Planes, Trains and automobiles were our transportation on Monday September 18th.

We were up and packed and all checked out and ready for our Uber to the Dublin airport before 8am. Our flight from Dublin to Manchester, England was a quick flight on Aer Lingus. We got our bags and headed down to the train station that is conveniently located at the airport. We wanted to catch the 12:44 train to York. We bought our tickets and had time to spare to make it on this train. It should have been just under 2 hour ride to York.

As we approached Leeds the train stopped on the tracks before the station and the conductor said there was a blockage ahead and once that was cleared we would be able to come into the station. After we were in the station and the Leeds passengers disembarked the conductor came back on the line and said that our train ride into York was cancelled and we should get off the train and head to Platform 8 if we wanted to continue into York! WHAT?? We grabbed our bags and headed out wondering where platform 8 was. There were several of us scurrying about and asking questions. Josh saw a nun who was trying to hoist and haul a very large suitcase who needed to get to platform 8 with us. He grabbed her bag and hauled it up the stairs across the platform to the other side of the station and down the stairs to get to Platform 8 where the train steward was yelling that the doors were closing! When I got to the doors and he was still fussing I let him know that we were kicked off our other train and were rushing as fast as we could to make it to this train! He lightened up and held the train till we all got on. OYE! The Nun was very thankful and asked Josh for his name and I would venture that she is still praying a blessing over him! We were thankful, too, that we made it to York and to our hotel room ready to discover a new city.

Our stay in York was at The Judge’s Lodging.

After we dropped our bags and freshened up we made our way to Betty’s Tearoom where the line was very short. We waited our turn and enjoyed our one and only afternoon tea during our trip.

Laura and I chose the tea. Greg ordered the Chicken Schnitzel and Josh ended up with a burger.

From Bettys Tea Room we made our way to Bootham Bar while it was light and the weather was right for a walk on the walls. We walked the length of walls from Bootham to Monk Bar and a little beyond. Circled around to get back into the center of York through the Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma gate into the Shambles.

The Walls and Gates deserve a post of their own. We were taken in by York. This was Josh and Laura’s first time in York and our time from 2004 and 2006 needed to be refreshed.

We were very thankful we made it to York despite the stress of our cancelled train 3/4’s of the way into our journey. Thankful for nice lodgings and a lovely tea time. Thankful, too, for pleasant walking weather.