Friday, November 23, 2012
Cathedral visit today.
Everybody seems to say it....."Durham is so beautiful and so full of lovely historical buildings"
Well, I can't actually argue with that.
But somehow it is so predictable.
Cathedral, castle, tourists, expensive shops - all the same shops you get anywhere else.
But Newcastle towers above it for character - in my humble opinion.
It has cathedrals too and a castle and all the predictable shops.
But is has more than that - surprises, quirkyness, narrow cobbled streets with shops and workshops providing so many extras.
Newcastle is for the people, in all their random ways.
But today we went to Durham. It was very many years ago that we went there last time.
Perhaps we asked too much of ourselves - a bit tired and A with a streaming head cold.
We visited the cathedral - very old and very lovely. But it is a formal place of worship and a magnet for tourists - doesn't have the intimacy say of the church we visited yesterday in Monkwearmouth.
We were not allowed to take photos of the interior.
From there we wandered - along back street alleyways until we were at the river.
The walk along the River Wear was peaceful.
Time for a little something - most places too pretentious for our needs.
Eventually we sat our weary bodies down in a bustling cafe on the first floor of the indoor market,
where we had more than little something.
It was friendly.
But we realised we would prefer to be nestling in arm chairs - bed even, at home.
So, here we are.
Don't know what we are eating tonight. Original plans were for a Chinese meal to celebrate 200 months of marriage for A and L.
How sweet that they should think of such things!
But just maybe we are too lazy to eat and some of us have eaten quite well today already.
Well, I can't actually argue with that.
But somehow it is so predictable.
Cathedral, castle, tourists, expensive shops - all the same shops you get anywhere else.
But Newcastle towers above it for character - in my humble opinion.
It has cathedrals too and a castle and all the predictable shops.
But is has more than that - surprises, quirkyness, narrow cobbled streets with shops and workshops providing so many extras.
Newcastle is for the people, in all their random ways.
But today we went to Durham. It was very many years ago that we went there last time.
Perhaps we asked too much of ourselves - a bit tired and A with a streaming head cold.
We visited the cathedral - very old and very lovely. But it is a formal place of worship and a magnet for tourists - doesn't have the intimacy say of the church we visited yesterday in Monkwearmouth.
We were not allowed to take photos of the interior.
From there we wandered - along back street alleyways until we were at the river.
The walk along the River Wear was peaceful.
Time for a little something - most places too pretentious for our needs.
Eventually we sat our weary bodies down in a bustling cafe on the first floor of the indoor market,
where we had more than little something.
It was friendly.
But we realised we would prefer to be nestling in arm chairs - bed even, at home.
So, here we are.
Don't know what we are eating tonight. Original plans were for a Chinese meal to celebrate 200 months of marriage for A and L.
How sweet that they should think of such things!
But just maybe we are too lazy to eat and some of us have eaten quite well today already.
