo table at the York Art Museum. Note photographer in the mirror. Third photo, Viv outside York Minster. Fourth photo, the wall surrounding York. I will include other photos of York over the next few days, since not much happened photo-wise during that time.)

Saturday, November 12, 1988

A Day in York

Oh what to do today, with Viv not around. Managed to wake up relatively early, about 9.00 a.m., got dressed and showered (though not actually in that order... see, this is why I need to write my journal in pencil!) But we had some fun planned... a group of us were planning a trip a bit north to the City of York.

I had been to the city back during my Camp Hill High School class trip back in the spring of 1987, and it was one of my favorite stops along that trip. So I was looking forward to returning... back then I had no idea I would be returning so soon. That was probably the moment where I started to think that I'd like to someday come back to Britain and study so that I'd have more time to spend in places like this.

Anyway, at about noon we caught the city bus, which meandered from Hull to York. It's about 40 miles away, and we finally arrived at about 1.30 p.m. The train would've been faster, but the bus was much cheaper. For a couple of poor college lads, the bus was the best option.

Once we got there, we walked around the various shops for awhile until Big Jon, Paul, J.P. and Littly Johnny went to a pub. Doug and I decided to continue walking around the very picturesque town, taking in the very crowded sights and sounds of York (lots of Christmas shoppers already!)

We went into York Minster, and it was very impressive. However, I felt that there were just too many visitors in the church at that time to really enjoy it. I did get some nice black-and-white photographs outside of the minster.

Afterward, we walked along the wall that surrounds York, during which time we crossed paths with the rest of our group. Doug and I then walked down the steps off the wall and walked around town some more, taking in more of the sites of York. When we have more time (Our next trip here will likely be on Nov. 25), we will be able to take in more of the sites.

I bought a cheap Mike + the Mechanics EP, "Nobody's Perfect," for 99p, and the sheet music to The Proclaimers song "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" so that I could practice it on my guitar back in my room. But later, as we were on the bus home, I realized that the inside page was missing, so I didn't have the full song. Bugger all!

Anyway, after walking around York a bit longer, Doug and I found the train station where we were to pick up the bus. We grabbed some dinner there while we waited for the rest of our group to arrive, and I also bought a copy of "The Times." We caught the 5.45 bus and headed back to Hull, where we finally arrived at about 7.30 p.m.

After returning, I took a brief sortie out to Double Happiness for some delicious chips 'n gravy, over to the "offie" to buy four cans of Tennent's Lager, as well as a bottle of Cloberg (Yugoslavian wine) for later use.

Later, we had a casual, less intense water battle, which ended when we decided to retire to the television room in St. Hilda's to watch the Eddie Murphy-Nick Nolte film "48 Hours."

Afterwards I returned to my room to write my latest article as the foreign correspondent for The Snapper. It was a criticism of the IRA, the Irish Republican Army. It may ruffle a few feathers. Well, good night.

(Photos: #1 - Me along the wall in York, near York Minster; #2 - York Minster, as seen from the wall; #3- Doug in York; #4 - A street artist paints a portrait on the sidewalk in York.)